Bergen County Arrest Records

Arrest records are official documents relating to the arrest of individuals. In Bergen County, New Jersey, the Sheriff's Office, the New Jersey State Police, and other state and federal law enforcement agencies use arrest records to document the instances they take individuals into custody. These records play crucial roles during criminal case prosecutions within the Bergen County Superior and Municipal Courts and are components of the Bergen County court records.

Arrests become necessary if a law enforcement officer witnesses a crime. Furthermore, law officers can take an individual into custody if

• There is an active warrant on the person
• The person is involved in domestic violence
• The individual is a risk to self or the public
• The individual intends to flee prosecution for a crime
• The court issued a bench warrant for the person's arrest.

Depending on the outcome of arrests, length of sentence, and age of the arrestees, law enforcement within Bergen County may detain convicts or people they arrest at

• Local Police Department Holding Cells
• Bergen County Jail
• Bergen County Juvenile Detention Center
• Federal detention facilities.

Are Arrest Records Public in Bergen County?

Yes, arrest records are public in Bergen County. The New Jersey Open Public Records Act grants individuals access to government records (including Bergen County arrest records). However, the law does not grant access to Bergen County arrest records, which may expose record owners to danger or invade their privacy. As such, the public cannot access Bergen County arrest records relating to minors, victims or witnesses, undercover law enforcement agents, sealed or expunged records, or informant information. Notwithstanding the restriction, exempted records are accessible to their owners and their legal representatives, law enforcement, and individuals with subpoenas.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

Arrest records provide information about their owners, the reasons for arrest, the booking process, and the conditions for their release. Generally, this information includes

• Name, age, gender, and race of the owner of the record
• Charges (reasons for the arrest)
• Date, time, and location of arrest
• Name of the arresting agency and badge number of the officer who executed the arrest
• Booking number, fingerprints, and mugshots
• Bail or Bond amount
• Court information (if the arrest leads to prosecution or results from a bench warrant).

Bergen County Crime Rate

The FBI crime index report for 2022 shows an increase in Bergen County's crime rate. In 2022, Bergen County law enforcement agencies reported over 6,500 crime incidents to the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

Contrariwise, there were 3,616 crime reports from law enforcement agencies operating within the county for 2021. Over this period, larceny theft was the most consistent crime.

In 2022, law enforcement agencies reported 4,869 larceny-theft incidents within Bergen County. This figure was over 74.00% of all violent and property crimes within the county. Also, larceny theft accounts for 2,467 of the 3,616 crime incidents reported by law enforcement agencies within Bergen County to the NIBRS in 2021.

Bergen County Arrest Statistics

According to statistics from the NIBRS, there was an increase in the number of persons taken into custody by law enforcement officers in Bergen County in 2022. The NIBRS data show that law enforcement agencies arrested 3,617 persons for various crimes in 2022. In contrast, there were 2,331 arrest reports in 2021. Generally, there was an increase in the number of arrests for some crimes. The table below outlines the arrest statistics in Bergen County for 2022 and 2021.

Data Source: FBI Crime Explorer.

Find Bergen County Arrest Records

Bergen arrest records are publicly available information and accessible to the public; to access them:

• Download an OPRA Request Form from the Bergen County Sheriff's Office website, complete the form, mail or hand deliver it to the Bergen County Sheriff's Office at

2 Bergen County Plaza
Hackensack,
NJ 07601

• Contact Bergen County local police departments and request access to arrest records in their possession.
• Visit the Bergen County Jail and submit a request to access publicly available inmate records (arrest records are part of inmate records).

Free Arrest Record Search in Bergen County

Although there are no guarantees of free access to government records in New Jersey, record seekers may access Bergen County arrest records for free through third-party online resources. Some private websites offer free access to court and law enforcement records. They gather information from various sources and offer them to interested persons at no cost. Also, the New Jersey Court Access Portal provides free access to criminal case information (this may include Bergen County arrest records).

Get Bergen County Criminal Records

Criminal records are comprehensive details of individuals’ criminal histories. They encompass individuals' encounters with the criminal justice system and contain details of arrests, prosecutions, convictions, and incarcerations.

Bergen County criminal records are official case files on criminal prosecutions within the county's Superior and Municipal Courts.

Bergen County criminal record seekers should

• Log to the New Jersey Court Access Portal, provide the necessary information, and search for records relating to Bergen County criminal cases.
• Visit the Bergen County Superior Court’s clerk's office and make an OPRA request to access criminal records.
• Log in to the New Jersey Police Criminal History Records Information Portal and request access to criminal records.

Bergen County Arrest Records Vs. Criminal Records

Bergen County arrest and criminal records detail individuals' interactions with the justice system. They are documents that aid law enforcement in apprehending persons who committed offenses. However, both documents serve different purposes, and several distinctions exist between them.

