Criminal Court Cases in Contra Costa County
The Superior Court of California, County of Contra Costa Criminal Division hears the county's adult felony and misdemeanor cases. California no longer has separate city municipal criminal courts. A case tied to Concord, Richmond, Antioch, an unincorporated area, or another local agency enters the same Superior Court system when prosecutors file charges. The assigned branch may differ, but the clerk remains custodian of the criminal court case file.
A court file answers a different question from an arrest record. It shows what prosecutors filed and what the judge did. An arrest may lead to changed charges, no filed case, dismissal, acquittal, diversion, a plea, or a verdict. Readers tracing an event from custody to its outcome can use the Contra Costa County arrest search for the booking layer and the court docket for the filed case.
The official Criminal Division page pictured below routes readers to court locations, bail schedules, records, payments, and criminal forms.
That division page is the sound starting point when a lookup must lead to a clerk service rather than just a result screen.
Contra Costa Public Portal Limits
The court directs public users from its criminal court records page to the Public Portal and Open Access. These tools can expose index and register details, including a case number, category, assigned branch, parties, charges, events, hearing dates, visible status, and a disposition entry. Remote records omit sensitive identifiers, and date of birth is not a dependable public search field.
The local limit is crucial: criminal minutes, case documents, and orders are not available online. A portal result is therefore a route into the file, not the complete file. Save the exact case number, branch, and relevant docket date. Those details help the records counter locate the correct matter and reduce the chance of ordering material from a same-name case.
The source image from the Contra Costa criminal records office reinforces the split between online research and clerk-held documents.
Use the index for identification, then use the clerk channel for the actual minute, document, order, or certified copy.
Contra Costa County Case Record Searches
Start at the court's criminal records page and follow its Public Portal or Open Access link. Case number is the strongest key. A name search can work when the number is unknown, but the user should compare the branch, filing period, case type, and docket events before treating a result as the right person.
- Open the court's Public Portal or Open Access from the official criminal records page.
- Enter the exact case number when known; otherwise search the party name.
- Narrow the results with branch, filing date, or case category details that the interface exposes.
- Record the case number, court location, status, next hearing, and visible disposition.
- Request offline records from the correct counter, using CR-114 when copies and card payment are needed.
| Search detail | Type | Required | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case number | Text | No | Best exact-match key and preferred copy-request reference |
| Party name | Text | No | Fallback when the case number is unknown |
| Branch | Filter/detail | No | Separates Martinez, Pittsburg, Richmond, and other assignments |
| Filing date or year | Date/filter | No | Helps distinguish similar names and older matters |
| Case category | Filter/detail | No | May identify felony, misdemeanor, traffic, or related case type |
Note: A very recent booking may precede the prosecutor's filing and may not yet produce a searchable Contra Costa court case.
Three Contra Costa Criminal Counters
Offline access is divided across three public counters. Court Records is at Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, 725 Court Street, Room 103, Martinez, CA 94553. The East County Criminal Clerk's Office is at Richard E. Arnason Justice Center, 1000 Center Drive, Pittsburg, CA 94565. The West County Criminal Clerk's Office is at George D. Carroll Courthouse, 100 37th Street, Richmond, CA 94805. Each counter is listed for Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., except court holidays. The common court phone is (925) 608-1000.
Martinez Court Records
725 Court Street, Room 103
Martinez, CA 94553
(925) 608-1000
Pittsburg Criminal Clerk
1000 Center Drive
Pittsburg, CA 94565
(925) 608-1000
Richmond Criminal Clerk
100 37th Street
Richmond, CA 94805
(925) 608-1000
Match the branch in the portal to the proper counter before mailing a request. Walnut Creek handles juvenile and traffic matters but is not one of the three main adult criminal file counters documented by the court.
What a Criminal Case File Contains
A Contra Costa criminal case file ties formal allegations to court action. The public index may summarize much of that path, while the clerk-held documents supply the exact language of a complaint, minute, order, or judgment. Read the register in date order and distinguish a scheduled event from an event that actually occurred.
| Case number and court | The unique court reference and assigned Contra Costa branch. |
|---|---|
| Charges | Filed counts, code sections, and later amendments when shown. |
| Parties | The defendant and prosecuting party, with public identifiers limited. |
| Docket events | Hearings, filings, warrants, review dates, and probation events entered in the register. |
| Disposition | Plea, verdict, dismissal, acquittal, diversion result, or other resolved status. |
| Sentence and finance | Custody, probation, court orders, fines, and fees when docketed. |
| Documents | Minutes, case documents, and orders must be requested because criminal copies are not posted online. |
A disposition is the most important safeguard against mistaking an allegation for an outcome. "Pending" means the court has not reached a final result. A dismissal is not a conviction, while a plea or guilty verdict must be read with the sentence and any later relief.
Contra Costa Copy Forms and Fees
Two local forms serve different needs. CR-147 is the Criminal Records Search Request for a name search. CR-114 is the Criminal Record Copies Request and supports copy orders and credit-card payment. The Contra Costa court forms list is the source for current versions. Ordinary copies cost $0.50 per page. Certification adds $40, plus the per-page copy charge.
| Service | Form or cost |
|---|---|
| Name-based criminal records search request | CR-147 |
| Criminal record copy request and credit-card payment | CR-114 |
| Copy | $0.50 per page |
| Certification | $40 plus $0.50 per page |
The court's order and file records page also documents its large scanning project and current records location.
The project covers millions of paper pages, while criminal and traffic records remain outside the online-document effort, so older paper or microfilm requests can take added handling.
Criminal Case Stages in Contra Costa County
A local arrest does not itself open a court case. Law enforcement sends reports to prosecutors, and the Contra Costa County District Attorney decides what state charges to file in most adult matters. Once charges are filed, the court schedules arraignment. The defendant hears the charges and enters a plea, then the matter moves through pretrial hearings, motions, negotiation, trial preparation, or diversion when applicable.
Case flow: Charges Filed › Arraignment › Pretrial › Plea or Trial › Disposition › Sentencing
A case can end before trial through dismissal or a plea. If it proceeds to trial, the verdict becomes part of the disposition. Sentencing may include custody, probation, financial obligations, and other court orders. Later probation review, violation, warrant, or record-relief events may add new docket entries without changing what happened at the original arrest.
Contra Costa Records Counter Move
The court's current instructions state that Court Records moved to Wakefield Taylor Courthouse, 725 Court Street, Room 103, effective January 12, 2026. That fact matters because older directions may point to a prior service location. The court also announced a temporary Wakefield Taylor closure and relocation in 2025, making the current criminal records page more reliable than an old saved address.
The court forms page shown below gives one official route to CR-147 and CR-114.
Confirm the form edition, counter address, and payment directions on the live court site before sending a request.
Access Rules for Case Records
Adult court indexes are generally public, but remote access is not the same as unrestricted access to every filing. California court rules limit online display of sensitive data, and juvenile matters, sealed records, victim information, protected addresses, and other confidential material may be withheld or redacted. The California Judicial Branch electronic access guide explains why some records can be viewed remotely while other documents require courthouse access.
If a Contra Costa County case is missing, first check spelling, branch, and filing period. Then use CR-147 or contact the clerk. A sealed or restricted record will not become public through a broader name search. A personal California DOJ summary is also a separate, fingerprint-based subject-only channel, not a substitute for the Superior Court file.
Note: Verify any result against the originating court record before relying on a status, charge, or disposition shown in an index.