Fort Lauderdale Booking Records

Fort Lauderdale 24 hour booking records are processed through the Broward Sheriff's Office. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department handles arrests within city limits, but BSO runs the county jail where all bookings take place. BSO provides an online arrest search tool that lets you look up booking data for informational purposes. The system is free, open to all, and covers every arrest across Broward County regardless of which agency made the stop.

Fort Lauderdale Arrest Records and Jail Search

The BSO Arrest Search is the primary tool for checking Fort Lauderdale booking records online. The system is described by BSO as being for informational purposes only. You can search by name and the results show charges, booking dates, bond amounts, and the arresting agency. The tool covers current inmates as well as past bookings.

Fort Lauderdale PD is one of the largest police departments in Broward County. The department is headquartered at 1300 W Broward Blvd. Officers patrol the city and make arrests for everything from traffic violations to serious felonies. Once an arrest is made, the person is transported to the Broward County Main Jail or the North Broward Bureau for booking. BSO staff take it from there.

Broward County has a large number of cities, and many have their own police departments. Hollywood PD, Pembroke Pines PD, Coral Springs PD, and others all bring arrests to the BSO jail system. The arrest search covers all of these agencies. You search once and see results from the whole county.

How Fort Lauderdale 24 Hour Bookings Are Processed

The booking process starts when an FLPD officer brings someone to the county jail. BSO staff fingerprint the person, take a mugshot, and enter the charges into the system. Bond is calculated based on the charges and any prior history. The person gets a housing assignment. All of this creates the booking record that goes public.

Under Section 119.07 of the Florida Statutes, everyone has the right to inspect and copy public records. Booking records fall under this rule. BSO puts data online through the arrest search tool. You can also submit a written public records request for documents not available on the website, such as detailed arrest affidavits or booking photographs.

The legal definition of a public record comes from Section 119.011. It covers any material made or received by an agency during the course of official business. Every piece of paper and every digital entry generated during a Fort Lauderdale booking falls under this definition.

The BSO arrest search is shown below.

BSO states that the arrest search is for informational purposes and covers all agencies in Broward County.

Fort Lauderdale Jail Records and Inmate Rights

People booked at the Broward County jail after a Fort Lauderdale arrest have legal protections. Section 901.243 says arrested persons can make phone calls within a reasonable time after booking. This right applies at the Broward jail no matter which agency made the arrest.

Booking records from Fort Lauderdale arrests typically include:

• Full name and date of birth
• Booking date and time
• All charges and statute numbers
• Bond amount and type
• Arresting agency (FLPD)

Not everything shows up in the search tool. Section 119.071 creates exemptions for sealed records, expunged cases, and juvenile matters. Active criminal investigations may also have restricted records. For standard adult bookings, though, the data is public and available through the BSO system.

An arrest is not a conviction. The BSO arrest search shows who was booked and what they were charged with. The court system handles what comes after that. Charges can be dropped, reduced through plea deals, or dismissed entirely. Someone listed in the system may be found not guilty at trial. The booking record stays on file either way, but it represents an arrest, not a verdict.

Statewide Searches Beyond Fort Lauderdale

For records outside Broward County, the FDLE Criminal History portal offers statewide criminal background checks. Each search costs $24 under Section 943.053. The FDLE check pulls data from every county in Florida, which is useful when you need a broader picture. For recent Fort Lauderdale bookings specifically, the free BSO tool works best.

The FDLE website also provides access to sex offender searches, missing persons info, and other law enforcement databases that cover the whole state. The Fort Lauderdale Police Department website has contact details and department information, but booking data goes through BSO.

Broward County Handles Fort Lauderdale Bookings

Fort Lauderdale is the county seat of Broward County. The Broward Sheriff's Office runs the jail system where all city arrests are booked. FLPD does not have its own jail. When officers arrest someone, the person is taken to the county facility for processing. BSO handles everything from that point forward.

Broward County is one of the most populous counties in Florida. The jail system processes a large number of bookings every day from dozens of different agencies. Fort Lauderdale is the largest city in the county, but it is just one of many. The BSO arrest search covers them all. If you are looking for someone and are not sure which city the arrest happened in, just search by name. The system will show every booking in the county.

Nearby Cities

Many cities near Fort Lauderdale have their own police departments, but all bookings go through BSO. These nearby cities have their own booking records pages.