Ford County Police Records Search
Ford County police records are maintained by the Sheriff's Office on North American Street in Paxton. This page explains how to request reports, search court records, and access law enforcement data in the county.
Ford County Quick Facts
Ford County Sheriff's Office
The Ford County Sheriff's Office is at 235 N. American Street in Paxton. The phone number is (217) 379-9470. Deputies handle law enforcement in the rural and unincorporated areas of the county. The sheriff also runs the county jail and assists the courts with serving papers.
Police reports from the sheriff are public records under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act (5 ILCS 140/). To get a copy, submit a written FOIA request. State the date of the incident, names of people involved, and any case number you have. You can mail or hand-deliver your request to the sheriff's office at the address above.
The Ford County Sheriff's Office website is shown here with contact and department information.
Check the website for current hours and any FOIA forms the office may have posted.
Ford County is a small county with about 13,400 residents. The sheriff's office handles a modest volume of reports compared to larger counties. That said, the FOIA process is the same. Every request gets five business days for a response, with a possible extension to ten days for complex cases.
| Address | 235 N. American Street, Paxton, IL 60957 |
|---|---|
| Phone | (217) 379-9470 |
| Website | fordcounty.illinois.gov/sheriff |
FOIA Process and Fees
All public bodies in Ford County follow the same FOIA rules. Write your request. Be specific about what you want. Include dates and names. The agency has five business days to respond. They can extend that to ten days for large requests or when records are hard to locate.
Copy fees are set by state law. The first 50 pages of black and white copies are free. Pages beyond that cost $0.15 each for letter or legal size paper. Electronic records on a disc typically cost under a dollar. You can request a fee waiver if you believe the records serve the public interest. The agency decides on a case-by-case basis.
If an agency denies your request, it must tell you which FOIA exemption applies. Active investigations and personal privacy are the top reasons. Appeal any denial to the Illinois Attorney General's Public Access Counselor. The appeal costs nothing. The PAC reviews the denial and issues a binding opinion. This process takes a few weeks for most cases. Keep a copy of everything you send and receive. Documentation helps if you need to push the matter further.
Ford County Circuit Clerk
Kasi Schwarz serves as the Ford County Circuit Clerk. The office is at 200 W. State, Room 106, in Paxton. Call (217) 379-9420 or email kschwarz@fordcounty.illinois.gov. Visit the Circuit Clerk's website for more details.
The Ford County Circuit Clerk's online presence is shown below.
This site provides information on court records, case filings, and how to access disposition data for criminal cases in Ford County.
The circuit clerk keeps all court files. After an arrest in Ford County, the State's Attorney decides whether to file charges. If charges are filed, a case enters the court system and the clerk tracks every step from there. You can look up charges, hearing dates, bonds, plea agreements, and sentencing. Ford County is part of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, and all criminal cases go through the courthouse in Paxton.
Court records add depth to police reports. The police report tells you what happened. The court record shows what happened next. For the full story, request both sets of records.
| Clerk | Kasi Schwarz |
|---|---|
| Address | 200 W. State, Room 106, Paxton, IL 60957 |
| Phone | (217) 379-9420 |
| kschwarz@fordcounty.illinois.gov | |
| Website | fordcounty.illinois.gov/circuit-clerk |
State Police and Criminal History
ISP Troop 5 covers Ford County. Troopers patrol the state highways and interstates in the area. If a state trooper wrote the report, request it from ISP at isp.illinois.gov/Foia or by emailing ISP.FOIA.Officer@illinois.gov. Local agencies cannot give you state police reports.
Criminal history data is managed by the ISP Bureau of Identification. The Uniform Conviction Information Act (20 ILCS 2635/) limits public access to conviction records only. Arrest records without a conviction are private. The Criminal Identification Act (20 ILCS 2630/) covers the rules for sealing and expunging criminal records in Illinois. People with eligible records can petition the court to have them cleared.
For your own criminal history, visit a Live Scan vendor for fingerprinting. ISP sends you the transcript free. Crash reports from state police cost $5.00 each, payable by check or money order to Illinois State Police.
Types of Police Records
Ford County agencies keep several types of records. What you can get depends on the incident and which agency responded to it.
- Incident and offense reports
- Arrest records and booking data
- Traffic crash reports
- Dispatch and call logs
- Court case filings and dispositions
- Warrant information
Active case files may have parts redacted. Juvenile records are sealed by Illinois law. Witness statements in open cases are typically withheld until the case wraps up. The ISP Sex Offender Registry covers Ford County and is free to search. No FOIA request is needed.
Nearby Counties
These counties share borders with Ford County in east-central Illinois. Each has its own sheriff and court system.