What are arrest records and arrest warrants?

Like all other states Kansas law has made provisions for the issue of multiple types of arrest orders. Although people typically only hear about Kansas arrest warrants issued in felonies, these directives for detention are also common place in other criminal matters, in cases of failure to appear and contempt of court. The second type of arrest orders is known as bench warrant. In contrast decrees that are issued in misdemeanor and felony cases are known as active warrants.

How are Kansas bench warrants different from active orders for arrests?

Like Kansas outstanding warrants which are executed by the local police, bench orders are also served by peace officers. However, unlike the former which can be executed without any thought to time or place, bench warrants can only be used to effect an arrest from 6 am to 10 pm when the accused is to be picked up from his residence. Also, these warrants can only be served within the confines of the issuing county.

Of course, the magistrate who signs the warrant can waive off any or all of these restrictions and even allow nighttime arrests. The difference in how these legal processes are issued should also be considered here. While active warrants in Kansas are based on probable cause which is established through the facts brought in by the police, the judiciary has been given the authority to issue bench warrants of its own accord.

Probable cause is an essential requirement in case of all criminal arrests, whether they are made under the provisions of a warrant or not. In contrast, when it comes to bench warrants, the court already has information concerning the crime committed by the offender and hence can issue an arrest order verbally or in writing without requiring the police to submit a probable cause writ.

What are Kansas arrest records?

Arrest records is a term used to denote the data collected in the CHRI (Crime History Records and Information Repository) of the Kansas Bureau of Investigations (KBI). Although information on all criminal cases, traffic and civil violations as well as any arrest orders issued in such matters and case details are kept in this database, civilian applicants looking for a warrant search are only given limited crime history results.

The details furnished are restricted to criminal cases that are still undergoing diversion or where the verdict is pending or matters where a guilty sentence verdict has been pronounced. Information on dismissals, juvenile offender cases, expungements, completed diversions and acquittals is not offered to civilians seeking crime history data. The KBI disseminates information on warrants and arrest records in response to a name based query launched by any applicant.

Finding crime history information in Kansas

Given the free records policy followed by the state government, people can find multiple sources of information on crime history data in Kansas. Among them is the Kansas Bureau of Investigations which offers online, ‘mailed in’ as well as ‘in person’ searches. In response to such inquiries, the department releases an abstract of records which is termed as a rap sheet.

This document whether mailed to the applicant or supplied via electronic means will contain the name of the subject, any identifiers available, a detailed tabular listing of all criminal acts that the person is connected with and how these matters were disposed of or the stage at which they are in the legal process.

The KBI charges $20 for the search and it will be billed as two separate transactions on your card; one for $18.25 which is the transaction fee and another for $1.75 which is the convenience fee. Apart from a name based inquiry, the department also undertakes fingerprint based searches. However, applicants will have to incur an additional cost of $10 for fingerprinting. A mailed inquiry will cost you $35. To place your request, send it to Kansas Bureau of Investigation: Criminal History Records Section, 1620 SW Tyler, Topeka, KS 66612-1837. For online searches: Go to http://www.accesskansas.org/kbi/criminalhistory/.

Kansas court records can also be accessed by contacting the office of the county clerk or you could visit Kansas Judicial Center, 301 S.W. 10th Street, Topeka, KS 66612. You can also fax your inquires to (785) 296-7076 or email the agency at keefover et kscourts.org. If you seek inmate information, the Kansas Department of Corrections will be able to help. They offer an online tool for such inquires at https://kdocrepository.doc.ks.gov/kasper/ or you could connect with the agency at:

Kansas Department of CorrectionsC/O Public Information Officer900 SW Jackson4th FloorLandon State Office BuildingTopeka, Kansas 66612Kansas Crime Statistics

Between 1999 and 2008, an estimated 1.2 million criminal incidents occurred in the state of Kansas. Of these crimes, nearly 10% were of a violent nature and included about 1200 murders and 11,000 rapes. These numbers were insignificant in comparison to the rate of property crimes which peaked at over 1 million cases.

Thefts were by far the most common type of criminal act occurring the area. On an annual basis, approximately, 120,000 complaints are filed with the sheriffs’ departments across the state. This has been the scenario despite a drop of over 10% in reported crime.