Find Fort Wayne Arrest Records
Fort Wayne arrest records are managed by the Fort Wayne Police Department and the Allen County Sheriff's Office. As the second largest city in Indiana with roughly 265,000 residents, Fort Wayne sees a high volume of arrests and bookings each year. You can search for arrest data, request police reports, and look up court cases tied to criminal charges in the Fort Wayne area. All records requests follow Indiana's Access to Public Records Act under Indiana Code 5-14-3. Online tools and in-person options make it possible to track down the records you need without much hassle.
Fort Wayne Quick Facts
Fort Wayne Police Department Records
The Fort Wayne Police Department is the main law enforcement agency in the city. Chief Caudill leads the department, which handles all arrests and incident reports within Fort Wayne city limits. If you need a copy of a police report, all requests go through the department's NextRequest portal. You must have a valid email to use the system.
The Fort Wayne Police Department website is the starting point for finding arrest records and report request tools.
The site links to records request forms, department contacts, and public safety resources.
Police reports will not be handed out at the front desk while you wait. Every request goes through a review before release. Staff can help you submit a request through the portal if you are not sure how it works. All Fort Wayne Police Department requests for police reports or law enforcement recordings are made and delivered solely through NextRequest. Crash reports may follow a different process than other arrest reports.
Below is the NextRequest portal used for all Fort Wayne arrest record requests.
The city uses this portal to fulfill inquiries from the public and other agencies for police reports, public records, and non-party subpoena production requests.
Note: While police reports are public records, not all reports are releasable under Indiana law.
Allen County Arrest Records
The Allen County Sheriff's Office runs the county jail and processes all bookings for arrests made in the Fort Wayne area. Sheriff Troy Hershberger was elected in November 2022. The sheriff's office mission is to enhance the quality of life for Allen County citizens by working in partnership to provide safety, security, and service. Every booking record has the person's name, charges, bond amount, and booking date.
The Allen County Sheriff website is shown here.
This site links to jail info, booking data, and the records division contact details.
You can also use the INjail portal to search current inmates in the Allen County jail. Select Allen County from the dropdown to see who is held right now. The portal updates regularly but may lag behind real-time bookings. For the most current data, call the jail directly. If you are a defendant in a current criminal case, contact your attorney to get arrest reports through the normal discovery process instead of the public records system.
Fort Wayne Court Case Search
Criminal cases from Fort Wayne arrests end up in Allen Superior Court or Allen Circuit Court. You can search for free on MyCase, the state court records portal. Type in a name or case number to find charges, hearing dates, and case outcomes. No account is needed.
Court records track each step of a criminal case from the initial filing through sentencing or dismissal. If someone was arrested in Fort Wayne and charges were filed, the court record will eventually show up in MyCase. New filings may take a day or two as the clerk enters them. The Allen County Clerk's Office manages all filings and stores case records for the county.
Requests approved or denied through Fort Wayne's system follow Indiana Code 5-14-3. If your request is denied, you get a written explanation with the legal basis and the name of the official responsible. You can appeal to the Indiana Public Access Counselor if you think the denial was wrong.
Statewide Fort Wayne Arrest Checks
The Indiana State Police criminal history service runs statewide arrest checks that cover Fort Wayne and all Indiana counties. A search costs $15 per name. Results include felony and Class A misdemeanor arrests reported to the state. This works well if you want to check for records beyond Allen County.
The Indiana Courts website links to local court contacts for every county. The Indiana DOC offender locator shows people sentenced to state prison. If someone was arrested in Fort Wayne, convicted, and sent to a state facility, the DOC tool shows their current location and sentence details.
Expungement in Fort Wayne
Under Indiana Code 35-38-9, certain arrest and conviction records can be sealed through expungement. If you were arrested in Fort Wayne but never charged, or if charges were dismissed, you may qualify. Some misdemeanor and felony convictions can also be expunged after a waiting period based on the offense type.
The process starts by filing a petition in the Allen County court where the case was handled. Once sealed, those records no longer show up in public tools like MyCase or the ISP criminal history check. Not every case qualifies. Talk to an attorney in the Fort Wayne area or contact the Allen County court clerk for guidance on whether your situation meets the requirements.
Note: Law enforcement and some agencies can still see expunged records, but the general public cannot access them.
Allen County Arrest Records Page
Fort Wayne is the county seat of Allen County. All arrest records from the city feed into the Allen County court and jail systems. For county-level resources, including the sheriff's office and jail operations, visit the Allen County page.