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Santa Clara County, California Public Records

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Find the right office in Santa Clara County. Court cases, deeds and parcels, sheriff and jail records, vital records and county filings, each linked to the office that keeps them.

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Most requested Santa Clara County records

Every card below goes to the government office responsible for that record. Use the category buttons to narrow the list.

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Showing 12 official sources

Official

Police & jail

Santa Clara County Sex Offenders

The California Megan's Law website, run by the state Department of Justice, lists the sex offenders required to register in Santa Clara County and can be searched by name, address or ZIP code.

meganslaw.ca.gov
Open official site Santa Clara County Sex Offenders

Everything else, organized

More official Santa Clara County record sources

12 more Santa Clara County sources not listed above.

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Local record guide

About public records in Santa Clara County

County profile

Santa Clara County at a glance

State
California
County seat
San Jose
Population
1,936,259
Area
1,304 sq mi
Founded
1850
Cities and towns
22

Santa Clara County offices and records

Sheriff & Law Enforcement. Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office is responsible for law enforcement services in the unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County, as well as managing Santa Clara County jail system.

Police Departments. Santa Clara County is served by multiple law enforcement agencies, including Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office and municipal police departments such as the San Jose Police Department, Palo Alto Police Department, and Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety.

Law Enforcement & Arrests. Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office, headquartered at 55 West Younger Avenue, San José, CA 95110, provides law enforcement services to unincorporated areas and contract cities, operates Santa Clara County jail system, and provides courthouse security. Santa Clara County's fifteen incorporated cities each maintain their own police departments: San José Police Department (the largest), Palo Alto Police Department, Mountain View Police Department, Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety, Santa Clara Police Department, Cupertino Sheriff's Office (contract), Milpitas Police Department, Los Gatos-Monte Sereno Police Department, Saratoga Sheriff's Office (contract), Campbell Police Department, Los Altos Police Department, Morgan Hill Police Department, and Gilroy Police Department. Arrest records and booking information are public records under the California Public Records Act (Government Code Section 6250 et seq.).

Criminal Records. These records are maintained by Santa Clara County Superior Court and the respective law enforcement agencies.

Arrest Records. Arrest records in Santa Clara County are maintained by Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office and the various municipal police departments within Santa Clara County.

Mugshots & Booking Photos. Mugshots in Santa Clara County are taken and retained by Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office during the booking process.

Abandoned mine records

Old mine workings in Santa Clara County

Where the workings are, and the office that holds the mine maps.

From the old mine records

What is on record in Santa Clara County

Old mine sites
197
Sites with no status in the records
29
Still producing
61
Worked underground, in the mine records
47
Main minerals
Mercury; construction sand and gravel; Manganese
Holes drawn on the old survey maps
249
Shafts and tunnels
93
What they are
adit, gravel pit, prospect pit, mine shaft
Maps surveyed
1953 to 1994
Records behind them
632 records for 536 sites, the rest are the same working written down more than once
Sources
USGS mineral file and USGS topographic mine features

Is an old working under a property here?

The mine records hold 287 named mine sites inside the county, 197 of them worked out or abandoned; the old survey maps add 249 holes drawn inside the county, 93 of them shafts or tunnels. The minerals the records name are Mercury; construction sand and gravel; Manganese.

A point in either file is a location, not a property line: the sheet shows the opening on the surface, not the rooms under it. The record that shows what runs under a parcel is the mine map. The OSMRE National Mine Map Repository holds scanned underground mine maps and answers requests for a named mine or an area.

Santa Clara County: the boundary from the Census Bureau, and one dot for each old mine or hole on record inside it. The purple dots come off the old survey maps and the darkest of those are shafts and tunnels; the red, green and orange ones are mine records. Hover a dot for its name.
California mine map and abandoned mine records
Named workings recorded in Santa Clara County (210 shown, 87 more named and 239 unnamed on the map)

Rows taken off the old survey maps open the USGS record of what sits at that spot, because no single feature on those maps has a page of its own. Rows from the mine records open their own USGS page.

Disclaimer: The mine information here is for general information only. Old mine records can be incomplete, outdated or wrong, and finding nothing here does not mean there is nothing there. Check with the mine map office named here before you rely on it, and have a qualified engineer look at any ground you are worried about. PublicRecordCenter.com assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors, omissions, or consequences arising from the use of this information.

Straight answers

Santa Clara County public-records FAQs

Open only the answer you need.

Where can I find mugshots or booking photos in Santa Clara County, California?

Booking photos are kept by the agency that made the arrest, such as the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office or a city police department in Santa Clara County. Ask that agency for its record. Under Penal Code 13665, a police department or sheriff's office may not share on social media the booking photos of a person arrested on suspicion of a nonviolent crime unless an exception applies, and must remove booking photos it shared on social media within 14 days unless an exception still applies.

How do I get a criminal background check in Santa Clara County, California?

The California criminal history record comes from the California Department of Justice. Record Review of your own record only: submit fingerprint images through Live Scan and follow the DOJ Record Review instructions. Fee: $25 processing fee to the DOJ, plus the Live Scan agency's fingerprint fee; a fee waiver may be available.

How can I look up sex offenders in Santa Clara County, California?

Search the California Megan's Law Website (Department of Justice), or every state at once on the National Sex Offender Public Website run by the U.S. Department of Justice.

How do I register to vote in Santa Clara County, California?

Register with the county elections official (county elections office or registrar of voters) or through the California Secretary of State. You can also register online with the state online registration. The deadline to register is 15 days before Election Day; after that, same day (conditional) registration and voting is available at the county elections office.

How do I look up property records in Santa Clara County, California?

Deeds and other recorded land documents in Santa Clara County are kept by the Santa Clara County Recorder. Property values are set by the County Assessor, and tax bills come from the County Tax Collector. Source: official state page.

How do I get a birth or death certificate in Santa Clara County, California?

Certified birth and death certificates for California come from the California Department of Public Health, Vital Records (CDPH VR). Copies may be obtained in person at the county office (County Registrar or Recorder) where the birth was registered, for events in that county. By mail with form VS 111 to California Department of Public Health, Vital Records, MS 5103, P.O. Box 997410, Sacramento, CA 95899-7410, or in person at the county office where the event was registered; since July 1, 2026 CDPH VR no longer accepts applications sent through online third party vendors. Fee: $31 for each certified copy of a birth record.

How do I find business license records in Santa Clara County, California?

Business entity filings are searched with the California Secretary of State (bizfile Online). Most California cities and counties require a business license, permits or registration to do business within their limits.

Same county

Cities, towns and neighboring counties

Use the city page when a record was created by a municipal police department or city office; use the county page for courts, deeds, vital records and jail custody.

San JoseSunnyvaleGilroyMountain ViewMilpitasPalo AltoCupertinoMorgan HillCampbellLos GatosLos AltosSaratogaStanfordLos Altos HillsSan MartinMonte SerenoAlvisoCoyoteHoly CityMount HamiltonNew AlmadenRedwood EstatesStanislaus CountySanta Cruz CountyMerced CountySan Benito CountyAlameda CountySan Mateo County