How to Check for a Warrant in Ann Arbor
Start with the court, since Ann Arbor cases belong to the 15th District Court. The police department can only confirm a report or an arrest on file. Whether a warrant stays open is the court's call, so make the clerk your first stop.
- Read the ticket or notice and note the case number and the court.
- Search public case history for the Ann Arbor case through the court's case search.
- Call the clerk at 734-794-6750 and ask whether the warrant is active.
- Ask Ann Arbor Police Records at 734-794-6954 for the agency report if you need the underlying file.
- Ask the court what it requires to recall the order, and write down the answer.
The Ann Arbor Police Department and Municipal Court
Ann Arbor has no municipal court of its own. The 15th District Court handles that work, while the Ann Arbor Police Department investigates cases and serves the city's warrants. Both offices share one complex but answer very different questions.
Records staff at Ann Arbor Police can pull an incident report. Confirming an open warrant, or asking for a recall, belongs to the court alone.
The 15th District Court Docket in Ann Arbor
One court handles a remarkable share of Ann Arbor's case load. Its civil side takes disputes up to $25,000, small claims up to $7,000, and misdemeanors with penalties reaching one year. Ann Arbor ordinance violations and University of Michigan Regents violations land here too, along with felony probable-cause conferences. Four divisions divide the docket: administration, civil, traffic and criminal, and probation. Want the paper trail on a misdemeanor, civil infraction, ordinance, or Regents matter? The traffic and criminal division keeps those records. That makes it a useful stop after a warrant search points to a case in Ann Arbor.
Types of Ann Arbor Warrants
Ann Arbor warrants come in a few kinds, and the 15th hears nearly all of them.
| Warrant Type | How It Arises | Who Issues It |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinance or Regents warrant | An unresolved city code or University of Michigan Regents violation | 15th District Court judge or magistrate |
| Traffic warrant | A missed traffic date or an unpaid ticket | 15th District Court |
| Misdemeanor bench warrant | A missed court date or an unmet payment order | 15th District Court |
| Felony arrest warrant | Probable cause after a police investigation | A magistrate, then the circuit court after bindover |
What an Ann Arbor Warrant Record Shows
The 15th's public case search lists a register of actions without private identifiers. Read the events in order.
| Case Number | Printed in the court's own format. Copy it exactly as the case search displays it, such as the D14A code used across the county's district dockets. |
|---|---|
| Charge | The offense with its class, whether misdemeanor, civil infraction, or ordinance. |
| Issuing Judge or Magistrate | The judicial officer attached to the warrant event. |
| Warrant Event | The register entry showing that a warrant issued, with its date. |
| Bond or Release | Any release condition the court set on the case. |
| Next Step | The appearance or payment the court expects next. |
Note: date of birth and other private details are not displayed on the public case search.
Ann Arbor Police Records and Request Routes
Police records in Ann Arbor move through the clerk's records process, not a warrant counter. A request can go by email to a2policerecords@a2gov.org, by fax to 734-994-9928, by mail, or in person at the Justice Center. For general city questions, use cityclerk@a2gov.org. Electronic delivery is an option, and a denial can be appealed to the city administrator. The city records request page spells out both the process and the appeal route.
This route returns agency records only. It cannot touch a court order, so a warrant question still goes to the 15th in Ann Arbor.
Where Ann Arbor Warrants Fit With Washtenaw County
An Ann Arbor warrant becomes a county matter once it moves past the city line. The Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office runs the jail, and the county prosecutor reviews charges city detectives bring forward. Felony cases that bind over move to the 22nd Circuit Court at the county level. What stays local is the court file itself.
Warrant flow: 15th District Court / Ann Arbor Police › Washtenaw County Sheriff › state law-enforcement systems
For the wider picture, read Washtenaw County warrant records and the county warrant search.
Security at the Ann Arbor Justice Center
Anyone appearing at the 15th should plan for a screening stop. The building uses a metal detector and an x-ray scanner, and weapons and food are not allowed inside.
Clerk hours have moved in recent years. A 2024 court notice listed Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., so confirm before you travel. Accommodation and interpreter requests go through the court administrator at 734-794-6757.
Ann Arbor's Warrant Fee and Surrender Path
The 15th lays out a clear path for a person with an open warrant. Its traffic and criminal page warns that a failure to appear brings a warrant plus a $60 warrant fee. From there, the advice is direct: call 734-794-6750 to schedule a turn-in, post a cash bond, or set an arraignment. A separate line, 734-794-6753 option 0, covers a missing misdemeanor arraignment notice, and using it early keeps a lost notice from turning into a missed date. Bring photo identification, the case paperwork, and any payment receipt to the appearance the court sets.
Where Ann Arbor Warrant Arrests Are Lodged
Most Ann Arbor warrant arrests end at the Washtenaw County Jail, and the paperwork follows the person. An Ann Arbor Police Department policy describes the handoff: once the department serves a warrant it holds and lodges the person at the county jail, jail staff verify identity and clear the entry. Bond handling sits with the county. Its published information says 10 percent of a bond is posted, and the court keeps that 10 percent, releasing it to the bonder when the case ends or earlier by a judge's order. For payment logistics, the county bonding page is the office to contact.
Ask the Ann Arbor court about release conditions before asking the jail about a payment window. The judge sets the terms.
Ann Arbor Warrant Records and the Federal Overlay
Federal cases run on a separate track, even in the same city. Ann Arbor serves as a place of holding court for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, at the Federal Building. No staffed clerk's office operates there. Docket access runs through PACER accounts and the staffed clerk offices in Detroit, Bay City, and Flint. Nothing in a Washtenaw court search or the sheriff's public list reaches a federal warrant.
If a federal notice names you in Ann Arbor, call a lawyer before any local court counter.
Public Access to Ann Arbor Warrant Records
Two access systems govern Ann Arbor warrant records, and they do not overlap. City agency records follow Michigan's public-records law, while the court register follows state court rules.
Key Rules:
Michigan Freedom of Information Act, MCL 15.231 et seq. gives the public a right to inspect and copy city agency records, subject to exemptions.
MCL 15.232(d)(v) excludes the judiciary from the FOIA definition of a public body, so court files use court access rather than a city FOIA form.
MCR 8.119 keeps court records public unless a statute, court rule, or order restricts them, with protected personal data redacted.