Access Catahoula Parish Criminal Court Records

Catahoula Parish criminal court records are maintained through the 7th Judicial District Court in Harrisonburg, covering all criminal filings for this rural central Louisiana parish. If you want to look up a case, check charges, or request court documents in Catahoula Parish, this page walks you through the search tools and in-person options available to you.

The 7th Judicial District Court

The 7th Judicial District Court serves two parishes: Catahoula and Concordia. Criminal cases filed in Catahoula Parish go through this district, with the parish courthouse located in Harrisonburg. The Catahoula Parish Clerk of Court is Larisa Holley Field. The Chief Deputy Clerk is Shelli Mason. The clerk's office is at 301 Bushley Street, Harrisonburg, LA 71340 (P.O. Box 654). You can reach the clerk by phone at (318) 744-5497. The clerk's website is at catahoulaclerk.com. Office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.

The Catahoula Parish Sheriff's Office can be reached at (318) 744-5411 for arrest records and law enforcement matters outside the court system. The 7th JDC courthouse in Harrisonburg holds criminal records going back to 1808, making the Catahoula Parish archive one of the older court record collections in Louisiana. That said, records from the 1800s and early 1900s exist only in paper form and are not accessible through online portals.

La. R.S. 44:1 gives the public the right to access government records, with criminal court records included under that right. La. R.S. 44:32(A) requires the clerk to make records available to any adult who makes a request. You do not need to show a reason or be a party to the case. Some portions of a file may be sealed by court order, but standard criminal case records are generally accessible.

Cases decided in the 7th JDC can be appealed to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal. If you are researching a case that went through an appeal, those records are held by the 3rd Circuit separately from the district court file in Harrisonburg.

How to Search Catahoula Parish Criminal Court Records Online

Two online portals provide access to Catahoula Parish criminal court records. The first is Clerk Connect, and the second is the eClerks LA statewide portal. Both give you name and case number search access to adult criminal records in Catahoula Parish.

The Clerk Connect portal is shown below and is one of two main online access points for Catahoula Parish records.

Clerk Connect gives you index-level access to cases filed in Catahoula Parish through the 7th JDC. It is useful for checking whether a case exists and getting basic charge and disposition information.

The eClerks LA statewide portal is also available for Catahoula Parish and is shown below.

The eClerks LA portal provides free access to adult criminal records across all 64 Louisiana parishes including Catahoula. No account is required for a basic name search. Both Clerk Connect and eClerks LA are index tools. They show you that a record exists and give you basic case details, but they do not deliver certified copies or full case documents. For those, you must contact the Catahoula Parish Clerk of Court directly at (318) 744-5497. Records going back to 1808 are on file, but only those that have been digitized will appear in the online portals. Very old records exist only in paper form at the Harrisonburg courthouse. Juvenile records are sealed by Louisiana law and are not accessible through any public search portal.

In-Person and Mail Requests

To get criminal court records in person, go to the Catahoula Parish Courthouse at 301 Bushley Street in Harrisonburg. The Clerk of Court's office is open Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. Bring the full name of the person you are searching for and a case number if you have one. Staff can also search by name and approximate date range. The clerk's office handles requests for docket sheets, case files, certified copies, and plain copies of court documents.

Copy fees follow standard Louisiana clerk rates. Uncertified copies typically cost $1 per page. Certified copies carry an additional fee and include the clerk's seal, needed for legal purposes such as license applications or court filings in other jurisdictions. For mail requests, write to the Catahoula Parish Clerk of Court at P.O. Box 654, Harrisonburg, LA 71340, and include a check or money order for the estimated fees. Clearly identify the name and case you need. Call (318) 744-5497 before sending your request to confirm current fees. The Catahoula Parish Sheriff's Office at (318) 744-5411 handles arrest records that did not result in court charges.

Types of Criminal Court Records Available

The 7th JDC clerk's office in Catahoula Parish holds criminal court records dating back to 1808. Current records include charging documents such as bills of information and grand jury indictments, arraignment records, plea agreements, trial transcripts, verdicts, and sentencing orders. Bond records, probation conditions, and motion filings are also part of most case files. For very old records, availability depends on whether the paper documents have survived intact over the decades.

Under La. R.S. 44:36, felony conviction records are retained permanently. Misdemeanor records must be kept for at least 10 years. Traffic violation records are held for a minimum of 3 years. Records from the 1800s and early 1900s may not appear in the online index. If you are searching for a historical case, calling the clerk's office before making the trip to Harrisonburg is a smart step to confirm what is on file and in what form.

State-Level Criminal Record Resources

Several state-level tools extend your search beyond what the Catahoula Parish courthouse holds.

The Louisiana State Police manages the state's central criminal record repository under La. R.S. 15:578. Their background check service at LSP's background check portal costs $31 and returns a compiled statewide conviction record covering all 64 parishes. Louisiana is a closed record state under La. R.S. 15:587, so arrests that did not lead to conviction are not included in the official check.

The Louisiana Department of Corrections offers a free DOC Offender Search for current and former state-supervised offenders from Catahoula Parish and statewide. The Louisiana Sex Offender Registry is also free and searchable by name or location. For federal criminal cases involving Catahoula Parish, use PACER. Catahoula Parish falls under the Western District of Louisiana for federal court purposes.

Expungement of Criminal Records in Catahoula Parish

Louisiana expungement is governed by La. C.Cr.P. Art. 971 and related statutes. Expungement removes a record from public view but does not permanently destroy the underlying data. Law enforcement can still access expunged records under certain circumstances.

To begin in Catahoula Parish, you file a motion with the 7th Judicial District Court in Harrisonburg. Required fees are: Clerk of Court $200, Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information $250, District Attorney $50, and Sheriff $50. First-time non-violent offenders who have completed their sentence generally qualify. Arrests that did not lead to conviction are often eligible for expungement faster than conviction-based records and with fewer complications.

Once granted, the expungement removes the record from public search tools like Clerk Connect and eClerks LA. Standard background checks will no longer show the record. If you are not sure whether your case qualifies, consult a local attorney before filing the motion. Getting the paperwork wrong can delay the process and result in fees that must be paid again from the start.

Cities in Catahoula Parish

Harrisonburg is the parish seat and main community in Catahoula Parish. Other small communities include Jonesville and Sicily Island. None of the communities in Catahoula Parish meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site. All criminal court records for the parish, regardless of which community a case originated from, are filed with the Catahoula Parish Clerk of Court in Harrisonburg through the 7th Judicial District Court.

Nearby Parishes

Catahoula Parish is surrounded by several central Louisiana parishes. Records from neighboring parishes are maintained by their own clerks of court and may fall under different judicial districts.