Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Wilmington, Delaware, in New Castle County, has about 73,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A traffic ticket written in Wilmington is a court case in the Court of Common Pleas and the Justice of the Peace Courts, and the conviction it ends in goes on the driving record kept by the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles. This guide says which court takes the ticket, who writes them and where the driving record lives.
This guide covers where tickets go, who writes them, the driving record and common questions.
Related guides: Wilmington public records, New Castle County traffic tickets, Wilmington arrest records, Wilmington warrants, Wilmington inmate search, Wilmington criminal records, Delaware arrest records and Delaware inmate search.
Where a Ticket Written in Wilmington Goes
Tickets in Wilmington go to the Court of Common Pleas and the Justice of the Peace Courts, which take misdemeanors in the Court of Common Pleas, traffic cases and small civil claims in the Justice of the Peace Courts. A paid ticket, a dismissal and a trial all end up in that court's records.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at courts.delaware.gov/docket.aspx.
Statewide, CourtConnect is the Delaware courts' free online case search for civil cases and judgments.
Who Writes the Tickets in Wilmington
The New Castle County Police Department and the agency that reports for Wilmington (filed by the FBI as Wilmington Police Department) write the traffic tickets in and around Wilmington.
In Delaware the police for a given address is the town police in a town with its own department and the Delaware State Police elsewhere.
The FBI's agency list also places four state agencies, two other agencies, one campus police department and one state police unit in New Castle County (the arrest records guide names each one); the New Castle County State Police writes the tickets on the state highways.
The Smyrna Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including New Castle County, so its arrests are not broken out for New Castle County here.
The Driving Record and the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles
Convictions are reported by the court to the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles, which keeps the driving record and decides on points and suspensions. Order the driving record from that agency, not from the court.
Paying a ticket is a conviction, reported to the Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles like any other; contesting it means a plea of not guilty entered with the court by the date on the ticket.
A DUI is a criminal charge rather than a ticket, with its own license case before the Division of Motor Vehicles (see Wilmington DUI).
Frequently Asked Questions
Where do I pay a traffic ticket from Wilmington?
With the Court of Common Pleas and the Justice of the Peace Courts.
Who keeps my driving record in Delaware?
The Delaware Division of Motor Vehicles. The court reports each conviction to it, and paying a ticket counts as one.
Which court handles traffic tickets in Wilmington?
The Court of Common Pleas and the Justice of the Peace Courts, which take misdemeanors in the Court of Common Pleas, traffic cases and small civil claims in the Justice of the Peace Courts.
Is this the official Wilmington website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.