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. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Hays, Kansas, in Ellis County, has about 21,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Hays starts two cases, a criminal case in the Ellis County District Court and a license case before the Division of Vehicles, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: Hays public records, Ellis County DUI, Hays arrest records, Hays warrants, Hays inmate search, Hays criminal records, Kansas arrest records and Kansas inmate search.
The DUI Law in Kansas
In Kansas the offense is DUI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in Kansas is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Division of Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in Hays
The Ellis County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Hays (filed by the FBI as Hays Police Department) make the DUI arrests in and around Hays.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Ellis County: Fort Hays State University (campus police).
Together, the two agencies in Ellis County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,088 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Ellis County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Hays
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Ellis County Sheriff's Office, held about 55 people on an average day in 2019 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at ellisco.net/102/Sheriff. The Hays inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The County Attorney files the charge, and the case is heard in the Ellis County District Court.
The County Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at directory-kard.kscourts.gov, phone 785-628-9405.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at kscourts.gov/eCourt/District-Court-Records.
Statewide, Kansas District Court Public Access Portal is the Kansas courts' statewide case search.
The License Case
A DUI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Division of Vehicles. The driving record, kept by the Kansas Department of Revenue Division of Vehicles, carries the result of both.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Kansas Open Records Act.
- The court file: from the Ellis County District Court, kept by the Clerk of the District Court.
- The driving record: from the Kansas Department of Revenue Division of Vehicles.
More on each: Hays arrest records, Hays police reports and Hays court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in Kansas?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Hays heard?
In the Ellis County District Court, brought by the County Attorney.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Hays held?
At the county jail, run by the Ellis County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in Kansas?
The Division of Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
Is this the official Hays 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.