Union County Criminal Court Records
A criminal court record begins when a criminal case is filed in court. In Union County, the researched local trial court is the Union County Circuit Court. The official Circuit Court page says the court has jurisdiction in all criminal and civil matters for the county and administers probation, community corrections, and public defenders. The Union County Prosecutor represents the State of Indiana in prosecuting alleged violations of state statutes. The Union County Clerk maintains the court filings, pleadings, motions, evidence, judgments, orders, decrees, fines, fees, and judgment payments that make up the official case file.
That division matters. A sheriff booking record can show an arrest and suspected offense before a filed court case exists. A criminal court record shows the formal charge, count, case number, hearing history, plea, motion practice, disposition, sentence, and financial entries once the matter is in court. The separate Union County arrest records and court charges resource focuses on the arrest-to-charge path, while criminal court records stay with the full court case file after filing.
Search Union County Criminal Records
Public Union County criminal court records are searched through MyCase or the Indiana Public Access Portal. The state public-records hub says some court documents and filings are available through MyCase at no cost, and the Union County court sources route local case searches to the same state system. Search by case number when possible. If the case number is not known, search by defendant name, add date of birth if available, and filter to Union County and Union County Circuit Court.
- Open MyCase or the Public Access Portal and choose the public case search.
- Use the criminal case number if known, with formatting as close as possible to the Indiana case number.
- Search by defendant name when the case number is unknown, then narrow by Union County, court, case type, and filing date.
- Open the case detail and read the chronological case summary, charges, hearings, financials, and disposition sections.
- Check linked documents, but do not assume a missing document is confidential. It may simply not be online.
- Contact the Union County Clerk for certified copies, public filings not linked online, official balances, decrees, transcripts, and older criminal case material.
The assigned image from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana is useful federal context, but Union County criminal court records are local state court records unless the prosecution is federal.
Federal criminal cases for Union County defendants are separate from Union County Circuit Court cases and are searched through federal court systems.
Union County Criminal Case Flow
A criminal court record changes as the case moves through the system. A new case may start with a charging document, probable-cause material if public, an initial hearing, and bond terms. Later docket entries can show appearances, attorney filings, discovery motions, continuances, plea negotiations, trial settings, hearings, disposition, sentencing, probation conditions, fines, fees, and case closure. Each step can leave a docket entry even when the document itself is not linked online.
Case flow: Charges Filed › Initial Hearing › Pretrial and Motions › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
| Stage | What Happens | What the Record May Show |
|---|---|---|
| Charges Filed | The prosecutor files formal allegations in court. | Case number, counts, offense names, Indiana Code citations, severity, filing date, and parties. |
| Initial Hearing | Rights, charges, plea posture, counsel, bond, and next dates may be addressed. | Hearing entry, bond order, attorney appointment or appearance, and future hearing dates. |
| Pretrial and Motions | Parties file motions, discovery issues are addressed, and hearings may be continued or set. | Motions, orders, notices, pretrial conference entries, and document links where public. |
| Plea or Trial | The defendant may plead, proceed to trial, or resolve some counts while others are dismissed. | Plea entry, trial setting, verdict, amended charges, dismissed counts, or judgment of conviction. |
| Disposition | The court records the outcome for each count or the case as a whole. | Guilty, not guilty, dismissed, amended, merged, or other case-specific result. |
| Sentencing | The court imposes jail, prison, probation, fines, fees, costs, or other terms when there is a conviction. | Sentencing order, probation conditions, financial assessments, credits, payments, and closure entries. |
What Union County Criminal Records Show
A public criminal court record can contain both basic case information and detailed event history. The case number identifies the matter under Indiana's uniform case numbering system. The court field shows Union County Circuit Court for local state cases. The chronological case summary works like a docket and records filings, hearings, orders, continuances, warrants, payments, and closing events. Criminal-specific fields can show charge count, offense name, statute, severity, arrest or filing date, bond, plea, disposition, sentence, and probation activity.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Case Number | Indiana uniform criminal case number, with formatting that can affect search results in MyCase. |
| Defendant | The person charged in the criminal case, with public identifiers limited by court rules. |
| Prosecuting Party | The State of Indiana, represented locally by the Union County Prosecutor. |
| Charges / Counts | Offense title, count number, Indiana Code citation, severity level, filing date, and amended or dismissed status. |
| Bond | Bond amount, conditions, release entries, or later bond changes when public. |
| Plea | Formal response or resolution, such as guilty, not guilty, or plea agreement entries. |
| Motions and Orders | Requests filed by parties and the judge's rulings, with some public documents linked online. |
| Hearings | Date, time, hearing type, court, judge, and scheduling or continuance entries. |
| Disposition | Outcome for the case or each count, including conviction, dismissal, acquittal, or other result. |
| Sentence and Financials | Jail or prison terms, probation, fines, costs, fees, credits, payments, and balance information. |
Charges vs Convictions
A filed charge is not the same as a conviction. A charge is the formal allegation that a person violated a statute. A conviction is the court outcome that follows a guilty plea, a finding of guilt, or a verdict of guilt. A Union County criminal court record can show charges that were amended, reduced, dismissed, or resolved in a way that did not lead to conviction. Reading only the first charge entry can give the wrong impression if the later disposition is ignored.
