Minnesota People Search

Minnesota courts share one statewide search, and the state also offers a free public criminal history search, so a search can start with these five offices before going to the county recorder and assessor.

• Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO)District court cases from all 87 counties
• BCA Public Criminal HistoryFree search of public adult criminal history records
• Minnesota Secretary of State business searchActive and inactive businesses with officers and registered agents
• eCRV Search, Minnesota Department of RevenueProperty sales with buyer and seller names and prices
• Minnesota Department of Health, Vital RecordsBirth and death certificates and who can order them

In Minnesota, the backbone of public information access is the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (MGDPA), codified in Chapter 13 of the Minnesota Statutes. Unlike standard Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) frameworks found in other jurisdictions, the MGDPA establishes a statutory presumption that all government data is public unless explicitly classified as private, nonpublic, or confidential by state or federal law. This broad legal mandate forces transparency across local municipalities, the 87 counties, and state-level agencies.

This makes Minnesota one of the more open states: court cases, business filings and property sales can all be searched online. The records are spread over state and county systems, though, so a search usually uses several of them.

Court cases from every county are in one search, Minnesota Court Records Online (MCRO). Property records, local vital records and jail rosters stay with the 87 counties.

Two more state offices keep records on people in the criminal justice system:

The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) runs the free public criminal history search, linked in Where to Look, and the predatory offender registry. The Department of Corrections keeps the offender locator.

• BCA Predatory Offender RegistryOffenders who have failed to register or cannot be found
• DOC Public Offender LocatorPeople in state prisons or on supervised release

Minnesota has one trial court, the District Court, organized into 10 judicial districts, and most of its case records are in MCRO. You can search by name, case number or attorney, from traffic tickets to felony trials.

Minnesota also utilizes the eFile MN (Odyssey File & Serve) system, which modernized the state's document management. While MCRO provides the docket index, actual document viewing policies can vary, and some sensitive case types, like juvenile proceedings, child protection, and certain domestic abuse files, are statutorily restricted from remote public viewing.

Minnesota also has a separate Tax Court, which hears appeals of orders of the Commissioner of Revenue and of local property values.

Common Mistake

Do not assume a clean MCRO search means the subject has absolutely no criminal history. Under MN Chapter 609A, many records are sealed or expunged after the successful completion of diversion programs or specific statutory waiting periods. Also, federal crimes committed in Minnesota will not appear here; they are held in the federal PACER system.

Property records are kept by the county where the property is, not by the state.

The county recorder records deeds, mortgages and liens, and the county assessor values property, so a full property search checks both offices. Sales are also reported to the Department of Revenue on an electronic Certificate of Real Estate Value (eCRV), and the eCRV search shows buyer, seller, date and price; it is linked in Where to Look.

Licenses are issued by several state offices: the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) licenses construction and trades, while the Department of Health and the health licensing boards license medical professionals.

Verifying a professional license is one of the most reliable ways to confirm a subject's current occupation, business address, and regulatory standing. Because these licenses require regular renewal, the associated address data is often more current than historical property deeds.

• Department of Labor and Industry license lookupContractors, plumbers, electricians and other licensed trades

The DOC Public Offender Locator, under Official State Sources, covers people sentenced to state prison. People awaiting trial, serving short jail sentences or held on local warrants are in county jails and will not appear there.

For county jails, check the sheriff's jail roster of the county. Hennepin and Ramsey counties keep online rosters with charges and bail amounts.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is the central repository for vital records. However, access is not uniform. Birth records are generally classified as private data and are accessible only to the subject, immediate family members, or legal representatives.

Death records are public, so they help with probate research, genealogy and confirming that a person has died. Marriage records come from the county office that issued the license, and divorce cases are kept by the district court of the county.

Minnesota voter lists are public data under the MGDPA but can be bought from the Secretary of State only by Minnesota voters. Anyone can check their own registration on MNVotes.

• MNVotes, check your registrationSecretary of State lookup of your own voter record

By law the lists may be used only for elections, political activity or law enforcement. Commercial use is prohibited and carries penalties.

For historical research, the Minnesota Historical Society (MNHS) holds the state archives, birth and death indexes, state census records and historical newspapers.

• Minnesota Historical Society people searchBirth, death and census indexes and state archives

Property and jail records are kept by the counties. Most Minnesotans live in the Twin Cities area and its suburbs:

• Hennepin CountyMinneapolis, the most populous county; 4th Judicial District
• Ramsey CountySt. Paul, the state capital, with property tax and map search
• Dakota CountySouthern suburbs such as Eagan and Burnsville
• Anoka CountyNorth of the Twin Cities
• Washington CountyEast metro, on the Wisconsin border
• Scott CountySouthwest suburbs, with property and land records search
• Stearns CountySt. Cloud and central Minnesota
• Olmsted CountyRochester, home of the Mayo Clinic
• St. Louis CountyDuluth and the Arrowhead, the largest county by area
• Wright CountyOuter suburbs northwest of the Twin Cities
• Carver CountyOuter suburbs southwest of the Twin Cities
• Sherburne CountyOuter suburbs between the Twin Cities and St. Cloud

Common Scandinavian surnames such as Johnson, Anderson and Nelson make many Minnesota names ambiguous.

Narrow MCRO results by middle initial and date of birth when you can. Once you find a case, compare the address on the docket with the county assessor's records to see whether the person owns the property or rents.

Researcher Tip

Check the eCRV search when an address changes on a court docket. A recent sale shows when the person moved and the sale price.

The Secretary of State runs Safe at Home, an address confidentiality program for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.

Participants are assigned a designated PO Box. This proxy address is then used on all public records, including driver's licenses, property deeds, court filings, and voter registration, legally shielding the participant's actual physical location from public view.

Privacy Note

If an individual is enrolled in the Safe at Home program, their physical address is legally confidential. Attempting to use skip-tracing tactics to circumvent this protection to discover their actual residence is highly unethical and potentially unlawful. Researchers must respect the proxy address.