Pinellas County

Finding a mugshot in Pinellas

Disclosure of public records is the standard in Pinellas County in accordance with Florida Statutes unless deemed confidential by the same law. Mugshots and arrest records are such public records without restriction to the right of access. An authentic way of finding a mugshot in Pinellas County is to visit the county's only jail located at:

14400 49th Street North
Clearwater, FL 33762-2877
(727) 464-6415

Inmates' mugshots are listed on the jail roster along with other booking information of every arrestee. Pinellas County Sheriff's Office also makes arrest records available on its website with a link for finding "Who's In Jail". The database on the site dates back to November 2005 and comes with a search tool that allows querying the information by name, docket number or booking date. Search results can also be filtered by the agency that made the arrest, the charge or the type of arrest. Though mugshots are taken at the moment of booking every arrest in the county, the Pinellas County Sheriff has stopped posting these mugshots along with other arrest details on the website since January 2014. Only authorized members on the site are allowed access to arrestees' mugshots.

The Tampa Bay Times published by the Times Publishing Company makes these mugshots available on a dedicated link on its website. This link lists every mugshot from every arrest made in Pinellas County on a real-time basis, and also aggregate mugshots from Manatee, Pasco, and Hillsborough counties. A user can filter a query of the database on the link by name, zip code, county, gender, age, height, weight or eyes' color. The site offers a graphical overview of arrest records by these filters. Mugshots are kept on this site up to 60 days from the booking date.

When the subject of the mugshot in question is from an arrest record prior to November 2005; the requestor can visit the website of Pinellas Clerk of the Circuit Court. The Clerk's site offers a search engine for recent and historic arrest records. Search results can be filtered by case, defendant's name, citation number, attorney, or date filed. Alternatively, the requestor can reach the office of the custodian of public records by phone at (727) 464-3341 or by email via clerkinfo@mypinellasclerk.org, or in person by visiting:

Pinellas County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller
Attn: Public Records Liaison
315 Court Street, Room 400
Clearwater, FL 33756

Pinellas County Mugshots and Arrest

Pinellas is one of Florida's largest counties with over 970,000 residents. The county has 13 law enforcement agencies making over 35,000 arrests yearly. Though the crime rate is trending lower, the violent crime rate still stands at over 400 incidents for every 100,000 residents while the property crime rate is over 3,000 in the same number of residents. The criminal justice process in Pinellas County begins with an arrest. After an arrest, the suspect is taken to the Pinellas County Jail managed by the Sheriff's Office and located at 14400 49th Street North, Clearwater, FL, 33762. It is the county's only jail holding an average daily population of 3,000 pre-trial and sentenced inmates. Then, the law enforcement officer begins the booking process which consists of collecting biographical information, checking background arrest records, fingerprinting and taking a mugshot. In response to the national controversy about private mugshot aggregating sites profiteering from reposting mugshots sourced from public records, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office has seized to include these mugshots in the online publication of arrest records.

Arrestees charged with bondable offenses are allowed to return to the society after posting a bail bond, to appear later in court at an appointed date. Suspects that cannot meet the bail-bond or charge with non-bondable offenses are kept in jail. These new inmates will be arraigned before a judge within 24 hours of an arrest for an advisory hearing. This initial appearance is to ensure the defendant has a counsel and is served the criminal charges and to determine the appropriate bail and other conditions of pretrial release. Consequently, a date for an arraignment is set.

Pinellas County judicial system offers alternative sentencing and pre-trial services for eligible individuals convicted of certain misdemeanor offenses. This includes Adult Pre-Arrest Diversion (APAD) where a convict who meets the eligibility criteria may be allowed to complete community service at various non-profit agencies in lieu of a criminal charge and Continuous Alcohol Monitoring (CAM); where offenders are ordered to wear an alcohol monitor to ensure compliance with a zero-alcohol condition. Other programs under this service are Day Reporting, GPS Monitoring, and Supervised Release on Recognizance (SROR).

Obtaining Certified Arrest Records

Among other public records, booking photos and inmate records can be requested online by visiting the Request Center on the County's Sheriff's Office website. The portal allows requests to be made anonymously through the user is advised to register an email address on the search engine to facilitate easy tracking and monitoring of each request. When a request is made anonymously, a reference number is issued to the user as a ticket to help in checking the status of the request later on. It required to state the type of record requested, give a brief description of the record and identify the preferred method to receive a reply on the request. The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office offers the first 10 pages of any requested arrest record free of charge and thereafter charge single-sided copy at $0.15, double-sided copy at $0.20 and certified copies at $1 per document. Deposit is required for request that will demand extensive research time. Alternatively, the requestor can email or visit the Public Records Processing Unit in person at:

10750 Ulmerton Road
Largo, FL 33778
(727) 582-5865
prr@pcsonet.com

These arrest records can also be ordered from the website of the Clerk of the Circuit Court. After performing an arrest record search on the site, the search result comes with an option to order a copy and request a certified copy. This links to the Clerk of the Circuit Court's Online Copy Request and Payment Center, where orders can be made and paid for via the use of a Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover only. It costs $1 per page of copies made and $2 to certify any document. Payment attracts a non-refundable 3.5% fee charged by the credit card processor for the use of a credit card to pay for the records requested. Requests are verified and processed within 2-3 business days after acknowledgment of payment. Copies may also be requested by email and paid for by credit card or by sending a check. Deposit accounts are also available whereby the cost of records requested via email, phone or in person can be deducted from an established deposit account at the requestor's direction. For more information on establishing or ordering from a deposit account visit pinellasclerk.org.

Sealing and Expunging Mugshots and Arrest Records

Individuals with arrest records in Pinellas County can appeal to have such records sealed or expunged in accordance with Florida laws. This process begins with obtaining a Certificate of Eligibility prior to petitioning the court. The requestor may visit the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) website to download the application form for this process. The completed form will be sent to the State Attorney's Office or the Office of Statewide Prosecution (depending on who filed the charges in the subject's case) for completion of Section B:

State Attorney's Office
Clearwater Office
Attn: Seal/Expunge
P.O. Box 5028
Clearwater, FL 33758
(727) 464-6221

Office of Statewide Prosecution
Tampa Office
Attn: Seal/Expunge
3507 Frontage Road, Suite 200
Tampa, FL 33607
(813) 287-7960

The State Attorney's Office or Office of Statewide Prosecution will return the form to the applicant when Section B has been completed. The applicant is also required to contact the Pinellas County Clerk's Office to a certified copy of the final disposition and if applicable a certified copy of the termination of probation for each of the charges you listed on your application. All these documents with the completed application along with the processing fee will be forwarded to the FDLE. Successful applicants may the necessary forms to petition for sealing or expunging a record by sending an email to clerksealexpunge@mypinellasclerk.org. The applicant is required to include full name, the case number, and indicated the action requested; seal or expunge. The original copy of the completed form with the filing fee should be sent to:

Pinellas County Clerk's Office
Criminal Court Records
Attn: Seal/Expunge
14250 - 49th St. N.
Clearwater, FL 33762
(727) 464-7000

The applicant is advised to mail copies of the packet (all the forms completed) to the relevant agency; either State Attorney's Office or Office of Statewide Prosecution. Where the relevant agency does not object to the petition, the judge will order sealing or expunction, as appropriate. Unsuccessful petitioners are sent a letter for further instructions.