Access Boston Booking Reports

Boston booking reports come from the Boston Police Department and the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office. The city has one of the most active law enforcement systems in New England, and booking data gets filed each day at both the local and county level. You can search for Boston booking reports through the police department's public records process, the city's open data tools, and the state CORI system. Each source gives you a different view of arrest and booking data in Boston, so the path you take depends on what kind of record you need and how far back you want to look.

Boston Police Booking Reports

The Boston Police Department handles most booking reports in the city. BPD processes thousands of arrests each year, and each one creates a booking report that goes into the department's records system. You can get copies of these reports through a public records request. The process is simple, though response times vary based on how much detail you ask for.

To get a booking report from Boston PD, send your request to police.boston.gov or email publicrecords@boston.gov. You can also mail a written request to One Schroeder Plaza, Roxbury Crossing, MA 02120. Include the full name of the person, the date of the arrest if you have it, and your own contact info. BPD must respond within 10 business days under M.G.L. c. 66, sect. 10. The first two hours of research time are free for Boston since the city has more than 20,000 residents. After that, fees max out at $25 per hour. Paper copies cost $0.05 per page, but electronic copies are free when the records are already in digital form.

BPD also runs a Public Service Counter at headquarters. You can walk in to get copies of police reports, get ink fingerprinting done, and apply for certain permits. This is the fastest way to get a booking report if you know the case details and want the record right away. Bring a valid photo ID when you go.

Note: Media requests for Boston booking reports go to a separate email and follow a different timeline than standard public records requests.

Boston Booking Data Online

Boston PD runs an online data platform called the Crime Hub. It is not the same as a booking report database, but it shows arrest data and crime stats that tie back to booking activity in the city. The hub has several tools that let you filter and map data by location, date, and crime type.

The Boston PD Crime Hub has three main dashboards. The Crime Mapper shows offenses and arrests from the past year. You can filter by crime type, time of day, and neighborhood. The Crime Trends Dashboard goes back to 2018 and breaks down stats by police district. There is also a Shootings Dashboard that tracks firearm incidents across the city. These tools give you a broad picture of booking and arrest patterns in Boston even if they do not show individual booking reports.

Here is the Boston PD Crime Hub, which shows arrest and crime data across the city.

The Crime Hub pulls from the same data systems that generate booking reports in Boston, so the numbers match what you would find in official records at the department level.

Boston Public Records Requests

Boston has a city-level Public Records Office that sits outside the police department. This office handles all types of public records requests for the city, not just police or booking data. If you are not sure where to send your request, this is a good place to start. They will route it to the right department if it falls outside their scope.

The Boston Public Records Department is at 1 City Hall Square, Room 615, Boston, MA 02201. The phone number is 617-635-4037. The Records Access Officer is Grace Jung, and you can reach her at grace.jung@boston.gov. Under M.G.L. c. 4, sect. 7(26), most government records in Boston are public unless a specific exemption applies. Booking reports generally fall under the public category, though parts of a report tied to an active investigation may be redacted under the law enforcement exemption.

The city's public records page on boston.gov walks you through how to submit a request and what to expect in terms of timing and fees.

Once your request is logged, you get a tracking number so you can check on its status.

Note: The Records Access Officer must respond to your booking report request within 10 business days, but the actual records may take longer to produce if redaction is needed.

Suffolk County Booking Records

Boston sits in Suffolk County. The Suffolk County Sheriff's Department operates the jail at 200 Nashua Street, Boston, MA 02114. When someone is arrested in Boston and held before a court appearance, they are booked at the county facility. That booking creates a separate record from the one BPD keeps. So for a full picture, you may need to check both sources.

The Sheriff's phone number is 617-635-1100. County booking records include intake data like the person's name, date of birth, charges, arresting agency, and booking date. These records are generally public under Massachusetts law. You can send a written request to the Sheriff's Department. Some people also check the state CORI system for a more complete view that pulls from all law enforcement agencies in the state, including Suffolk County.

Suffolk County also covers Revere, Chelsea, and Winthrop. If an arrest happens in one of those towns but the person is held in Boston, the booking report sits with the county. For arrests in Boston itself, both the city and county may hold relevant records depending on the case.

State Records Systems for Boston

Massachusetts runs several state-level systems that include Boston booking and arrest data. The biggest one is the CORI system managed by the Department of Criminal Justice Information Services. DCJIS is the central hub for criminal history data from every police department in the state, including Boston PD.

