Criminal Records
The primary law enforcement agency of the county, the Washington County Sheriff's Office is tasked with maintaining records and reports pertaining to criminal activity within county limits. However, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety is the state central repository of criminal history information and as such processes requests for criminal history record checks. All Washington county criminal record requests should be made to the State Department.
How to Get Criminal Records
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension of the Minnesota DPS is responsible for performing statutory and discretionary criminal history record checks for persons residing within its jurisdiction, including Washington county. The records provided by this check includes all arrest information, misdemeanor, and felony charges as well as disposition information and records of any incarcerations.
To request a record, the requesting party is required to have the subject complete and notarize a General Consent Form. The form should be accompanied by a written request and a cheque or money order payment of $15 and submitted via mail or in-person to:
Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
CHA Unit
1430 Maryland Ave. E.
St. Paul, MN 55106
How to Find Sex Offender Information
The Minnesota Department of Corrections manages all information regarding sex offenders residing in the State of Minnesota. Interested Washington County residents may view public information regarding offenders resident within county limits by using the Offender Locator operated by the Department of Corrections. The Locator allows members of the public to search the state database for offenders addresses, identifiers and compliance status by the offender's first name or last name, location or age. Related information regarding offenders within the jurisdiction of the Minnesota Department of Corrections can be obtained by contacting Corrections staff at (651) 361-7200
Where and How to Get Inmate and Jail Information
The Washington County Jail is operated by the County Sheriff's Office which maintains and disseminates information regarding the facility and its resident detainees.
All jail and inmate related information can be viewed on the Sheriff's Jail Information Page while detainee-specific information such as an inmate's primary charges, visiting schedule, commissary and bail/bond conditions can be obtained by querying the Sheriff's Office at (651) 430-7900.
Similarly, interested persons can obtain arrest and detention data using the Sheriff's Data Request Form. The form must be downloaded, completed and submitted in person or via mail to:
Washington County Sheriff's Office
15015 62nd St. N.
Stillwater, MN 55082
Phone: (651) 430-7900
Court Records
Where and How to Get Court Records
The Washington County District Court hears cases regarding civil, criminal, traffic, family, probate and juvenile matters within its jurisdiction and retains records of all court filings and proceedings. In compliance with state laws, interested members of the public may obtain copies of non-confidential court records upon request. Requests may be made in person or via mail.
In-person record requests require the requestor to visit the county courthouse during office hours. The requestor will be required to provide relevant information regarding the records of interest and pay a fee of $14 (per requested record) before accessing the record. While most requests can be completed within minutes others may require no more than 5 working days to be processed. In this case, the record will be mailed to the requestor.
Mail-in record requests may be made using the Request For Record Form or by writing a request which should indicate the personal and contact information of the requestor, the name of the record being requested and the court file number of the record. The request should also be accompanied by a cheque or money order payment of $14 and submitted to:
Court Administration Records Room
14949 62nd St. N
P.O. Box 3802
Stillwater, MN 55082-3802
Location of all Courts in the County
Below is the address and contact information of the courthouse in Washington County, Minnesota:
Washington County District Court
Washington County Courthouse
14949 62nd Street North,
P.O. Box 3802,
Stillwater, MN 55082
Phone: (651) 430-6263
Fax: (651) 430-6300
Vital Records
Minnesota state vital records are generally managed and disseminated by the Minnesota Department of Health Vital Records Unit. However, at the county level, this service is provided by various local Registrars. Washington County vital records are recorded and maintained by the registrars in the Property Records and Taxpayer Services Department. As per state laws, interested persons may request and obtain these records from the Department.
Where and How to Get Divorce Records
Records of divorces granted by the Washington County court are retained in the county courthouse and can be accessed by interested members of the public.
