Reviewed and updated October 11, 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 11, 2026.
Belknap County, New Hampshire, has about 65,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DWI arrest in Belknap County starts two cases, a criminal case in the Circuit Court District Division and a license case before the Division of Motor 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: Belknap County public records, Belknap County arrest records, Belknap County warrants, Belknap County inmate search, Belknap County criminal records, New Hampshire arrest records and New Hampshire inmate search.
The DWI Law in New Hampshire
In New Hampshire the offense is DWI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in New Hampshire is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DWI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Division of Motor Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.
Who Makes DWI Arrests in Belknap County
The Belknap County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Laconia make the DWI arrests in Belknap County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Belknap County: the Belknap County State Police (state police); the Belknap County State Police makes the arrests on the state highways.
Together, the 12 agencies in Belknap County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 3,111 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Belknap County does not break DWI out.
Booking After a DWI Arrest in Belknap County
A driver arrested for DWI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Belknap County Sheriff's Office, held about 91 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at belknapcounty.gov/212/Sheriff, phone 603-527-5454. The Belknap County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The County Attorney files the charge, and the case is heard in the Circuit Court District Division.
The County Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at belknapcounty.gov/221/County-Attorney, phone 603-527-5440.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at belknapcounty.gov/m/directory/department?did=12, phone 603-527-5493.
New Hampshire has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
A DWI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Division of Motor Vehicles. The driving record, kept by the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles, carries the result of both.
The Records a DWI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the New Hampshire Right-to-Know Law.
- The court file: from the Circuit Court District Division, kept by the clerk of each court.
- The driving record: from the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles.
More on each: Belknap County arrest records, Belknap County police reports and Belknap County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DWI limit in New Hampshire?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DWI case from Belknap County heard?
In the Circuit Court District Division, brought by the County Attorney. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at belknapcounty.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DWI in Belknap County held?
At the county jail, run by the Belknap County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DWI arrest in New Hampshire?
The Division of Motor Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
Is this the official Belknap 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.