Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest and crime 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 1, 2026.
Williston, North Dakota, in Williams County, has about 29,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). In North Dakota the public criminal record is the court file, kept by the Clerk of District Court; the statewide criminal history kept by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation is open to anyone who asks. This guide says where each record of a criminal case from Williston is kept and how it is seen.
This guide covers the court file, the statewide record, local arrest records, the crimes behind the records, the prosecutor, sex offender registry, records requests and common questions.
Related guides: Williston public records, Williams County criminal records, Williston arrest records, Williston warrants, Williston inmate search, Williston court records, North Dakota arrest records and North Dakota inmate search.
Criminal Cases in the Williams County District Court
A criminal case from Williston is filed in the Williams County District Court, and the court file, kept by the Clerk of District Court, is the record of it that the public may see.
For Williams County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at ndcourts.gov/court-locations/williams-county (page title: North Dakota Court System | Williams County), phone (701) 774-4374, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Statewide, North Dakota Courts Records Inquiry is the North Dakota courts' free statewide case search.
The North Dakota Criminal History and Your Own Copy
North Dakota is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: name-based criminal history records are open to anyone who asks, through the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The result is the repository record, what agencies reported to the state, which is wider than one county's court index but can lag it.
To see your own record, the route is a request to the Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The state page SearchSystems verified for it is at attorneygeneral.nd.gov/public-safety/criminal-history-records.
Arrest Records Kept Locally in Williston
The Williams County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Williston (filed by the FBI as Williston Police Department) keep the arrest records in and around Williston: the report and the booking record of each arrest stay with the agency that made it, separate from the court file and from the state repository.
Together, the three agencies in Williams County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 3,730 arrests to the FBI that year; how each case ended is in the court file, not in the arresting agency's.
The agencies and their counts, year by year, are in Williston arrest records.
The Crimes Behind the Records: Williston in 2025
The agency that reports for Williston had 124 violent and 508 property crimes reported for 2025; each one is a report on file with it, and each arrest that follows is the start of a criminal record.
The State's Attorney for Williams County
The State's Attorney decides which arrests in Williams County become charges and files them in the Williams County District Court; the office answers questions about pending prosecutions, and the case files themselves are court records.
The office's page SearchSystems verified is at ndcourts.gov/news/north-dakota/counties/job-announcement-state-s-at... (page title: North Dakota Court System | Job Announcement | State's Attorney), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
The Sex Offender Registry for Williston
Registered sex offenders living in Williston are listed on the North Dakota Sex Offender Registry, run by the North Dakota Attorney General at sexoffender.nd.gov/offender/search. Moderate and high risk offenders are listed online.
Registration itself is done in person with the local agency where the registrant lives: the sheriff's office, or the city police in a city with its own department.
Asking an Agency in Williams County for a Record
An arrest report, a booking record or a local criminal history letter comes from the agency that holds it, not from the court.
Under the North Dakota Open Records Law a county office must answer a request within a reasonable time, and it may charge copying, and staff time after the first hour. The county records request page SearchSystems verified is at williamsnd.com/question/how-can-i-make-an-open-records-request (page title: How can I make an open records request? | Williams County, ND).
Frequently Asked Questions
Are criminal records public in Williston?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation: name-based criminal history records are open to anyone who asks. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the North Dakota Open Records Law.
Can I search Williston criminal cases online?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at ndcourts.gov/court-locations/williams-county (page title: North Dakota Court System | Williams County). Statewide, North Dakota Courts Records Inquiry is the North Dakota courts' free statewide case search.
How do I get my own North Dakota criminal history?
Through a request to the Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Who prosecutes crimes in Williston?
The State's Attorney, which files its cases in the Williams County District Court.
Is this the official Williston 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.