Do police reports/arrest records qualify as public records?

[surprise_i'm_armed]

Can anyone clarify the status of police reports and/or arrest records?

On the one hand, it seems that these should be public records.
But if that were the case access to them would be difficult if they
were not entered into some kind of Internet web site for citizen
perusal.

On the other hand, it seems that LEO's control these reports and do
not make them accessible to the general public.

I ask this because one night I reported a DWI woman, who got arrested.
But when I talked to Lewisville PD it seemed like it was going to take a big
song and dance to get this information. I wanted to find out she was, what
town she lived in, and what her BAC (Blood Alchohol Concentration) was.

Another case would be when you have a large police action in your area, and if
you could look it up in a publicly available Internet site, you'd know what kind
of arrests were made, and if they were some of your neighbors.

[AEA]

I have no personal experience with this but I can tell you there are public records available (for a price).

The reason why I know is my Niece works for a large corporation and is a Manager of outside operations that handles fiber optic installations. She does the hiring and firing. She has a subscription with some website that she can find just about anything possible (public records) of any individual she wishes to research. She uses this for screening applicants and yes it does give criminal history.

Not sure about police reports and arrest records, but the Court Records and dispositions are there.

I don't know the name of the site, but if it is important, I could probably find out what it is. It is not free and it is not cheap!

Also, there is a list of Sex Offenders and other Offenders complete with their addresses and photos listed at:
http://www.texasonline.com/portal/tol/en/gov/8/7" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
It could be interesting to have a look at. It is free.

[KRM45]

If you want the report you can go through the City Secretary office and file an open records request. It is very likely they will redact (black out) the personal information of the suspect though. They may charge a nominal fee for copies.

[Excaliber]

Can anyone clarify the status of police reports and/or arrest records?

On the one hand, it seems that these should be public records.
But if that were the case access to them would be difficult if they
were not entered into some kind of Internet web site for citizen
perusal.

On the other hand, it seems that LEO's control these reports and do
not make them accessible to the general public.

I ask this because one night I reported a DWI woman, who got arrested.
But when I talked to Lewisville PD it seemed like it was going to take a big
song and dance to get this information. I wanted to find out she was, what
town she lived in, and what her BAC (Blood Alchohol Concentration) was.

Another case would be when you have a large police action in your area, and if
you could look it up in a publicly available Internet site, you'd know what kind
of arrests were made, and if they were some of your neighbors.

As a general rule, basic incident information (date, time, place of occurrence, type of incident, officers who responded, action taken, arrests made) is public record. Followup reports on an ongoing investigation are not public record until the case is concluded.

Most agencies have a "fill in the blank" basic incident report that contains the publicly available info, and separate forms for investigative content. Most also will furnish you a copy of the incident report on request to the agency, often with a fee.

To get the specifics of the process for the agency you're interested in, call their administrative number and ask for the "records division."

[surprise_i'm_armed]

AEA or anyone:
My assumption would be that our status as CHL holders is protected
from potential employers, or anyone else who looks into public records.

I believe our CHL records are shielded.

It would be a bummer to lose a job due to the employer seeing that we
have a CHL. Most corporations are "anti" even if certain people within
them believe in 2A rights.

[nitrogen]

CHL Records were open until 2007 I think, now only LEO's can access the information.

[Fangs]

I check the San Marcos Daily Record newspaper's "Police Blotter" thing online pretty regularly. http://www.sanmarcosrecord.com/policebl ... 20432.html

Your local paper might have something like this. Not incredibly detailed, but interesting to read.

[Reloader]

http://www.publicdata.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Not the most current but only $25 a yaer for 300 lookups. I use this in business, it gives you convictions,etc. as a criminal record, driver license,etc.