Arrest records are created by law enforcement agencies to detail the arrest of individuals. They contain personal details and outline the reasons for the arrests and the conditions for releasing the arrestees. The courts generate criminal records during criminal case trials. Criminal records detail the prosecution, conviction, and incarceration of individuals who commit criminal offenses.

Arrest records are an integral part of criminal records, they are precursor documents for the early stages of criminal prosecutions and are not conclusive evidence of the guilt or innocence of their owners. Criminal records are confirmation of a guilty verdict by the court against the owner of the record.

A Bergen County criminal record leaves a greater negative effect on an individual than an arrest record. Although both records may impact employment, housing, and other opportunities, a criminal record may lead to a lifetime stigmatization of the owner.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

Depending on the outcome of the arrest, some arrest information may stay permanently on a record if their owners do not petition the court for their sealing or removal.

However, per New Jersey laws, information about arrests that did not result in conviction is automatically removed from records.

Expunge Bergen County Arrest Records

The New Jersey Expungement Law allows individuals to seal or remove arrest information from their records if they fulfill the eligibility requirements. In Bergen County or any of the New Jersey counties, the owner of an arrest record can petition the court for its sealing or removal if

• The arrest does not lead to a conviction.
• The conviction is for a misdemeanor, or third-degree or fourth-degree indictable offense (some second-degree offenses such as robbery and burglary may be eligible under stringent conditions)
• The owner of the record has completed the sentence for the offense and paid all court-imposed fines or made restitutions.
• There are no new charges or convictions from the time of completing the sentence for the offense to the present.
• The waiting period for the crime has elapsed.

Records for arrests that did not lead to conviction are sealed automatically. However, a 6-month waiting period applies to dismissed cases. For misdemeanors and indictable offenses, there is a 5-year waiting period after completing the sentence for the offense. Also, an individual can expunge one indictable and three disorderly offenses in a lifetime.

Eligible Bergen County arrestees who seek to remove the information from their records can follow the guidelines below:

• Obtain certified copies of the disposition documents and personal criminal history (these are obtainable from the Court that handled the case and New Jersey State Police)
• Log in to the New Jersey Courts Forms Page and download an Application for Expungement of Arrest or Charge Records Form (Form A), Order for Hearing (Form B), and a Proposed Expungement Order (These forms may also be available through the Bergen County court clerk's offices)
• Complete the forms, attach copies of the disposition and criminal records, and file a petition at the Bergen County Superior Court.
• Pay all applicable filing fees.
• Send notice of the petition to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office, the New Jersey State Police, and the agency responsible for the arrest.
• Attend hearings to defend the petition against objections from interested parties.
• The judge will sign the Proposed Expungement Order Form if the petition is successful.
• Receive the signed Proposed Expungement Order Form and deliver copies to the relevant agencies.
• Follow up the expungement process and ensure that they comply and seal or remove the record.
• Keep copies of the expungement documents for future reference.

Bergen County Arrest Warrants

Arrest warrants are court-issued documents that authorize law enforcement to arrest individuals. Law enforcement can approach the court for arrest warrants if they can prove probable cause.

In Bergen County, a judge or magistrate of the Superior or Municipal Courts may issue an arrest warrant if law enforcement shows evidence of that.

• A suspect committed an arrestable offense.
• An offender plans to flee the jurisdiction to avoid prosecution
• A person has information that may aid law enforcement investigation but is unwilling to divulge it
• A convict violated the terms of parole or probation
• A person knowingly interfered with official law enforcement or judicial investigation.

Generally, a valid arrest warrant should contain the following information:

• Legal name, aliases, physical description, and last known address of the suspect
• Charges against the suspect/defendant and the New Jersey allegedly violated
• Seal and signature of the issuing law officer
• Date and location of issuance
• Geographical area where the warrant is active
• Instructions to law enforcement on how to execute and return the warrant.

Bergen County Arrest Warrant Search

To search for Bergen County active arrest warrants:

• Call the Bergen County Sheriff's Office at (201) 336-3500 or visit local law enforcement agencies within the county and inquire about active arrest warrants.
• Log in to the New Jersey State Police Most Wanted Page and search for information relating to Bergen County wanted persons.
• Visit the Bergen County Superior and Municipal Courthouses and request information about court-issued arrest warrants from the clerk's offices.
• Log in to the New Jersey Department of Corrections Escaped Persons Page and look for information relating to Bergen County.
• Tune in to local TV and radio stations. They may have news about wanted persons.
• Search for Bergen County arrest warrants online through third-party law enforcement records repositories of local media websites. Also, information about wanted persons may be available on local public notice boards.

Do Bergen County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No, Bergen County arrest warrants do not expire. Generally, arrest warrants remain active until the subject is taken into custody, the court quashes it, or the wanted person dies.