Access Sanilac County Criminal Records

Sanilac County criminal records are maintained by the Sheriff's Office Records Bureau in Sandusky and through the 24th Circuit Court. The county sits in Michigan's Thumb region and processes public records requests under Michigan FOIA law. This page walks you through how to request Sanilac County criminal records by mail, email, or in person, and how to use statewide tools like MiCOURT and ICHAT to search case history online.

Sheriff's Office and Court Contacts

The Sanilac County Sheriff's Office is led by Sheriff Paul Rich. The Records Bureau handles all public records requests, including police reports, arrest records, accident reports, and booking records. The Records Bureau is at 65 N. Elk Street, Sandusky, MI 48471. You can call them at (810) 648-2000 or fax your request to (810) 648-5162. The Sheriff's Office page on the county website has contact details and department information. The Sanilac Sheriff also has a separate website at sanilacsheriff.org.

The County Clerk's office handles court records for the 24th Circuit Court. The Clerk's office is at 60 West Sanilac Ave, Room 203, Sandusky, MI 48471. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. You can reach the Clerk at (810) 648-3212 or fax at (810) 648-5466. The 24th Circuit Court shares the same address and handles felony criminal cases, civil matters, and family court cases in Sanilac County. The County Clerk page has information on requesting court documents and filing fees.

Searching Sanilac County Criminal Records

The best free online tool for Sanilac County criminal records is MiCOURT. This statewide portal covers the 24th Circuit Court and allows case lookups by name or case number. Results include case type, filing date, docket entries, and current status. MiCOURT works around the clock and does not require registration. It is the fastest way to confirm whether a criminal case exists in Sanilac County before submitting a formal records request.

For records not available online, contact the County Clerk's office in Sandusky. The Clerk can search by name or case number and pull physical files. You can inspect records during business hours or pay for copies. For arrest-related records like police reports and booking documents, contact the Sheriff's Office Records Bureau. These are separate from court files and require their own request process.

To get a statewide criminal history, use ICHAT at apps.michigan.gov/ichat. ICHAT pulls from the Michigan State Police criminal history database, which receives conviction data from all Michigan courts including the 24th Circuit Court. Results come back quickly for a small search fee and show adult conviction history only. For a full fingerprint-based background check, use the MSP CJIC process described in the fees section below.

FOIA Requests and Records Access

Sanilac County processes FOIA requests under MCL 15.231. The Sheriff's Office Records Bureau is the FOIA coordinator for law enforcement records. You can submit requests by email (use "FOIA" in the subject line), by fax to (810) 648-5162, by mail to Sanilac County Sheriff's Office - Records Bureau, ATTN: FOIA Coordinator, 65 N. Elk Street, Sandusky, MI 48471, or in person at the Records Bureau during business hours. For the most current FOIA procedures, visit the Records Requests/FOIA page on the county site.

The Records Bureau at the Sheriff's Office is detailed at sanilaccounty.gov/records_bureau. Available records include police reports, accident reports, arrest records, booking and jail records, and body-worn camera footage. Active investigations are exempt under MCL 15.243. Records involving juveniles and security-sensitive information are also exempt. If the Sheriff's Office denies your request, you can file a written appeal within 10 business days.

9-1-1 call records are handled by Central Dispatch, which is a separate entity from the Sheriff. If you need 9-1-1 records, contact Central Dispatch directly. They operate independently from the Sheriff's FOIA process. The response window for all standard FOIA requests is 5 business days, with a possible 10-day extension for complex requests.

Criminal Record Copy Fees

Sanilac County Sheriff's Office charges $0.10 per page for document copies. Labor costs are billed at the rate of the lowest-paid county employee who is qualified to handle the request. Non-paper media like USB drives or CDs are billed at actual cost. Mailing costs the actual postage amount. If your request is expected to cost more than $50.00, the county may require a 50% deposit before processing begins. If you have an unpaid prior FOIA balance, they may require 100% upfront.

A fee waiver of up to $20.00 is available if you file an affidavit of indigency. You can get this waiver up to twice per year. This is a useful option if cost is a barrier to accessing public records. For statewide criminal history checks, ICHAT at apps.michigan.gov/ichat charges a small per-search fee. The full fingerprint-based CJIC background check costs $30.00 by check or money order to "State of Michigan" and must be mailed to Michigan State Police, CJIC, P.O. Box 30266, Lansing, MI 48909. That check takes 21 to 35 days to process.

Statewide Resources for Sanilac County

Michigan State Police maintains the central criminal history database for the state under MCL 28.241. All convictions entered in Sanilac County's 24th Circuit Court flow to that database. The public can search it using ICHAT for a small fee. ICHAT is a name-based search and returns adult conviction records only. It does not include juvenile records or cases where no conviction was entered.

The OTIS inmate search at mdocweb.state.mi.us lets you look up anyone serving a sentence in a Michigan state prison after a Sanilac County conviction. Search by name or prisoner number to get location, offense, and sentence information. The Michigan Sex Offender Registry at michigan.gov/psor is free and searchable by zip code, city, or name. You can use it to find registered sex offenders living anywhere in Sanilac County.

Michigan's expungement statute under MCL 780.621 allows some individuals to petition for removal of criminal records from public view. If you or someone you know has a conviction from a Sanilac County court and wants to explore expungement, contact the County Clerk or a licensed attorney to check current eligibility. The Clean Slate legislation expanded the types of cases that qualify.

The screenshot below shows the Michigan State Police FOIA portal, which handles requests for records held at the state level separately from county records.

The MSP FOIA portal processes requests for statewide police records, which are separate from what the Sanilac County Sheriff's Office maintains.

Communities in Sanilac County

Sanilac County is a rural county in Michigan's Thumb region. Sandusky is the county seat. Other communities include Croswell, Marlette, Lexington, Port Sanilac, and Carsonville. All criminal court filings for this county go through the 24th Circuit Court and the local district court in Sandusky. None of these communities currently meet the population threshold for a dedicated city records page on this site.

Nearby Counties

Sanilac County is surrounded by other Thumb-region counties. If the records you need relate to a case in a neighboring area, use these links.