Public Records Requests

The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction is committed to transparency and will furnish all requested public records as promptly as possible. Under North Carolina public records law General Statute 132 and various other statutes, certain personal or confidential information is not public, and must be redacted or protected. Agencies are not required to create a record that does not exist, nor compile a record or records in any format that does not already exist.

Many public records are available to the public online

NC Policies

Criminal Offender Information

  • Offender Public Information Search / Locator - Search by name or offender ID for up-to-date information on North Carolina state offender, probationers, and parolees. This NCDAC database contains current and historical information back to 1972. Does not include county jail information.
  • Automated System Query (ASQ) - This search tool queries the same NCDAC database as the public offender search, but allows you to create specialized reports based on criteria that you select.  Returns counts and demographic information on offenders but not specific offender identities. 

North Carolina Background Checks and Sex Offender Registry

  • Background Checks – The NC State Bureau of Investigation is the central repository for criminal information for the state. The NCSBI offers the public and authorized agencies criminal background checks. 
  • NC Sex Offender Registry - This database maintained by the NC State Bureau of Investigation shows residential locations of registered sex offenders in North Carolina.  

Court Records

  • North Carolina Judicial Branch – NCDAC is not the custodian of court records. To request records regarding criminal and civil cases, police reports and traffic citations, contact the North Carolina Judicial Branch or the Clerk of Court in the county where the citation was issued. 

Are you requesting medical records?

We can provide medical records for an offender or former offender only. To request these, email the Medical Team at dac_medrec@dac.nc.gov.
 

How to submit a Public Records Request from NCDAC

Be sure to:

  • Provide details when making your request. This will help us respond to your request more effectively. Please allow additional time to review/redact very large requests. Excessively large requests will be provided in batches as they are completed.
  • Be sure to complete the entire form. Incomplete forms will cause delays in responding to your request. 

We will provide electronic copies unless otherwise requested. If you are a member of the news media working under a deadline, please include this information in your request.

Submit a Public Records Request

Quick Links

Frequently Asked Questions

Tab/Accordion Items

 

According to North Carolina General Statute, Chapter 132, public records are defined as, “all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, photographs, films, sound recordings, magnetic or other tapes, electronic data-processing records, artifacts, or other documentary material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance in connection with the transaction of public business by any agency of North Carolina government or its subdivisions.”

These items are considered to be the property of the people, and copies shall be provided for free or at minimal cost.

Examples of items that are not considered public record include:

  • Social security numbers and other personal identifying information.
  • Sensitive public security information;
  • Emergency response plans;
  • Law enforcement agency recordings;
  • 911 databases;
  • Criminal investigations;
  • Intelligence information records;
  • Trial preparation materials;
  • Attorney-client privileged communications;
  • State tax information;
  • Public enterprise billing information;
  • Innocence Inquiry Commission records; or
  • Alarm registration information.

For full details regarding items not considered public record, see NCGS Chapter 132.

Public records requests may be submitted in person, by mail, by phone or through electronic means. The preferred method for receiving public records requests is through the department’s online public request form, which allows DAC to better track requests and respond in a timely manner.

Once a request is submitted, a staff member will contact the requester within three business days to acknowledge the request.

NC Department of Adult Correction
5201 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-5201
(919) 733-2126

By law, state agencies are required to respond to public records requests “as promptly as possible.” Response times may vary based on a variety of factors, including the complexity of the request, the volume of records requested, the amount of time needed to redact confidential information, and the resources required to fulfill the request.

Per DAC policy, if staff find a request to be ambiguous, overly broad, or very time-intensive, a staff member may contact the requestor and attempt to clarify, narrow or revise the request. A narrowly-tailored request limits the expenditure of department resources, and therefore allows the agency to respond to requests in a shorter timeframe.

To assist DAC staff in providing a timely response to your request, we recommend the following when crafting your request:

  • Be specific – Carefully consider what records you would like to request. Are there specific documents you are interested in? What divisions or staff members are included in your request? The more detail you can provide, the easier it is for our staff to locate any responsive public records.
     
  • Provide dates – A date range can further help staff narrow the request to a particular timeframe, allowing for more efficient collection of records.

In many cases, simple public records requests can be fulfilled within a matter of days. Complex requests, especially those that require collecting and reviewing large quantities of emails or redacting confidential information, may take weeks or months to complete.