Search Normal Police Records

Normal police records are maintained by the Normal Police Department and, at the county level, by the McLean County Sheriff's Office in Bloomington. The town of Normal has about 54,500 residents and sits in the heart of McLean County, right next to Bloomington. Local police handle all reports for incidents within town limits, while the sheriff covers the rest of McLean County. This guide covers how to get police records in Normal through FOIA, the criminal history check process, and what state-level resources are open to the public.

Normal Police Department Records

The Normal Police Department handles all police records for the town. Their office is at 100 East Phoenix Avenue, Normal, IL 61761. Contact their records division for copies of incident reports, arrest records, accident reports, and other police documents.

Requests go through FOIA. The Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140/) gives the public the right to access records from any government body in the state. That includes the Normal PD. Write up your request and include the date of the incident, the location, and any case numbers or names you have. Send it to the department's FOIA officer by mail, email, or in person. The more focused your request, the faster you get a response.

Under FOIA, the Normal Police Department has five business days to reply. An extension to ten days is allowed with a written explanation. The first 50 pages of copies are free. After that, pages cost $0.15 each. Pay by check or money order. If your request is denied, you can appeal to the Illinois Attorney General's Public Access Counselor at no charge. Normal and Bloomington share McLean County, but each has a separate police force with separate records.

McLean County Sheriff's Office

The McLean County Sheriff's Office is at 104 West Front Street, Bloomington, IL 61701. The sheriff handles police records for all unincorporated areas of McLean County, which is the largest county by land area in Illinois. If an incident happened outside Normal's town limits but within the county, the sheriff has the report.

You can submit a FOIA request to the McLean County Sheriff by email at foiarequest@mcleancountyil.gov. The county also has a transparency and FOIA page with instructions. The same state rules apply: five business days to respond, first 50 pages free, $0.15 after that.

The screenshot below shows the McLean County Sheriff's Office, which handles county-level police records for Normal and the surrounding area.

Source: McLean County Sheriff

The sheriff's office also manages the county jail. Booking records from the jail can be requested through FOIA as well, though some inmate information is already posted online through the McLean County website.

Normal residents who are not sure which agency responded to an incident should check the case number prefix. Normal PD and the McLean County Sheriff use different numbering systems. You can also call either agency and they will tell you who has the report.

McLean County Circuit Clerk

Court records tied to Normal police cases go through the McLean County Circuit Clerk. The clerk's office is at 104 West Front Street, Room 404, Bloomington, IL 61701. They handle case files, court dates, dispositions, and sentencing records for the 11th Judicial Circuit.

If a Normal arrest led to criminal charges, the court file sits with the circuit clerk. You may need both the police report from the Normal PD and the court record from the clerk to get a full picture of a case. These are two separate agencies with two separate FOIA processes. The clerk's office does have some records available online, but the best approach for specific cases is to visit in person or call.

Under the Criminal Identification Act (20 ILCS 2630/), some court records may be sealed or expunged. Juvenile cases are almost always restricted. The circuit clerk follows these rules and will not release sealed records without a court order.

Criminal Background Checks in Normal

You cannot get a criminal history report from the Normal Police Department. Illinois routes all background checks through the state. The Illinois State Police Bureau of Identification at 260 North Chicago Street, Joliet, IL 60432 runs the system. Their phone number is (815) 740-5160.

The Uniform Conviction Information Act (20 ILCS 2635/) controls what is public. Only conviction data goes out. Pending charges and dismissed cases stay private. For a name-based search, use CHIRP at chirp.isp.illinois.gov. You register for an account, submit a name and date of birth, and the system returns any conviction records from across Illinois.

Live Scan fingerprint checks are more thorough. They match against both state and FBI databases. The BOI has a list of approved Live Scan vendors. Some are in the Bloomington-Normal area. For your own record, the ISP lets you do an Access and Review at no charge. You can see what is in your file and dispute anything wrong.

State Police and Other Resources

ISP Troop 5 covers McLean County. If a state trooper handled an incident on I-55, I-39, or any state highway near Normal, the ISP has the report. The Normal Police Department does not have those records.

Crash reports from ISP are available at isp.illinois.gov/CrashReports. Each report costs $5 by mail. Send a check to the Patrol Records Unit at 801 South 7th Street, Suite 600-M, Springfield, IL 62703. The ISP FOIA Officer is Sarah Wheeler at ISP.FOIA.Officer@illinois.gov.

The Sex Offender Registry at sor.isp.illinois.gov lets Normal residents search for registered offenders by name, address, or zip code. The registry is free and open to the public. It is updated regularly by the ISP with data from all 102 Illinois counties.

Normal is a college town. Illinois State University campus police maintain their own set of records separate from the town police. If an incident happened on campus, you would contact the ISU Police Department, not the Normal PD. This is a common point of confusion for students and parents looking for Normal police records.

Nearby Cities

These cities are close to Normal. Each has its own police department and records process.