Taunton 72 Hour Booking

Taunton 72 hour booking records are maintained by the Taunton Police Department and the Bristol County Sheriff's Office. When an arrest happens in Taunton, officers process the booking at the Summer Street station. The person may then be held locally or transferred to the Bristol County jail in Dartmouth. You can search for Taunton booking records by calling the police, visiting the station, or filing a written public records request. This page walks through every option for finding 72 hour booking records from arrests made in Taunton, Massachusetts.

Taunton Police and 72 Hour Booking

The Taunton Police Department is at 23 Summer Street, Taunton, MA 02780. The main line is (508) 823-5000. Email police@taunton-ma.gov for records questions. Taunton officers handle all arrests within city limits. When they bring someone in, the 72 hour booking starts at the station. Officers take down the person's name, date of birth, home address, and the charges. Fingerprints and a booking photo are part of the process. All of this gets stored in the department's records system.

After the initial booking at the Taunton station, a few things can play out. If bail is low and the person can pay, they walk out. If the charges are serious or bail is set high, the person stays in custody. Taunton police may hold them at the station temporarily or arrange a transfer to the Bristol County House of Correction in Dartmouth. The 72 hour window starts at the time of arrest. A judge at Taunton District Court handles the arraignment.

Taunton sits in the southeastern part of the state. It is the seat of Bristol County. That means the county courthouse is right in the city. This can speed up the booking-to-arraignment process because the court is close to the police station.

Taunton 72 Hour Booking Records

Under M.G.L. c. 66, § 10, you have the right to request Taunton 72 hour booking records. Send a written request to the Taunton Police Department's Records Access Officer. You can email it to police@taunton-ma.gov or mail it to 23 Summer Street, Taunton, MA 02780. In your request, put the full name of the person, their date of birth if known, and the date or date range of the arrest. Ask for the 72 hour booking record by name so staff knows exactly what to pull.

The department has 10 business days to respond. Complex requests can take up to 25 business days if the RAO sends you a written notice explaining the delay. Most Taunton booking requests are straightforward and come back within the first deadline.

Fees are set by state law. Four hours of search time are free. Copies cost five cents per page. If your request needs more than four hours of staff time, the charge is $25 per hour for the extra time. Ask for a fee waiver if your request serves the public good. The Public Records Law Guide covers the full fee schedule and your rights as a requester.

Search Taunton Arrest Records

The fastest way to check on a Taunton 72 hour booking is a phone call. Dial (508) 823-5000 and ask for the records division or booking desk. Give them a name and date of birth. Staff can check whether that person was booked at the Taunton station recently. For records older than a few weeks, you will probably need to file a written request because staff has to dig into the archive system.

Taunton police keep a daily arrest log under M.G.L. c. 41, § 98F. The log is public. Go to the station at 23 Summer Street and ask to see it. The log shows each arrest by name, date, time, location, and charges filed. Juvenile arrests and domestic violence cases are not on the log. It gives you a quick read on recent booking activity in Taunton without a formal request.

The Taunton city website has general information about city services and departments. Check it for any updates to the police records process or contact information.

The Taunton city website lists police department details, including contact numbers and office hours for the records division that handles 72 hour booking requests.

Bristol County Sheriff and Taunton

Taunton is the county seat of Bristol County. The Bristol County Sheriff's Office runs the county jail in Dartmouth. Call (508) 995-6800 to reach the sheriff's office. When someone arrested in Taunton gets transferred to county custody, the sheriff creates a separate booking record. That county record has its own set of details about the person's intake at the Dartmouth facility.

Bristol County covers a large area of southeastern Massachusetts. The county jail in Dartmouth handles bookings from Taunton, New Bedford, Fall River, and all other cities and towns in the county. If you need the county-level booking record, contact the Bristol County Records Access Officer. See our Bristol County 72 hour booking page for the complete contact information and request process.

Note: Bristol County jail records are separate from Taunton police station booking records.

Taunton Booking and Massachusetts Law

Several state laws govern the 72 hour booking process in Taunton. Under M.G.L. c. 276, § 12, Taunton police can arrest without a warrant when they witness a crime or have probable cause for a felony. The arrest triggers the booking process. From that moment, the person must see a judge at Taunton District Court within 72 hours. If no arraignment happens in time, the person must be released. This is a core protection in Massachusetts criminal procedure.

Mental health holds are a separate track. Under M.G.L. c. 123, § 12, a doctor, nurse, or police officer can start a 72 hour commitment for someone who is a danger to themselves or others. The person goes to a hospital, not a jail. These Section 12 holds create medical records, not criminal booking records. They are private under M.G.L. c. 4, § 7(26) and federal HIPAA rules. You cannot get Section 12 hold records from the Taunton police or any other agency through a public records request.

Taunton CORI and State Records

Taunton 72 hour booking records feed into the statewide CORI database managed by the Criminal History Systems Board. You can request your own criminal history for $25 through iCORI. The report shows convictions, pending charges, and some booking data from all Massachusetts jurisdictions. If someone was booked in Taunton and later convicted, that data appears on the CORI report.

The state records request portal lets you submit requests to state agencies for broader records. The VINELink system tracks inmates in custody and sends alerts when someone is released. Coverage varies by facility, but it can help you track someone who was arrested in Taunton and later moved to state custody. The Massachusetts DOC inmate locator covers state prison inmates if the person was sentenced after their Taunton booking.

Nearby Cities

Taunton is in southeastern Massachusetts near several other cities. If you need 72 hour booking records from a neighboring area, these pages have local police contacts and booking procedures for each city.