An arrest warrant gives the police authorities in California the right to seize a person and put them under custody. Like everywhere across the United States, California arrest warrants cannot be issued unless a judge first signs them. It is essential to know that an outstanding warrant is valid only in the state and county where it was issued. That is to say, a Loss Angeles arrest warrant can be implemented only in Los Angeles and not in another County. Lastly, a warrant ought to relate to a specific individual who committed the offense.
An orderly process must occur for an arrest warrant to be issued against a person in Los Angeles. The police department initiates a request to be presented to a judge in an LA court of law. The request must be grounded on substantial evidence indicating a crime has been committed. The judge enjoys full discretion of whether to accept the police’s request or deny it. Once a Los Angeles arrest warrant has been issued, the police have a period of 48 hours to make an arrest.
Los Angeles arrest records cover all arrest cases against a person. In many cases, the records will contain additional data, such as the violation of which a person is suspected, the crime timeframe, and a description of the offender. The National Crime Information Center (NCIC) has a full and elaborated arrest records database, yet unfortunately, access to these databases is limited. An LA resident has access only to records related to his state and county.
So to gain access to LA arrest records, one can resort to several methods. One way is to turn to the courthouse, to the criminal clerk window. This option might be problematic if you intend to check up on someone else. In that case, you will have to justify the request.
Turning to the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (it can be found on http://sheriff.lacounty.gov/wps/portal/lasd/). The department operates a Countywide Warrant System (CWS) designed to provide information on warrants and wanted persons in Los Angeles County.
Another viable and very convenient way to retrieve information on arrest warrants in Los Angeles County is to use the above search form to search through an online criminal records database instantly.
How do you look up information on recent arrests and active warrants from Los Angeles County over the phone? (2023)
- Call the Inmate Information Bureau at (213) 473-6100 for information on arrests and inmates.
- For general inquiries, get in touch with the Sheriff’s Office using the phone number of the Agency’s Information Bureau- (213) 229-1700.
- For immediate assistance pertaining to an inmate (medical emergencies only), call the Medical Command Center at (213) 893-5544.
- Call the DA’s Office at (800) 380-3811 for the victim’s assistance.
- Contact the agency at (562) 946-7125 for narcotics-related complaints.
- For information on an inmate who is currently in a Work-Release Program, call (213) 893-5345.
- For police reports, accident reports and criminal records, get in touch with the Records Division at (562) 345-4426.
Crime statistics for Los Angeles County, CA
Since Los Angeles County is the most populated area of California, its extraordinarily high annual crime average of well over 20,000 incidents is to be expected. In 2018, the annual crime rate hovered around the 22,000 incident mark, but by 2019, it had dropped impressively to about 20,600 incidents. In both years, more than 15000 complaints were filed against property crimes while violent crimes were responsible for the remaining 25% (5000 plus) complaints.