SearchSystems Editorial

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 23, 2026 and September 25, 2026.

About this guide

Parma Heights, Ohio, in Cuyahoga County, has about 21,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). An OVI arrest in Parma Heights starts two cases, a criminal case in a Municipal or County Court and a license case before the Bureau 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: Parma Heights public records, Cuyahoga County OVI, Parma Heights arrest records, Parma Heights warrants, Parma Heights inmate search, Parma Heights criminal records, Ohio arrest records and Ohio inmate search.

The OVI Law in Ohio

Drunk driving is charged as OVI in Ohio, at a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or more.

Driving in Ohio is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect OVI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.

For charging and sentencing, Ohio counts prior offenses within 10 years.

Who Makes OVI Arrests in Parma Heights

The Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Parma Heights (filed by the FBI as Parma Heights Police Department) make the OVI arrests in and around Parma Heights.

The FBI's agency list also places four campus police departments, two other agencies and one state agency in Cuyahoga County (the arrest records guide names each one).

Together, the 47 agencies in Cuyahoga County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 16,466 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Cuyahoga County does not break OVI out.

Booking After an OVI Arrest in Parma Heights

A driver arrested for OVI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office, held about 1,710 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at cuyahogacounty.gov/sheriff/corrections-jail. The Parma Heights inmate search guide covers the jail in full.

The Court Case

An OVI charge from Parma Heights is heard in a Municipal or County Court; the Prosecuting Attorney or, in a municipal court, the city's own prosecutor brings it.

The Prosecuting Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at cuyahogacounty.gov/topics/prosecutor.

The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at cpdocket.cp.cuyahogacounty.gov.

Ohio has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.

The License Case

An OVI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles. The driving record, kept by the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles, carries the result of both.

The Records an OVI Leaves

  • The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Ohio Public Records Act.
  • The court file: from a Municipal or County Court, kept by the Clerk of Courts.
  • The driving record: from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles.

More on each: Parma Heights arrest records, Parma Heights police reports and Parma Heights court records.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the OVI limit in Ohio?

0.08 percent blood alcohol.

Where is an OVI case from Parma Heights heard?

In a Municipal or County Court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at cpdocket.cp.cuyahogacounty.gov.

Where is a person arrested for OVI in Parma Heights held?

At the county jail, run by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.

Who handles the license after an OVI arrest in Ohio?

The Bureau of Motor Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.

How long does an OVI count as a prior in Ohio?

10 years.

Is this the official Parma Heights 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.