Evangeline Parish Criminal Records

Evangeline Parish criminal records are kept by the Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court in Ville Platte, and Evangeline Parish criminal cases from the 13th Judicial District Court cover felony charges, arrests, criminal convictions, misdemeanor offenses, and court dockets filed in Evangeline Parish.

Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court

The Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court holds the official criminal records of all criminal proceedings in Evangeline Parish. The mailing address is P.O. Drawer 347, Ville Platte, LA 70586. The phone number is (337) 363-5671. Evangeline Parish Clerk office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. The Evangeline Parish Clerk office handles criminal case filings, criminal minute entries, and all criminal document requests for matters heard in the 13th Judicial District Court in Ville Platte. All Evangeline Parish criminal court records from felony charges to criminal case dockets are maintained by this office.

Under Louisiana Revised Statute 44:31, public inspection of Evangeline Parish criminal court records is free. You can go to the Evangeline Parish Clerk office during business hours and view any Evangeline Parish criminal case file without paying a fee. Bring the full name of the person you are searching for Evangeline Parish criminal records and a date of birth if you have it. A criminal case number gets you to the Evangeline Parish criminal file the fastest. The Evangeline Parish Clerk can run a name search for $5.00 per name if you need help locating which Evangeline Parish criminal cases belong to a specific person.

If you need copies of Evangeline Parish criminal records, the fee is $1.00 per page for plain copies and $5.00 per document for certified copies of Evangeline Parish criminal court documents. For mail requests for Evangeline Parish criminal records, include a check payable to the Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court, describe what criminal records you need, and enclose a self-addressed stamped return envelope. Credit cards are not accepted in person or by mail for Evangeline Parish criminal records. Call (337) 363-5671 before mailing to confirm fee amounts for Evangeline Parish criminal records.

How to Search Criminal Records in Evangeline Parish

The primary way to get Evangeline Parish criminal records is in person at the Evangeline Parish Clerk office in Ville Platte. Evangeline Parish does not have a standalone online criminal case portal. Visiting the Evangeline Parish courthouse or submitting a mail request are the direct paths to local Evangeline Parish criminal records. Call ahead to confirm hours and that the Evangeline Parish criminal records you need are accessible without advance notice.

For a statewide criminal records search beyond Evangeline Parish, the Louisiana State Police Internet Background Check portal at ibc.dps.louisiana.gov covers criminal arrests and convictions from all 64 parishes for $26.00 per name search. If the person you are researching has criminal records in multiple parishes beyond Evangeline Parish, the IBC search is a fast way to see the full picture of their criminal history. The criminal history results come back online, and you can download them. Keep in mind that name-based criminal searches can return false positives. A fingerprint-based criminal history check is more precise than a name search for Evangeline Parish and other Louisiana criminal records.

The ClerkConnect multi-parish portal is worth checking to see whether Evangeline Parish criminal records are available online through that system. Some Louisiana parishes have uploaded criminal records to ClerkConnect, allowing remote criminal record searches without visiting the courthouse in Ville Platte.

The Internet Background Check portal is pictured here.

The IBC portal accepts online payment and returns criminal history results quickly, making it the fastest option for a statewide Louisiana criminal history search that complements Evangeline Parish criminal records.

Note: For Evangeline Parish-specific criminal records, the Evangeline Parish Clerk office in Ville Platte is the definitive source since not all local Evangeline Parish criminal data is fully captured in statewide online databases.

Evangeline Parish Court System

Evangeline Parish is served by the 13th Judicial District Court. The 13th JDC is a single-parish district serving only Evangeline Parish. All felony criminal cases, major criminal charges, and domestic criminal proceedings in Evangeline Parish go through the 13th JDC. The Evangeline Parish courthouse is in Ville Platte. District court judges for the Evangeline Parish 13th JDC hear criminal trials, arraignments, and criminal sentencing for all felony criminal matters in Evangeline Parish.

Appeals from Evangeline Parish criminal cases in the 13th JDC go to the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal. The Third Circuit covers central and southwest Louisiana and includes several parishes in the Acadiana region where Evangeline Parish sits. Opinions from Evangeline Parish criminal cases appealed out of the 13th JDC are searchable through the Third Circuit public website and the Louisiana Supreme Court online resources. The original Evangeline Parish criminal trial record stays with the Evangeline Parish Clerk in Ville Platte even after an appeal is filed.

For lesser criminal matters in Evangeline Parish, including misdemeanors and local criminal ordinance violations, Ville Platte City Court may have jurisdiction. City court criminal records in Evangeline Parish are held separately from Evangeline Parish district court criminal records. If you are looking for a minor Evangeline Parish criminal charge, ask the Evangeline Parish Clerk whether the case went through district court or a lower court in the city.

Louisiana State Criminal Records

The Louisiana State Police Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information (BCII) maintains the statewide criminal history repository that includes Evangeline Parish criminal records. BCII compiles criminal arrest records, criminal conviction data, and criminal case dispositions from courts and law enforcement agencies across Louisiana including Evangeline Parish. A BCII criminal history report is more comprehensive than what you find at the Evangeline Parish Clerk office alone. The LSP background checks page explains both name-based and fingerprint-based criminal history check options.

The IBC portal at ibc.dps.louisiana.gov costs $26.00 per name criminal search and delivers criminal history results online. For identity-confirmed criminal history results, the fingerprint-based process at lsp.org/services/background-checks/bcii-forms/ is the right path for criminal background checks. Fingerprint criminal history checks take longer but are far more accurate, especially when names are common or when the Evangeline Parish criminal record involves a person who has used multiple identities.

The Louisiana State Police homepage at lsp.org is shown here.

The LSP homepage links to the IBC portal, BCII forms, and other criminal records services relevant to criminal history searches in Louisiana including Evangeline Parish criminal records.

The Louisiana Department of Corrections at doc.la.gov has a free offender search that covers people currently in state criminal custody or recently released from a state prison. If someone from Evangeline Parish received a state criminal sentence, the DOC search will show their current status. Local Evangeline Parish jail criminal inmates are not in the DOC system. Those Evangeline Parish criminal inmate records are held by the Evangeline Parish Sheriff.

Expunging Records in Evangeline Parish

Louisiana's expungement statute, RS 44:9, provides a process for sealing Evangeline Parish criminal records from public view. The law excludes crimes of violence, sex offenses, and certain other criminal categories from Evangeline Parish expungement. For Evangeline Parish criminal arrests without conviction, some Evangeline Parish misdemeanor criminal convictions, and some Evangeline Parish felony criminal convictions, expungement may be available after the required waiting period passes. Waiting periods for Evangeline Parish criminal expungements vary by offense type and how the criminal case ended.

To file a criminal record expungement for an Evangeline Parish criminal case, go to the Evangeline Parish Clerk office at the courthouse in Ville Platte. The total cost of a standard Evangeline Parish criminal expungement is about $550.00. You pay $300.00 to the Evangeline Parish Clerk at filing and $250.00 to the Louisiana State Police by USPS money order. For a DWI criminal expungement in Evangeline Parish, there is an added $50.00 payable to the Office of Motor Vehicles, also by money order. All Evangeline Parish criminal expungement fees are non-refundable if the court denies the petition.

After filing the Evangeline Parish criminal expungement petition, the Evangeline Parish Clerk notifies the 13th JDC district attorney and law enforcement. Those agencies have a set period to object to the Evangeline Parish criminal expungement. If no objection is filed, the judge may grant the Evangeline Parish criminal record expungement without a hearing. If an objection comes in, a hearing date is set and both sides present arguments about the Evangeline Parish criminal expungement. Having a local attorney who practices in the 13th JDC can make a difference, particularly if the district attorney's office is likely to push back on a specific type of Evangeline Parish criminal offense.

Note: All Evangeline Parish criminal expungement fees are non-refundable. Confirm eligibility before you pay anything to the Evangeline Parish Clerk or to the state police.

Criminal Record Copy Fees in Evangeline Parish

Copy fees at the Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court for criminal records follow the Louisiana standard schedule. Plain copies of Evangeline Parish criminal documents are $1.00 per page. Certified copies of Evangeline Parish criminal records cost $5.00 per document. A name-based Evangeline Parish criminal search runs $5.00 per name. Viewing Evangeline Parish criminal records in person is always free under RS 44:31. You only pay for Evangeline Parish criminal record copies you take with you or have the Evangeline Parish Clerk produce and certify.

Bring cash or a check made out to the Evangeline Parish Clerk of Court when you visit. Credit cards are not accepted for Evangeline Parish criminal record requests. For mail requests for Evangeline Parish criminal records, call (337) 363-5671 first to get a fee estimate and confirm the Evangeline Parish criminal records you need are on file. Include a check for the estimated amount and a self-addressed stamped return envelope. For time-sensitive Evangeline Parish criminal record needs, an in-person visit to the Evangeline Parish Clerk office is always faster than waiting for a mail response.

Nearby Parishes

These parishes border or sit near Evangeline Parish. Each has its own clerk of court and criminal court records.