Carter County Arrest Records

Arrest records in Carter County are documents generated after a person is apprehended for a crime. The law may deem this offense punishable as a felony or misdemeanor.

Once arrested in Carter County, the arrestee may be held temporarily at a police station or transferred to a secure facility, and their personal and arrest details will be collected and inputted into an arrest record. After booking, the suspect may remain in custody until they make their first court appearance, or they may be allowed to post bail (if that option is available) or be released with a promise to appear.

The arrest record serves as an official account of an arrest event, which members of the public can review for different purposes. A family member or friend may examine an arrest record to find out where their loved one is being held. A lawyer may read the record to fashion solid arguments for a case, and police officers can use the record to track offender activity.

Still, an arrest record does not signify that someone is guilty or has been convicted of an offense. Should an arrest result in a court case, and one wishes to determine the case's current status or any applicable sentences, the interested party can request Carter County court records from the respective custodian's office (i.e., the clerk of the court that heard the case).

Are Arrest Records Public in Carter County?

Yes. Under the Tennessee Public Records Act, members of society can inspect or obtain arrest records maintained by law enforcement departments in Carter County.

Notwithstanding, the Act limits specific records from being publicly disseminated, usually when they would reveal sensitive information, imperil an individual's life or safety, or frustrate the justice process. These include:

• Juvenile arrest records
• Sealed or expunged arrest records
• Confidential informant information
• HIV/AIDS and hepatitis test results
• Sensitive personal data, like a person's Social Security Number (SSN) or financial account digits.

An expansive database of public records exemptions is available on the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury's website.

What Do Public Arrest Records Contain?

A public arrest record in the County of Carter features information the Tennessee legislature deems relevant to the general public. These include:

• An arrestee's legal name, race, sex, and age
• The arrest date, time, and place
• The booking time, date, and number
• The offense causing the arrest
• The bond amount and type (if any)

Carter County Arrest Statistics

Yearly arrest statistics for Carter County are available through the CJIS Division of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). While these statistics are viewable in the CJIS Crime in Tennessee reports, the data is not compiled as comprehensive county totals but by the reporting agency. To utilize these reports more effectively, it is advised first to determine the specific search region within Carter County and look up its primary law enforcement agency's totals.

For example, the Elizabethton Police Department, which serves the City of Elizabethton (the county seat of Carter County), reported 524 arrests in 2022. Meanwhile, the Carter County Sheriff's Office, which serves all other areas/communities in Carter, reported 742 arrests that year. In both scenarios, more adults (1,214) were arrested than juveniles (52).

Within Elizabethton, drunkenness (93), theft-shoplifting (79), drug/narcotic violations (71), DUI (46), and simple assault (25) constituted the most popular arrests. A similar trend was noted in other Carter County regions, with simple assault (21), DUI offenses (20), and drug/narcotic violations (20) being the most prevalent arrests.

Find Carter County Arrest Records

The police agency that executed an arrest in Carter County should typically be the first point of call for an arrest record inquiry. Members of the public can stop by or otherwise contact the arresting department for the record. An agency may require the suspect's name/date of birth or the incident date to process a request, and a fee may be required to furnish copies of a record.

Nonetheless, those wishing to find someone arrested and confined within the county can access the local sheriff's Current Inmates portal. The portal can be explored with a person's name, race, sex, in-custody date, or arrest date. Anyone can search the portal and view results about a Carter County inmate.

It is not possible to locate arrestees who were charged/convicted of crimes in Carter County but transferred to federal or state custody through the Current Inmates portal. If searching for a state inmate, the interested party can search the Felony Offender Information portal with a name or TDOC number. The portal provides information about individuals who are presently in or have been released from the Tennessee Department of Correction's (TDOC) custody.

Meanwhile, if a search pertains to a federal inmate, one may access the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Inmate Locator or send an FOIA application to the agency. An inmate's name or unique identification number is the standard search criterion.

Free Arrest Record Search in Carter County

People requesting open arrest records under the Tennessee Public Records Act in Carter County may not be liable for fees when their request simply involves inspecting a record. For example, anyone can access the local sheriff's Current Inmates portal to find certain arrest information free of charge. However, where a request will consume excessive staff time or require the production of copies, the requester may be charged a reasonable dollar amount to cover labor and processing.

