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Minnesota Public Criminal Court Records
Search Minnesota criminal court cases in MCRO, work around pending-case name limits, and request older documents or certified copies from the court.
Start with the identifier MCRO can actually search
Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO) provides public state district court case information and documents. Its search rules make the choice of identifier especially important for criminal cases.
Case without a conviction
A defendant-name search will not return it. Use the case number, citation number, attorney name or attorney bar number. MCRO also classifies dismissed and continued-for-dismissal cases as pending for this search restriction.
Name search for an eligible case
Names are searched exactly. Try an asterisk wildcard or Sounds Like when spelling varies; Sounds Like still requires the same first letter. A broader result list requires closer identity checking.
Case found, document missing
A document index number can exist without an attached document. Use the case reference when asking court administration for the filing; an index entry is not itself a downloadable copy.
Use filing date to judge online document coverage
| Document filing period | What the public MCRO service provides |
|---|---|
| July 1, 2015 onward | Public documents in major and minor criminal case types, subject to remote-access restrictions. |
| July 1, 2005–June 30, 2015 | Judgments, orders, appellate opinions and court-generated notices in case types publicly accessible remotely when filed. This is narrower than the complete file. |
| Earlier or otherwise unavailable online | Contact administration in the county of filing to locate the record and learn the available access route. |
Documents available for download through MCRO are free. Case Search leads to the register of actions; Document Search uses the case number to locate available public documents. The coverage dates concern filings, so do not treat an older case’s opening year as proof that every later document is unavailable.
Request the copy that the receiving organization needs
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01
Identify the filing county and item
Keep the case number, document title and filing date. For an unavailable document or a copy request, contact that county’s court administration using the Judiciary’s copy-request instructions.
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02
Choose ordinary or authenticated
Uncertified copies are free under those instructions. Certified and exemplified copies have applicable charges; confirm payment and the required format before ordering.
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03
Arrange retrieval with the office
An in-person copy can often be supplied the same day, but an offsite record may take longer. For a mailed request, follow the payment instructions or applicable fee-waiver procedure rather than assuming counter availability.
Keep a court search separate from a history check
Two limits matter
An MCRO watermark does not certify a document; certification comes from the originating court administration. MCRO also directs background-check users to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. A missing name result therefore cannot be treated as a complete clearance of criminal history.
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