To obtain a divorce record, the requestor may make in-person or mail queries to the courthouse house. This will require the requestor to download and complete the Request For Record Form or write a request indicating the names of the spouses, the date and place of the divorce as well as the case file number of the record. Requests should also be accompanied by a cheque or money order payment of $14 and submitted via mail or in-person to:
Court Administration Records Room
14949 62nd St. N
P.O. Box 3802
Stillwater, MN 55082-3802
Where and How to Get Marriage Records
The Vital Records Center of the Washington County property records and taxpayer services office is tasked with issuing marriage licenses to intending couples and maintaining records of marriages licensed by its office. Records of marriages licensed by the office from 1870 to date are available for issues in the office.
Interested persons may obtain marriage record copies by requesting the record via mail or in person. Requestors are required to download and complete a Copy of Marriage Record Form which may be submitted via mail or in person, along with a cheque or money order payment of $10 to:
Washington County Vital Records
14949 62nd St. N.
P.O. Box 6
Stillwater, MN 55082-0006
Where and How to get Birth and Death Records
Records of births and deaths which occur in Washington County are recorded and maintained by the county's Taxpayer Services Office. As per state laws, these records can only be obtained by persons who can demonstrate a tangible interest in the record - i.e. the registrant, their immediate family members, legally authorized persons, and the legal representative of the registrant.
To request either of these records, interested and eligible persons may download and complete the Birth Certificate Application or the Death Certificate Application. The appropriate application must then be notarized and enclosed along with a cheque or money order of $26 and submitted via mail or in-person to:
Washington County Vital Records
14949 62nd St. N.
P.O. Box 6
Stillwater, MN 55082-0006
In addition to government agencies, county public records may also be obtained from third-party websites. These non-government platforms come with intuitive tools that allow for expansive searches. Record seekers may either opt to use these tools to search for a specific record or multiple records. Users are able to search third-party websites remotely for multiple records at a time with just the name of the record subject and their last known location, including the city, county, or state. Third-party sites are not sponsored by government agencies. Because of this, record availability and results may vary.
Are Property Records Open to the Public in Washington County?
The Minnesota Open Records Law makes all property records in Washington County available to the public for inspection. Anyone can inspect or obtain records of Washington County property by contacting the Recorder / Register of Titles, the custodian of property documents in Washington County.
Where and How to Find Property Records in Washington County
The Washington County Recorder serves as the Registrar of Titles for Washington County. The Recorder / Register of Titles has the primary responsibility of accepting property documents for filing and maintaining an inventory of recorded property documents. Property documents kept by the recorder/register of titles include deeds, contracts for deeds, mortgages, and probate documents. The Recorder / Register of Titles also issues these property records to requesters who may have to pay prescribed copy fees. Applicants can access copies of Washington County property records by sending an email or contacting the office of the Recorder/ Register of Titles at:
62nd Street North
Stillwater, MN 55082
Phone: (651) 430-6175
The Recorder/ Register of Titles office is open Mondays to Fridays from 8.00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
How to Look Up Washington County Property Records
The Recorder/Register of Titles' office provides a site for searching and identifying property records. The portal grants users access to land records kept by the Washington County Property Records and Taxpayer Services. Requesters can have access to documents from 1984 till the present upon payment of a monthly subscription fee. To subscribe to the services, requesters may have to sign and return an agreement to the Property Records Division alongside an Escrow Account Setup form if they do not have existing escrow accounts. .Upon subscription, users receive login details with which they can access the Portal. Subscribers have access to the following services on the site:
- Abstract and Torrens documents
- Multiple search options including grantor/grantee, legal description, metes and bounds, document type, date range, address
- Interactive Torrens Certificates of Title
- Recorded Tax Liens
- Plats
- Historical documents before 1984 that have been converted to electronic images
- Images in TIFF format
- Tract cards and historical tract pages
- Integrated live escrow account balance
- Detailed view of charges for 60 days
People can contact the property records division at:
62nd Street North
P.O. Box 6
Stillwater, MN 55082-0006
Location of Washington County Township Property Assessors
62nd Street North
Stillwater, MN 55082
(651) 275-7515
assessor@co.washington.mn.u