| Point | Charge | Conviction |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | A formal accusation filed in court by the prosecuting authority. | A court outcome showing guilt by plea, finding, or verdict. |
| Timing | Appears near the start of the criminal case. | Appears after plea, trial, or other adjudication. |
| Record Detail | May list count, offense name, statute, severity, and filed date. | May list judgment, disposition, sentence, probation, fines, fees, or custody credit. |
| Can Change | Can be amended, reduced, dismissed, or replaced. | Can be appealed, modified, corrected, or affected by later expungement rules. |
| How to Read | Check every count and later docket events before drawing conclusions. | Confirm the final disposition and sentence, not just the charge list. |
Union County Criminal Court System
Indiana's court hierarchy places the Indiana Supreme Court at the top, followed by the Court of Appeals of Indiana and the Indiana Tax Court for tax matters. Trial courts include circuit courts, superior courts, and city or town courts where created. In the researched Union County sources, the local trial court is the Union County Circuit Court. The Indiana Judicial Branch places Union County in Judicial District 18 with Fayette, Franklin, Rush, Union, and Wayne counties, but that district assignment does not create a separate district court for local filing.
Most appeals from the Union County Circuit Court go to the Court of Appeals of Indiana, with possible further review by the Indiana Supreme Court. Federal crimes are different. Union County is in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Indianapolis Division. Federal records are searched through federal tools such as PACER and CM/ECF, not through the county clerk. The U.S. Attorney's Office handles federal prosecutions, while the Union County Prosecutor handles alleged violations of Indiana statutes in local state court.
The assigned image from the U.S. Attorney profile for the Southern District of Indiana provides federal prosecutor context for criminal cases outside the Union County Circuit Court system.
When a case number or docket names a federal court, the search path shifts away from MyCase and toward federal case systems.
Sealed vs Expunged Records
Indiana criminal record access can change after a sealing or expungement process. Indiana expungement is controlled by IC 35-38-9, and the route depends on the type of record, such as an arrest or charge that did not result in conviction, a misdemeanor conviction, a lower-level felony, or a more serious felony. The petition is generally filed in the court with jurisdiction over the record, often the county where the arrest, charge, or conviction occurred. The prosecutor may receive notice and may have an opportunity to object.
| Point | Sealed | Expunged |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Effect | Removed from ordinary public access by statute, rule, or court order. | Limits or seals eligible arrest, charge, or conviction records under Indiana statute. |
| Public Search | May not appear in MyCase or may show limited information. | A granted expungement can remove or limit public access depending on record type. |
| Pending or Denied Case | Visibility depends on the court order and rule. | Pending or denied expungement matters may still appear in some circumstances. |
| Where Filed | Usually in the court tied to the record or under a case-specific order. | Usually in the court with jurisdiction over the arrest, charge, or conviction. |
| Caution | Do not assume absence means no case ever existed. | Eligibility, waiting periods, and effects vary, so legal advice may be needed. |
Public Criminal Record Access
Public access to Union County criminal court records is governed by Indiana court-record rules and state statutes. Indiana Access to Court Records Rule 4 provides the general rule that court records are accessible to the public unless excluded. Rule 5 lists records and information excluded from public access. Indiana Code Title 35 contains criminal law and procedure topics, including expungement provisions. Indiana Code Title 31 is relevant to juvenile confidentiality limits.
Several criminal-related records are restricted or redacted. Juvenile delinquency records are not ordinary public MyCase records. Mental health proceedings under IC 12-26 are excluded from public access in their entirety. Treatment records, drug or substance abuse treatment records, personal identifiers, child witness names in sex-offense cases, and victim or witness addresses, dates of birth, phone numbers, and email addresses in criminal, juvenile, and protection order proceedings are excluded. Warrant-related material can also be temporarily excluded in some settings. A public search may therefore omit details that exist in the official court file.
Important: Public criminal case information is not a consumer report and should be verified with the originating court office.
Union County Criminal Record Copies
The Union County Clerk is the official local source for copies of public criminal court filings, orders, judgments, sentencing records, and certified case documents when they are available for release. MyCase can help identify the case number, count, event date, and document name before a request is made. A useful request should include the case number, defendant name, document requested, date range, copy type, return contact, and payment arrangement. The research did not locate a Union County court-record copy fee schedule in official county sources, so copy cost and certification cost should be confirmed with the Clerk before ordering.
Union County Clerk
26 West Union Street
Liberty, IN 47353
(765) 458-6121
clerk@unioncountyin.us
For a person still in county custody, jail status is handled separately by the Union County Sheriff's Office. The court record remains the better source for filed charges, hearings, pleas, disposition, and sentencing.