Find Criminal Records in Riverside County

Criminal court records in Riverside County are kept by the Superior Court of California, County of Riverside. The court runs a public access portal built on Journal Technologies where you can search criminal cases online. Riverside County is one of the fastest-growing counties in California, spread across a large area from the western valleys near the Inland Empire out to the desert communities along the Arizona border. The court operates multiple locations to handle cases from across the county. This page explains how to search for, request, and get copies of Riverside County criminal court records.

Search Riverside County Criminal Court Records Online

The Riverside County Superior Court provides an online public access portal at epublic-access.riverside.courts.ca.gov. The system uses Journal Technologies, the same platform a number of California courts rely on. You can search by defendant name, case number, or filing date. The portal returns basic case information including charges, hearing dates, the assigned courthouse, and the current case status. There is no cost to search. You do not need an account.

The Riverside County public access portal at the court's website is the starting point for any online criminal record search in the county.

What you see on the portal is not the full case file. California Rules of Court Rule 2.503 limits what criminal case documents are available through remote electronic access. Registers of action, calendars, and indexes are generally available online. But the actual filings, motions, reports, and orders in a criminal case typically require a visit to the courthouse. If you find a case on the Riverside County portal and need the underlying documents, plan to go in person or submit a copy request by mail.

Riverside County Criminal Court Locations

Riverside County is a big county and the Superior Court has multiple courthouses spread across it. Criminal cases get assigned based on where the crime took place. The main courthouse is in the city of Riverside, which is the county seat. There are also courthouses in areas like Indio, Murrieta, Banning, and other locations that handle criminal matters for their parts of the county.

Before you visit a courthouse to get records, check which location has the case. The online portal shows the assigned courthouse in the search results. Each courthouse has its own clerk's office and that is where the physical file lives. If you go to the wrong location, they will not have the file. The clerk at any location can tell you which courthouse handles a specific case if you call ahead. Court hours are Monday through Friday, and most clerk's offices open at 8:00 a.m. Closing times may vary by location, so confirm before you make the drive.

Note: Cases from the western part of Riverside County are often heard at different courthouses than cases from the desert communities in the east.

Riverside County Criminal Record Fees

Copy fees for Riverside County criminal court records follow the California statewide schedule. Plain copies are $0.50 per page. That rate is set by Government Code Section 70627 and applies in all 58 counties. Certified copies cost $40 per document on top of the per-page charge. Use certified copies when you need the record for a legal proceeding or official purpose. Plain copies work fine for personal use.

Extra fees can come up. If the clerk spends more than 10 minutes looking for a record, there is a $15 search fee. Records stored off-site carry a $10 retrieval charge. For recent cases, these extras are unlikely. But for older cases in Riverside County, especially ones from decades ago, the search and retrieval fees are more common. Always ask the clerk for an estimate before they start the work if costs are a concern.

How to Get Riverside County Criminal Court Records

There are three ways to get copies. In person is the quickest. Go to the clerk's office at the courthouse that has the case. Give them the case number or defendant name. The clerk pulls the file and makes copies while you wait. Pay at the counter. Bring cash, a check, or a money order. Some courthouse locations now accept credit cards, but not all of them in Riverside County do.

By mail, write a request that includes the case number, defendant name, the documents you need, and your contact info. Include a check or money order for the estimated fees, payable to the Riverside County Superior Court. Mail it to the clerk's office at the correct courthouse. Processing takes a few weeks for most requests. Large volume requests or older cases take longer. If the clerk needs more info or more money, they will contact you, which adds time.

The online portal lets you view case summaries but downloading full documents for criminal cases is limited. For the complete file, in-person or mail requests are the reliable options. The California Courts Self-Help guide walks through the general process that applies to Riverside County and every other court in the state.

Criminal Record Access Laws in Riverside County

Criminal court records in Riverside County are public records under California law. Anyone can request copies. You do not need to be a party to the case. The general rule is that court filings are open to the public unless a specific law or court order seals them. Most criminal complaints, plea documents, sentencing orders, and registers of action are available. This applies whether the case is active, closed, or resolved.

Exceptions exist. Juvenile cases are confidential. Mental health records within a criminal case are restricted. Under Penal Code Section 1203.4, a person who completes probation can petition to have the conviction dismissed. When a Riverside County case is expunged through this process, the court record still exists. It gets updated to show the dismissal, but it is not deleted. Anyone searching the record will see the original charges along with the dismissal notation.

Under Penal Code Section 851.8, a person found factually innocent can petition to seal and destroy their arrest record. If granted, related court records may be sealed as well. These are rare outcomes, but they do happen in Riverside County cases.

Riverside County Sheriff and State Records

The Riverside County Sheriff's Department runs the county jail system and maintains booking records for anyone arrested in unincorporated areas or contract cities. The sheriff's inmate lookup tool shows who is currently in custody. Enter a name and the system returns booking info, charges, bail amounts, and the facility where the person is held. This is separate from the court's case search. Booking records show who got arrested. Court records show what happened after charges were filed.

For city arrests, contact the police department in the city where the arrest happened. Riverside, Corona, Moreno Valley, Murrieta, Temecula, and other cities with their own police handle their own arrest records. The sheriff covers the rest. Each agency has a records division that processes requests.

At the state level, the California DOJ keeps the master criminal history database under Penal Code Section 11105. You can get your own record through the DOJ Record Review for $25 via Live Scan. The CDCR CIRIS search lets you look up anyone in state prison, including people sentenced out of Riverside County. Both are useful tools alongside what you can get from the county Superior Court.

Expungement of Riverside County Criminal Records

If you have a criminal conviction in Riverside County and have finished probation, you may be able to get it dismissed under Penal Code Section 1203.4. This is what people commonly call expungement. You file a petition with the Riverside County Superior Court. The judge reviews it, and if the conditions are met, the conviction is dismissed. The record does not disappear. It stays in the court system but shows the updated status.

The process involves filling out court forms, filing them with the clerk, and attending a hearing in some cases. There are filing fees unless you qualify for a fee waiver. The California Courts Self-Help site has information on the forms and steps. For Riverside County, you file at the courthouse that handled the original case. After dismissal, the DOJ updates its records too, so the change shows up on state-level background checks as well as the local court record.

Riverside County Cities

These major cities are in Riverside County. All criminal cases from these cities are handled by the Riverside County Superior Court. Select a city for local criminal court record info.

Nearby Counties

These counties share borders with Riverside County. Each has its own Superior Court for criminal case filings.