The iCORI portal lets you look up criminal records online. A personal CORI request costs $25. An open access request costs $50. You need to register with a government-issued ID, and results can take up to 10 business days. The iCORI system pulls from the same data that Boston PD feeds into after each booking. Under M.G.L. c. 6, sections 167 through 178B, DCJIS controls who can see what level of detail in the records. Some information is only available to law enforcement or employers with authorization.

The Executive Office of Public Safety and Security publishes crime statistics that include Boston data. These stats come from the same arrest and booking numbers that local departments report up to the state. While they do not show individual booking reports, they put Boston's arrest numbers in context with the rest of the state.

Boston Arrest Records Portal

The Boston Data Portal is one of the best city-run open data sites in the country. It has crime incident data, police district stats, and other public safety datasets. You can download raw data files and run your own searches. The portal does not show individual booking reports by name, but it does break down arrest data by offense type, location, and date in ways that other sources do not.

Researchers and journalists use this portal often to track crime patterns in Boston. The data goes back several years, and the city updates it on a regular basis. If you need aggregate booking data rather than a single person's record, this is a strong tool. You can filter by neighborhood, which is useful since Boston has distinct areas like Dorchester, Roxbury, South Boston, and the Back Bay that each have their own crime profiles.

Boston Booking Reports via Daily Logs

Under M.G.L. c. 41, sect. 98F, every police department in Massachusetts must keep a daily log. That includes Boston PD. The daily log shows all responses to complaints, all crimes reported, and all arrests made. These logs are public records and must be available at no charge. They are one of the easiest ways to find basic booking information in Boston without going through a formal records request.

The daily log will not have the full booking report. It shows the basics: the name of the person arrested, the charges, the time, and the location. For the full booking report with intake details and personal data, you still need to file a public records request with BPD or the county. But the daily log is a quick first step that can help you confirm an arrest took place before you spend time on a more detailed request.

Note: Boston police daily logs are free to view, and the department cannot charge a fee for access under state law.

Sealed Booking Records in Boston

Not all booking reports in Boston stay public forever. Massachusetts allows people to seal or expunge criminal records under M.G.L. c. 276, sections 100A through 100U. If a booking report is tied to a case that gets sealed, it will no longer show up in a standard public records search. The record still exists, but access is limited to law enforcement and a few other authorized groups.

For misdemeanors, the wait is three years after the case ends. For felonies, it is seven years. You file a petition with the court. If the court grants it, the booking report and all related records get sealed across every system, including iCORI and local police files. This is one reason a search might come back with no results even when you know an arrest took place in Boston. Expungement goes further and deletes the record entirely, though that option is limited to specific cases.

Boston Booking Report Fees

Fees for booking reports in Boston follow state rules with some local details. Paper copies cost $0.05 per page. Electronic copies are free when the records are already in digital form. The city cannot charge you for the first two hours of research time under the public records law. After that, the max rate is $25 per hour.

The iCORI system has its own fee structure. A personal request is $25. An open access request is $50. These fees go to DCJIS, not to the city of Boston. If you just need a basic check on whether a booking took place, the daily police log is free. If you need the full booking report with all the details, the public records request route through BPD is usually the cheapest option since most requests stay under the two-hour research cap.

• Paper copies from BPD: $0.05 per page
• Electronic copies: free when available
• Research time: first 2 hours free, then $25/hour max
• Personal iCORI: $25
• Open access iCORI: $50

Booking Reports Near Boston

Several cities near Boston also have their own booking report systems. Each has its own police department and public records process. If the person you are looking for was arrested in a neighboring city rather than Boston proper, you will need to contact that city's police department or check their county records.

Cities near Boston that have their own pages on this site include Revere, Cambridge, Somerville, Quincy, Brookline, Everett, Medford, and Malden. Revere is in Suffolk County with Boston. Cambridge and Somerville fall under Middlesex County. Quincy and Brookline are in Norfolk County. Each county has its own sheriff and jail system, so booking records are spread across multiple offices depending on where the arrest and booking took place.

Suffolk County Booking Reports

Boston is in Suffolk County, and all jail bookings go through the Suffolk County Sheriff's Department. The county system handles cases from Boston, Revere, Chelsea, and Winthrop. For more on the county-level records system, sheriff contact info, and related resources, visit the Suffolk County booking reports page.

View Suffolk County Booking Reports