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 on September 24, 2026.
Burke County, North Dakota, has about 2,200 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 Burke County 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: Burke County public records, Burke County arrest records, Burke County warrants, Burke County court records, Burke County police reports, North Dakota arrest records and North Dakota inmate search.
Criminal Cases in the Burke County District Court
In North Dakota the public criminal record is the court file. Criminal cases from Burke County are heard by the Burke County District Court, which hears every civil, criminal, family, probate and juvenile case, and the file of each case is kept by the Clerk of District Court.
For Burke County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at ndcourts.gov/public-access (page title: North Dakota Court System | District Court Case Search and Payment Processing), 103 Main St. NE, Bowbells, ND 58721, 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 Burke County
The Burke County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Powers Lake keep the arrest records in Burke County: 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.
The Burke County Sheriff's Office reported 20 arrests to the FBI for 2025; 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 Burke County arrest records.
The Crimes Behind the Records: Burke County in 2025
The one agency in Burke County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1 violent and 6 property crimes to the FBI that year; the same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 7 crimes in 2025 against 10 in 2024. Each reported crime is a report on file with the agency that took it, and each arrest that follows is the start of a criminal record.
The full crime section, agency by agency, is on the Burke County public records guide.
The State's Attorney for Burke County
Charges in Burke County are filed by the State's Attorney, which reviews the arrests of every agency in the county and brings the cases in the Burke County District Court.
The office's page SearchSystems verified is at burkecountynd.com/states-attorney (page title: State's Attorney | Burke County, ND), phone (701) 377-4358, 4358 MAILING ADDRESS 103 Main St SE PO Box 190 Bowbells, ND 58721, Monday & Tuesday 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
The Sex Offender Registry for Burke County
Registered sex offenders living in Burke County 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 Burke 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are criminal records public in Burke County?
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 Burke County criminal cases online?
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at ndcourts.gov/public-access (page title: North Dakota Court System | District Court Case Search and Payment Processing). 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 Burke County?
The State's Attorney, reached at (701) 377-4358, which files its cases in the Burke County District Court.
Is this the official Burke County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.