Search Criminal Records in Towson MD

Towson criminal court records are filed at the Baltimore County Circuit Court, which sits right in Towson at 401 Bosley Avenue. As the Baltimore County seat, Towson is home to the main courthouse that handles all felony cases, jury trials, and serious criminal matters for the entire county. If you are looking for criminal court records tied to Towson, the clerk's office is steps away from the center of the community, and this page explains exactly how to use it.

Towson Is the Baltimore County Court Seat

Because Towson is the county seat of Baltimore County, the Circuit Court is physically located here. That means Towson residents and anyone with a case filed in Baltimore County can walk to the courthouse rather than travel to another city. The court at 401 Bosley Avenue, 2nd Floor, handles all felony criminal cases, Grand Jury proceedings, jury trials, and appeals from the District Court for the entire county.

Baltimore County is part of Maryland's 3rd Judicial Circuit, which also includes Baltimore City and Harford County. The Circuit Court handles the most serious criminal matters in the county. Lower-level cases go to the District Court, which has its own Towson location at 120 E. Chesapeake Avenue just a few blocks away. Between these two courts, nearly every criminal case from Towson and the rest of Baltimore County is covered.

One important difference at Baltimore County: copy fees here are $0.25 per page for standard copies, lower than the $0.50 statewide norm. Certified copies cost $5.00. Case jackets, which are the physical folders holding all filed documents, cost $1.00 per page to reproduce. These are specific to Baltimore County and differ from what most other Maryland courthouses charge.

Baltimore County Circuit Court

The clerk's office is on the second floor of the courthouse at 401 Bosley Avenue in Towson. The criminal division handles felony cases and has its own direct phone number and email address. Clerk Julie L. Ensor oversees the office and can be reached directly if needed.

When visiting in person, bring a photo ID and cash or a money order. Standard copies run $0.25 per page. Certified copies cost $5.00 flat. Case jacket copies are $1.00 per page. To speed things up, look up the case number online before you go so the staff can pull the file quickly. Mail requests should go to the same address. Include the defendant's name, case number, a list of documents you need, a self-addressed stamped envelope, and your money order for the estimated total.

Search Towson Criminal Court Records Online

The Maryland Judiciary Case Search portal lets you look up any Baltimore County criminal case at no cost. It covers Circuit Court records from 1998 and District Court records from 1989. No account or login is needed. The portal is available around the clock.

Go to casesearch.courts.state.md.us to access the statewide database. The screenshot below shows the Maryland Judiciary Case Search portal used to look up Towson criminal court records.

From the search results you can see charges, docket entries, hearing dates, and the court that handled the case. You cannot download the actual filed documents through the portal, but you get everything you need to make a targeted request to the clerk's office. If a search returns too many results for a common name, try adding a date of birth to narrow it down.

Baltimore County District Court in Towson

The District Court serving Towson is at 120 E. Chesapeake Avenue, Towson, MD 21286. The main phone number is (410) 512-2000 and the criminal line is (410) 512-2101. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Towson District Court handles misdemeanor criminal cases, traffic matters, and civil cases under $30,000 for the Towson area and much of central Baltimore County. Cases at this level that did not involve a jury trial will be in the District Court records, searchable through the online portal. If a defendant asked for a jury trial or appealed a District Court ruling, those records move to the Circuit Court at 401 Bosley Avenue. Always check both courts in the Case Search portal if you are not sure where a case ended up.

Local Resources for Towson

The Baltimore County Sheriff's Office is headquartered in Towson at 401 Bosley Avenue, Room 100, Towson, MD 21204. The main phone number is (410) 887-3151. Their website is www.baltimorecountymd.gov/departments/sheriff. The Sheriff's Office maintains arrest records and warrant information separate from the court system.

For police records tied to incidents in Towson, the Baltimore County Police Department Records Section is at 700 E. Joppa Road in Towson. The records phone is (410) 887-2544. Police reports cost $15 each. These are separate from court case files, so if you need both a police report and a court record, you will need to submit requests to both offices. The Sheriff handles MPIA requests for records tied to arrests and county-level law enforcement activity, while the Police Department handles incident reports tied to patrol calls.

For a Maryland criminal background check, contact CJIS at 1-888-795-0011. State-only checks cost $18. A state plus FBI check costs $38.

Nearby Cities

These nearby Maryland cities also have criminal court records pages on this site.

Baltimore County Records

All Towson criminal court records fall under Baltimore County. Visit the county page for full details on the court system, procedures, and access options.