Union County Background Check and Criminal Records
Looking up background check records in Union County, Arkansas involves a few separate offices. The Union County Sheriff's Office in El Dorado handles incident and arrest records for unincorporated areas. The Circuit Clerk manages court case files including criminal, civil, and domestic relations matters. For a full criminal history that covers Union County and all of Arkansas, the Arkansas State Police system at cbc.ark.org gives you the most complete picture in a single search. This page walks through each official source for background check records available in Union County.
Union County Quick Facts
Union County Sheriff's Office Records
The Union County Sheriff's Office is located at 250 American Rd, El Dorado, AR 71730. The main number is (870) 864-1900. Union County sits in south-central Arkansas and El Dorado serves as both the county seat and the regional hub for the surrounding area. The county website at unioncountyar.com provides general information about county departments and services. The sheriff's Records Division handles background check requests for incidents in unincorporated parts of the county.
To request records from the Union County Sheriff's Office, visit in person with a valid government-issued photo ID. Copy fees are $0.25 per page for standard documents. The sheriff's office does not handle records for incidents inside El Dorado city limits. Those go to the El Dorado Police Department. If you are trying to piece together a full record for someone who lived in different parts of Union County at different times, you may need to contact both the sheriff's office and the El Dorado PD depending on where incidents occurred.
The county sheriff also oversees the Union County Detention Center, which holds persons awaiting trial on local charges. For current inmate information, contact the jail directly through the main sheriff's line at (870) 864-1900. The detention center does not have a public online roster, so phone contact or an in-person visit is needed for current booking information.
The Union County website at unioncountyar.com serves as the central directory for county offices, including the sheriff's office and circuit clerk.
The site links to departments handling public records requests in Union County, including offices that maintain criminal history and court case files.
Union County Circuit Clerk and Court Records
The Union County Circuit Clerk's office in El Dorado maintains court case records for the county. This includes felony criminal cases, civil matters, domestic relations filings, probate cases, and appeals from district court. Background check records tied to court cases in Union County go through this office. The clerk keeps files on all cases heard in Union County Circuit Court, whether they resulted in conviction, acquittal, or dismissal.
Standard copy fees apply: $0.25 per page and $5.00 for certified copies. Requests can be made in person or by mail with a check or money order. The office must respond to public records requests within three business days under Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101. El Dorado has been an active legal community for decades given the county's oil and gas industry, which means the courthouse records go back many decades and cover a wide range of case types.
CourtConnect at caseinfo.arcourts.gov covers Union County courts in its statewide database. Searching by name or case number returns available case data at no cost. Not all older records appear in the system, but most cases filed in recent years are included. If you need to confirm a specific old filing, call the Circuit Clerk's office directly to ask whether the case is in the electronic system or only in paper files.
Arkansas CourtConnect at caseinfo.arcourts.gov includes Union County court cases as part of its statewide records system, available for free name or case number searches.
CourtConnect is a good first stop before making a trip to the El Dorado courthouse, especially for recent case filings in Union County.
State Background Check Records for Union County
The Arkansas State Police background check system at cbc.ark.org covers all 75 Arkansas counties, including Union. A standard name-based search costs $22.00 online and returns results fast. The mail option costs $25.00 and uses the ASP-122 form available at the ASP criminal forms page.
The state system draws from the Arkansas Crime Information Center database, which is the centralized repository for criminal history across the state. The ACIC is established under Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-207, and the authority to provide criminal history records to the public comes from Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1502. Because the ACIC links records by fingerprints, the state check is more reliable than a name-only search when trying to confirm someone's full criminal history in Union County or across the state. Common questions about the system are addressed on the FAQ page at cbc.ark.org/static/faqs.html.
The Arkansas State Police background check portal at cbc.ark.org processes criminal history requests for Union County and all other Arkansas counties through the ACIC database.
Online submissions return results quickly, making the state portal the fastest way to get a complete Arkansas criminal history for Union County subjects.
Union County Sex Offender Registry
Arkansas maintains a free sex offender registry at ark.org/offender-search/index.php. You can search for registered offenders living or working in Union County by city, zip code, or distance from a specific El Dorado address. The registry is updated by the Arkansas Crime Information Center and reflects current registration information.
Registration requirements come from the Sex Offender Registration Act at Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-901. Level 3 and Level 4 offenders are subject to the residency restrictions in Ark. Code Ann. § 5-14-128, which limits where they can live relative to schools and daycare facilities. Registered offenders must keep their address current with local law enforcement. Union County Sheriff's Office and El Dorado Police Department both have duties under state law to track registered offenders in their jurisdictions. The online registry is the fastest public check, but you can also ask the sheriff's office about offenders in specific unincorporated areas of the county.
FOIA Requests and Inmate Records in Union County
Union County public records requests fall under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-101. Any person can submit a written request to the sheriff's office, circuit clerk, or other county office. The office has three business days to respond. Requests for court records go to the Circuit Clerk in El Dorado. Requests for incident reports from unincorporated areas go to the sheriff's Records Division.
The Arkansas Department of Corrections inmate search at apps.ark.org/inmate_info shows current status for persons serving state prison sentences tied to Union County convictions. The ADC site connects to the Department of Corrections at doc.arkansas.gov for broader corrections information. Federal inmates are tracked through the Bureau of Prisons locator at bop.gov/inmateloc. If you have questions about a denied FOIA request in Union County, the Arkansas Attorney General's office at arkansasag.gov can provide guidance on your rights.
Note: El Dorado city records, including police reports for incidents inside city limits, are maintained by the El Dorado Police Department and not by the county sheriff's Records Division.
Cities in Union County
El Dorado is the main city in Union County and has its own police department with a separate records system. Background check records for incidents inside El Dorado must be requested from the El Dorado Police Department, not the county sheriff.