Charlotte County Booking Report Lookup
Charlotte County booking reports are maintained by the Sheriff's Office in Punta Gorda, Florida. This southwest Florida county provides inmate and arrest search access through its website. The Sheriff's Office processes all jail bookings for the county at its facility near the Punta Gorda Airport. You can search for current inmates and recent arrests to find booking details including charges, bond amounts, and dates. Charlotte County booking records are public and available to anyone under Florida's open records laws.
Charlotte County Quick Facts
Charlotte County Sheriff Arrest Records
The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office is the central law enforcement agency for the county. The main office is at 26601 Airport Road in Punta Gorda. Call 941.833.6300 for general questions about jail operations, booking reports, or arrest records. The sheriff's office runs the county detention facility and handles all intake and booking for the area.
Charlotte County provides inmate and arrest search through its website. You can look up people who are currently in custody or who have been recently booked. The search tool shows the person's name, charges, booking date, and bond information. This is the fastest way to check Charlotte County booking reports without having to call or visit in person. All arrests made by sheriff's deputies, Punta Gorda police, and other agencies in the county go through this central booking system.
| Address | 26601 Airport Road, Punta Gorda, FL 33982 |
|---|---|
| Phone | 941.833.6300 |
| Search | Inmate/Arrest Search available through sheriff's website |
Search Charlotte County Jail Bookings
The Charlotte County Sheriff's website is your starting point for finding booking reports. Use the inmate and arrest search feature to look up a person by name. Results show current inmates along with their booking details. The search is free and open to the public.
If you cannot find what you need through the online tool, call the sheriff's office at 941.833.6300. Staff can check the jail roster and give you information about a specific booking. For copies of arrest reports or booking sheets, you may need to submit a public records request. Visit the sheriff's office at 26601 Airport Road during business hours with a valid ID. Ask the records division for the documents you need. The agency can charge a per-page fee for copies, but looking at records in person should be free under Florida law.
The screenshot below shows the Florida Department of State's directory of county jails, which includes Charlotte County and provides links to inmate search resources statewide.
The Florida Department of State directory is a handy resource when you need to check booking records in Charlotte County and its neighbors at the same time. It lists every county jail in the state with contact info and links to search tools.
Charlotte County Booking Records Access
Under Florida Statute Chapter 119, booking reports are public records. The law states that all state, county, and municipal records are open for personal inspection and copying by any person. This means Charlotte County booking reports must be available to you if you ask for them. No reason needs to be given. The custodian must allow inspection at any reasonable time.
Charlotte County follows the same rules as every other Florida county on this point. The sheriff's office is the custodian of booking records. They set the fees for copies based on state guidelines. Certified copies cost more than plain ones. If you think the agency is not following the law, you can file a complaint. The law also says agencies must acknowledge requests promptly and respond in good faith, which means they cannot ignore you or drag their feet on providing Charlotte County booking records.
Note: Exempt records such as juvenile data and medical information will be redacted, but the rest of the booking report must be released.
Charlotte County Jail Booking Process
Every arrest in Charlotte County goes through the same intake steps. The person is brought to the detention facility near Punta Gorda. Jail staff record personal information and take a booking photo. Fingerprints are captured electronically and sent to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement as required by Florida Statute Chapter 943.
That statute requires fingerprints, palm prints, and facial images for all adults charged with felonies or misdemeanors. The charges are logged with bond amounts. Once the data goes into the system, the Charlotte County booking report becomes available through the online search tool. Processing times vary based on how busy the jail is, but most bookings show up within a few hours. The data also feeds into the statewide FDLE criminal justice information network, creating a permanent record at the state level as well.
Charlotte County Mugshot Removal Law
Booking photos from Charlotte County arrests are public records. The sheriff's office may display them in the search tool. However, Florida Statute 901.43 protects people whose mugshots end up on for-profit third-party websites. These sites cannot demand money to take down your photo. You send a written request for removal. They have 10 days to comply.
If the site ignores your request, you can bring a civil action. The penalty starts at $1,000 per day for each day the photo remains up after the 10-day window. If they remove it and then repost it, the penalty increases to $5,000 per day. This law applies to all Charlotte County booking photos published on for-profit sites. Keep a record of your removal request and any responses you receive.
State Resources for Charlotte County Bookings
Several state agencies hold records tied to Charlotte County arrests. The Florida Department of Corrections inmate search covers anyone sent from the county jail to state prison. This search checks all corrections databases at once. Data refreshes weekly. For people who remain at the Charlotte County jail or who were released, the state corrections search will not have their records.
The FDLE Sexual Offender and Predator search is another free tool. It lets you check for registered offenders in Punta Gorda and the rest of Charlotte County. The FDLE can be reached at (850) 410-7000 for questions about criminal history checks that connect to Charlotte County booking records. The Florida Statutes are available at leg.state.fl.us/Statutes if you need to look up the specific laws that govern access to booking records.
Cities in Charlotte County
Punta Gorda is the county seat and only incorporated city in Charlotte County. Port Charlotte is a large unincorporated community that falls under the sheriff's jurisdiction. Englewood straddles the Charlotte and Sarasota county line. All arrests in Charlotte County get booked at the sheriff's detention facility. There are no separate city jails in the county.
Nearby Counties
Charlotte County sits in southwest Florida between Sarasota and Lee counties. If the arrest happened near a county border, you may need to check the neighboring county's booking records instead.