Admittedly, there are several third-party vendors from whom a member of the public can obtain a public Carter County arrest record. These vendors provide searchable online databases for retrieving substantial public information on a particular subject, including records of their arrests. A search on a third-party website typically requires the input of a person's first and last name. However, users may only be able to view basic information for free, with the bulk of records hidden behind a paywall.

How Long Do Arrests Stay on Your Record?

Any arrest added to a person's criminal record in Carter County remains on file indefinitely. As a result, anyone, including employers, may view the record. However, an arrestee may qualify to have their record expunged by a court, thereby restricting public access to it.

Expunge Carter County Arrest Records

Individuals can expunge an arrest record in Carter County by petitioning a sentencing court, which may be a general sessions or trial court. By expunging one's criminal record, all public records related to an arrest or charge will be erased and immediately destroyed. Unlike in some other states, there is no separate procedure for removing an arrest record from the public's view.

According to T.C.A. §40-32-101, an expungement (also called "expunction") is a court procedure initiated to remove a charge or charges from a criminal record. This relief is only reserved for persons who qualify under the state's laws.

For an individual (adult or juvenile) to be eligible for expungement in Carter County, one of the following situations usually applies:

• The defendant had the charges dismissed
• The defendant was arrested and released without being charged
• A grand jury entered a "no true bill" decision
• The case went to trial but resulted in a not-guilty verdict
• The case resulted in a nolle prosequi (decision not to prosecute)
• An order of protection was successfully defended and refused by a court after a hearing

As stated, the expungement petition must be filed in the court where the matter originated (i.e., where the arrest or charge occurred). Each court maintains its procedures for expungement, but a petitioner will generally need to:

• Obtain a copy of their court record from the Carter County Circuit Court Clerk's office, which administers the general sessions, criminal, and juvenile courts. The details in one's court record, such as a case's docket number, will be required to file the petition.
• Prepare the expungement petition (see sample form) and file it with the court clerk's office. Those requesting the expungement of multiple charges may need to complete separate forms. Parties can also submit a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the clerk if they want a copy of an expungement order. One envelope is required for each charge. Keeping a copy of the expungement order is generally recommended to prove it indeed happened.
• Pay the filing fee. Note: Where the charges were dismissed, nolle prossed, no-billed, or a verdict of not guilty returned by the court, the expungement is available at no cost to the defendant. However, charges that were on diversion and conviction expungements (which are processed by the District Attorney's office in a county of arrest) require a fee.

After the court completes an expungement, the expungement order will be sent to applicable agencies, including the arresting agency, county jail, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, and Tennessee Department of Correction. The petitioner may follow up with each agency to determine if they received the expungement request and when processing may be completed. After the TBI processes the expungement, the agency will also send the order to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the expungement to be processed on the federal level.

Carter County Arrest Warrants

A magistrate or clerk in Carter County may issue an arrest warrant when a person is believed to have committed an offense or failed to follow a court order, such as appearing for a court hearing. The warrant directs the accused's arrest and arraignment before the court.

Per the Tennessee Criminal Procedure Rule 4, probable cause for arrest must be determined before an arrest warrant can be issued in Carter County. Simply put, the requesting officer must attest to facts or evidence (via an affidavit of complaint and any supporting affidavit) that deem the arrest justifiable under the law. Failing that, the warrant cannot be issued, and if issued erroneously, it is prima facie invalid.

Carter arrest warrants typically contain the following information:

• The defendant's name, or any name or description to sufficiently identify the defendant if the name is unknown
• The signature of the issuing magistrate or clerk
• The county in which the warrant was issued
• The offense charged in the affidavit of complaint
• An order that the defendant be arrested and taken to the nearest appropriate magistrate in the county of arrest.

Do Carter County Arrest Warrants Expire?

No. Carter County arrest warrants remain valid and effective until the defendant is arrested and brought before a judge.

Besides waiting to be arrested, people who become aware of an outstanding Carter County arrest warrant—perhaps by contacting the court or sheriff's office—may turn themselves over to local authorities to resolve their case. Certain arrest warrants (typically bench warrants) can be cleared by complying with the underlying court order, such as paying an outstanding fine in full.

It is worth noting, however, that misdemeanor arrest warrants in Carter automatically expire after five years, as per T.C.A. § 40-6-206.