Access St. Martin Parish Criminal Court Records

St. Martin Parish criminal court records are filed through the 16th Judicial District Court in St. Martinville, where Clerk Laura B. Blanchard and her staff handle public access, filings, and copies. This page walks you through the main methods for searching St. Martin Parish criminal court records, from online portals to in-person visits and state-level background check resources.

The 16th Judicial District Court

The 16th Judicial District Court is a multi-parish district covering Iberia, St. Martin, and St. Mary parishes. For cases from St. Martin Parish, the relevant courthouse is in St. Martinville. The Clerk of Court's office is at 415 Saint Martin Street, St. Martinville, LA 70582. Mailing address is P.O. Box 308. The phone number is (337) 394-2210, extension 8. Office hours run Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM.

The St. Martin Parish Clerk of Court website provides office information and links to available services. When contacting the clerk's office, specifying that you are looking for St. Martin Parish records (as opposed to the Iberia or St. Mary portions of the 16th JDC) will help staff route you to the right file location.

La. R.S. 44:1 establishes public access to government records. Under La. R.S. 44:32(A), the clerk must provide those records to any adult who asks. You do not need a legal reason or a direct connection to the case. Most criminal court records are open to the public. The exceptions are sealed cases, juvenile matters, and certain protective order files.

Appeals from the 16th JDC go to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeal, which handles south-central Louisiana. If a case moved to appeal, the 3rd Circuit holds those records separately from the district court file in St. Martinville.

Online Search for St. Martin Parish Criminal Court Records

The main free online tool for St. Martin Parish criminal court records is the eClerks LA statewide portal. The eClerks LA statewide portal covers all 64 Louisiana parishes and lets you search by name or case number at no cost.

Index-level results show charges, filing dates, and case status. You do not need to create an account to run a basic name search. If you want to monitor an active case, the portal supports alerts so you get notified when the case record changes.

eClerks LA is an index tool. It shows that a record exists and provides key data points, but it does not give you full case documents. For certified copies, complete filings, or older records not yet in the digital system, you need to contact the Clerk of Court in St. Martinville directly. Juvenile records are sealed under Louisiana law and are not accessible through any public search tool.

In-Person and Mail Requests

To request records in person, go to 415 Saint Martin Street, St. Martinville. Or mail requests to P.O. Box 308, St. Martinville, LA 70582. Bring the full name of the person and any case number or approximate date range. That helps staff find the file faster.

Standard copy fees apply. Uncertified copies run $1 per page under typical Louisiana clerk rates. Certified copies, which include the clerk's seal, cost more and are required for certain legal uses. For mail requests, include a check or money order for the estimated copy fees. Processing time depends on how many documents you need and how busy the office is.

Breaux Bridge City Court

St. Martin Parish also includes the Breaux Bridge City Court, which handles lower-level criminal matters including misdemeanors and ordinance violations within the city of Breaux Bridge. The Breaux Bridge City Court is located at 101 Berard Street, Breaux Bridge, LA. The phone number is (337) 332-4117.

City court records are separate from district court records. If you are looking for a case that was handled at the city level in Breaux Bridge rather than going through the 16th JDC, contact the city court directly. Cases that start in city court can be appealed up to the district court level, at which point they become part of the 16th JDC record set.

The St. Martin Parish Sheriff's Office, located at 400 Saint Martin Street in St. Martinville, handles arrest records and booking information for matters that did not result in a formal court filing. The sheriff can be reached at (337) 394-3071.

Types of Criminal Records Available

St. Martin Parish criminal court records from the 16th JDC include charging documents, indictments, guilty pleas, trial records where applicable, sentencing orders, and probation conditions. The specific documents in a file depend on how the case proceeded.

Under La. R.S. 44:36, felony conviction records are permanent. Misdemeanor records must be kept at least 10 years. Traffic records must be retained at least 3 years. Older records may exist only in paper format at the courthouse. If you are searching for a case from many years ago, call the clerk's office before visiting to confirm availability and format.

State-Level Criminal Record Resources

Several state tools supplement the parish-level search for St. Martin cases.

The Louisiana State Police maintains the state's criminal record repository under La. R.S. 15:578. Their background check portal costs $31 and returns a compiled statewide conviction record. Louisiana is a closed record state under La. R.S. 15:587, meaning arrests without a conviction are excluded from the official LSP check. It is a statewide tool, not a court records substitute.

The Louisiana Department of Corrections provides a free offender search for current and former DOC-supervised individuals. The Louisiana Sex Offender Registry is free and searchable by name or location statewide.

Federal criminal cases involving St. Martin Parish go through the Western District of Louisiana. Search federal records through PACER at $0.10 per page. The Western District of Louisiana website has court contact information and case search options.

Expungement in St. Martin Parish

Louisiana expungement is governed by La. C.Cr.P. Art. 971 and related statutes. Expungement removes a criminal record from public view. First-time non-violent offenders frequently qualify. Arrests without a conviction can often be cleared faster than conviction records.

The process requires a motion filed with the 16th JDC in St. Martinville. Required fees: $200 to the clerk of court, $250 to the Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information, $50 to the district attorney, and $50 to the sheriff. Total is $550. Some fee exemptions exist for those who qualify based on income.

Once granted, the record is removed from public search tools but remains in law enforcement databases under certain conditions. Juvenile records in St. Martin Parish are sealed by default and are not part of the public criminal court records system.

Cities in St. Martin Parish

St. Martinville is the parish seat. Breaux Bridge is the largest city in the parish and has its own city court for lower-level matters. Other communities include Henderson, Parks, and Catahoula. None of the cities in St. Martin Parish meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site. All district court criminal records for St. Martin Parish are filed through the Clerk of Court in St. Martinville.

Nearby Parishes

St. Martin Parish is in south-central Louisiana. It shares borders with several parishes, each served by its own clerk of court and judicial district.