Lafayette Criminal Court Records

Lafayette criminal court records are maintained by the Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court through the 15th Judicial District Court, with a separate record system at the City Court of Lafayette for misdemeanor and ordinance-level cases. If you need to search for a criminal case, verify a charge, or get a certified court document for a case filed in Lafayette, this page covers the online search tools, in-person access options, and state-level resources available to help you find what you need.

Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court

The Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court is at 800 South Buchanan Street, Lafayette, LA 70501. The clerk, Louis J. Perret, can be reached at (337) 291-6400. The Criminal Department is at (337) 291-6329. The clerk's website is at lpclerk.com. This office handles all criminal court filings, case records, and copy requests for cases arising in Lafayette Parish.

Under La. R.S. 44:1 and La. R.S. 44:32(A), the clerk must make criminal court records available to any adult who requests them. You do not need a legal connection to the case or a specific reason to ask. Sealed and expunged records are not available to the public.

Note that the courthouse has a strict security policy. No cell phones, cameras, electronics, or weapons are permitted inside the building. Plan accordingly when visiting in person. For in-person visits, bring the defendant's full name and any case number you have. A date range and charge type help narrow the search if you lack a case number.

15th Judicial District Court

The 15th Judicial District covers three parishes: Lafayette, Acadia, and Vermilion. For cases from Lafayette, the district court is physically at the main courthouse at 800 S. Buchanan Street. The 15th JDC website at 15thjdc.org has information on court divisions, assigned judges, and contact numbers for specific criminal sections.

The 15th JDC website lists court division contacts, judge assignments, and general procedures for felony criminal cases in Lafayette Parish.

Criminal cases from Lafayette Parish tried in the 15th JDC can be appealed to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal, which covers south-central Louisiana parishes. If you are researching an older case that went through an appeal, 3rd Circuit records are a separate step from the district-level records at the clerk's office.

Lafayette Parish Clerk Online Records

The Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court provides an online records portal at lpclerk.com. This is a direct, parish-level tool that pulls from the clerk's own database. It is a good first stop for recent criminal cases filed in Lafayette Parish, since it is the most direct source without going through a third-party statewide portal.

The Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court website provides direct access to parish criminal case records and contact information for the Criminal Department.

The eClerks LA statewide portal also covers Lafayette Parish and gives free index-level criminal record searches. Search by name or case number to get charges, filing dates, and dispositions. The Clerk Connect portal is a second statewide option. Both pull from clerk of court data. For online records subscriptions through the Lafayette clerk, setup costs $100 one-time plus $65 per month. Criminal or traffic minute entries are $10 each. A one-day court records access pass costs $10 as well.

City Court of Lafayette: Misdemeanors and Local Cases

The City Court of Lafayette handles local misdemeanors, traffic matters, city ordinance violations, civil cases up to $20,000, and some juvenile matters. The court is at 105 East Convent Street, Lafayette, and can be reached at (337) 291-8720. The city court website is at citycourtlafayettela.org.

Lafayette City Court handles misdemeanor and ordinance-level cases with its own record system separate from the 15th JDC at the parish courthouse.

The city court offers a free case search at citycourtlafayettela.org/CaseSearch.aspx. You can search by name or docket number. Note that the data is not always real-time, so very recent cases may not yet appear. If the case you are looking for involved a misdemeanor or city ordinance, this is the right court to check. A search at the parish clerk and at eClerks LA may not capture city court records.

State and Federal Resources

The Louisiana State Police maintains the statewide criminal record database. Their background check at ibc.dps.louisiana.gov costs $31 per search. Louisiana is a "closed record state" under La. R.S. 15:587, so the check covers convictions only, not arrests that did not lead to conviction. It pulls statewide data including Lafayette Parish.

The Louisiana DOC Offender Search is free and shows current and past DOC-supervised individuals from Lafayette who received a state sentence. The Louisiana Sex Offender Registry is free and searchable by name or location. For federal cases involving Lafayette defendants, use PACER at $0.10 per page. Lafayette falls under the Western District of Louisiana, at lawd.uscourts.gov.

Expungement in Lafayette Parish

Expungement in Louisiana is governed by La. Code Crim. Proc. Art. 971. For Lafayette felony cases, the motion is filed with the 15th JDC through the Lafayette Parish Clerk. For city court-level records, the process goes through City Court of Lafayette. Not all records are eligible. Arrests without conviction are often eligible. First-time non-violent offenders may qualify after completing their sentence. Violent offenses and sex crimes are generally not eligible.

Standard fees: clerk of court $200, Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information $250, district attorney $50, sheriff $50. Total fees reach $550 before attorney costs. Legal aid organizations in the Lafayette area may assist with filing. Once granted, expungement removes the record from public access tools. Law enforcement retains access. Juvenile records are sealed by default and are not public. The Louisiana Supreme Court self-help center at lasc.org has expungement forms and instructions.

Related Parish

Criminal court records for Lafayette are maintained by Lafayette Parish. Felony and major criminal cases go through the 15th Judicial District Court, while the Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court serves as official custodian of all district court filings for the parish.

Nearby Cities

Other Louisiana cities with criminal court records pages: