Find Delaware Jail Mugshots Online
Delaware Jail Mugshots are booking photos taken when a person is processed into a state jail. Delaware runs a unified system, so all adult facilities fall under the state Department of Correction. You can search Delaware Jail Mugshots through the state inmate locator, the State Police arrest archive, and court case dockets. This page shows you where to look, what each record holds, and which office keeps it. Most search tools are free to use. Some files may need a formal written request to pull.
Delaware Jail Mugshots Overview
Delaware Jail Mugshots Through DOC
The Delaware Department of Correction holds all adult inmate files in the state. Delaware does not run county jails. Every person booked into custody goes through a state facility. That means Delaware Jail Mugshots and booking data sit in one central system, not spread across dozens of local offices.
The main lookup tool is the DOC inmate locator. It works through VINELink, the online side of the Victim Information and Notification Everyday service. The locator is live 24 hours a day. You can check current custody status, transfers, and release data for free. Anyone can use the page without setting up an account for basic searches.
For a full tour of the portal, check the DOC inmate locator page to see how the search form works.
The page links out to VINELink and gives sign-up steps for phone, email, or text alerts when an offender's status changes.
Delaware State Police and Jail Mugshots
The Delaware State Police State Bureau of Identification is the central hub for criminal history files in Delaware. SBI keeps fingerprint records, rap sheets, and data tied to jail mugshots. The agency also sets the rules for certified criminal history requests. If you need your own record or a third party needs one with your consent, you route the request through SBI.
The SBI fingerprint page explains the full service and lists the sites where you can get prints taken.
SBI now schedules prints at nine sites across the state, including Wilmington, Newark, Middletown, Dover, Milford, Georgetown, and Seaford.
For criminal history, you sign up through IdentoGO. A certified state history runs $72. A state and federal check is $85 when the law calls for it. Each purpose has a service code. Personal use runs under code 27RVGT. Concealed carry applicants must have prints taken at the SBI office at 600 S. Bay Rd, Dover.
Delaware State Police Arrest Archives
The Delaware State Police also runs an open arrest archive. This is a news-style feed of press releases for recent arrests. Each entry lists the name, age, town, charges, and case notes. Many posts include jail mugshots when the State Police release them. The archive is open to the public and easy to scan.
Take a look at the State Police arrest archive to see the latest postings from Troops across the state.
Recent posts cover charges such as felony DUI, burglary, weapons counts, and drug charges from Troops 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7.
If you can't find a specific arrest in the archive, you can file a FOIA request with the State Police to get the booking file.
Delaware Jail Mugshots and Court Records
Court files often hold the same data you see on a jail mugshot sheet. Charges, case numbers, bond data, court dates, and sentencing notes all run through the Delaware Courts. The main search portal is CourtConnect. It covers civil, criminal, and family cases across the state. Basic searches are free and need no login.
Run a name, case number, or attorney search on CourtConnect to pull dockets.
The portal shows case status, hearing dates, dispositions, and filings in real time.
For more on the court system, see the main Delaware Courts homepage and review how the Court of Common Pleas handles misdemeanor dockets.
The Court of Common Pleas is the record keeper for many criminal docs, and the Leonard L. Williams Justice Center at 500 North King Street in Wilmington holds a lot of the northern files.
DELJIS and Wanted Persons
The Delaware Criminal Justice Information System, known as DELJIS, runs the state's wanted persons database. DELJIS is based at the Carvel State Office Building at 820 North French Street in Wilmington. It coordinates record sharing among all law enforcement agencies in the state. Under Title 29, Chapter 5 of the Delaware Code, DELJIS keeps arrest files on a long-term basis.
You can check if you have an active warrant at the State Police wanted status page before a traffic stop or other contact.
The tool is free and pulls from the DELJIS wanted persons file.
For the agency itself, go to deljis.delaware.gov. The site covers how the board runs, who sits on it, and what data is shared with partners.
Full system access needs login rights held by police, courts, and a few state offices.
How Long Jail Mugshots Are Kept
The Delaware Public Archives sets the records retention rules under § 524 of Title 29 of the Delaware Code. Arrest records and jail mugshots follow strict timelines. Booking info stays for the life of the person plus set periods after. Fingerprints are kept for good in state and federal files.
For the full set of rules, see the Delaware Public Archives schedule of retention.
Older case files may be moved to archive storage, where they stay open for research use.
Retention times by record type:
- Arrest records in DELJIS: kept on a long-term basis
- Fingerprints: kept for good in state and federal files
- Mugshot photos: held to the same schedule as the arrest record
- Misdemeanor case files: 7 to 10 years after case close
- Felony case files: 25 years to long-term based on severity
FOIA Requests for Delaware Jail Mugshots
The Delaware Freedom of Information Act lives in 29 Del. C. § 10001 and the chapters that follow. The law gives the public a right to state and local records. That covers arrest data, booking sheets, and many jail mugshots, but some files are held back under the exemptions. Under § 10002(l)(6), a record that would invade personal privacy can be withheld. Under § 10002(o)(3), files tied to an open case can also be kept back.
The state FOIA portal lays out the basic process for any agency.
Under § 10003, each public body has 15 business days to reply.
For State Police files, see their own FOIA page. DOC routes requests to the FOIA Coordinator at 245 McKee Road, Dover, DE 19904.
The Attorney General's Office also puts out formal FOIA opinions that bind state and local bodies.
Review recent opinions at the Delaware Department of Justice portal. Opinion 20-IB30 made clear that served arrest warrants sit with the courts, not the police. Opinion 25-IB45 held that a public body must say why a denial was made but need not cite the exact statute.
These opinions shape how agencies handle booking photo requests across the state.
Delaware Jail Mugshots Under Title 11
The rules that govern mugshots, booking records, and police files sit in Title 11 of the Delaware Code. Section 4322 covers law enforcement records. Under this section, police can hold back a mugshot if release would hurt a case, deny a fair trial, invade privacy, or out a source. Section 6501 sets up the DOC as the sole state body over adult jails. Section 8605 tells jails to keep full and true records on each person in custody.
The Delaware Code Title 11 page is the source text for all of these rules.
Section 8405 names the six state training academies, and § 1256 bars prison contraband.
Note: Section 8605 is the core statute that makes jails keep booking photos and full records for every person in custody.
Juvenile Jail Mugshots Are Not Public
Delaware treats youth records in a very different way. Under Title 10, § 1063, juvenile jail mugshots are not open to the public. Only the youth, their parents, their lawyer, the court, and some state offices may see these files. The Division of Youth Rehabilitative Services runs the New Castle County Detention Center for youth in custody.
The kids.delaware.gov site has details on how the youth system works.
Executive Order #41, signed by Governor John Carney, bars state police bodies from sharing youth booking photos unless public safety is at risk.
House Bill 115 signed in November 2021 went further. It stopped most charges against kids under 12. It barred most transfers of youth under 16 to Superior Court. It also blocked any public release of youth mugshots.
Sealing Delaware Jail Mugshots
Delaware has made its expungement law much broader in the last few years. If you were arrested but not found guilty, you may be able to seal the record right away. For a misdemeanor, you wait three years. For a felony, the wait is seven years. Once a record is sealed, the jail mugshots tied to that case come off the public file.
See the Governor's news portal for the latest on criminal justice reform and expungement rules.
The portal posts updates on executive orders, bills, and key rulings that change how records are handled.
The fee to apply is $72 through SBI. If the record gets a mandatory seal, you send in a $75 money order on top of that. The court of jurisdiction hears the petition and signs the seal order.
Browse Delaware Jail Mugshots by County
Delaware has three counties. Each one has its own set of courts, police troops, and jail sites. Pick a county below to see local contact info and record request steps.
Delaware Jail Mugshots in Major Cities
Each major city has its own police force, records unit, and FOIA office. Pick a city to see where to go for jail mugshots and arrest data in that area.