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 September 26, 2026.
Ontario, Oregon, in Malheur County, has about 12,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Every warrant for Ontario comes from a judge of the Malheur County Circuit Court, is served by whichever agency finds the person, and is recorded in the court file of the case it was issued in. This guide says who issues and serves warrants here, where a person arrested on one is held, how to check for one and how one is cleared.
This guide covers who issues warrants, who serves warrants, after a warrant arrest, checking for a warrant, clearing a warrant and common questions.
Related guides: Ontario public records, Malheur County warrants, Ontario arrest records, Ontario inmate search, Ontario criminal records, Ontario court records, Oregon arrest records and Oregon inmate search.
Who Issues Warrants in Ontario
In Oregon an arrest warrant is signed by a judge. For Ontario that means the Malheur County Circuit Court, which hears every civil, criminal, family, probate and juvenile case. A city with a municipal and justice court of its own issues warrants on the tickets and ordinance cases it tries.
A bench warrant follows a missed court date in any of those courts. Whichever kind it is, the warrant is part of the file of the case it was issued in, and the trial court administrator keeps that file.
For Malheur County, SearchSystems opened and checked the court records page for the county at courts.oregon.gov/courts/malheur/records/pages/default.aspx (page title: Oregon Judicial Department : Court Records : Court Records : State of Oregon), phone 541-473-5171, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Statewide, Oregon eCourt Case Information is the Oregon Judicial Department's online case search, free for basic case information.
Who Serves Warrants in Ontario
The Malheur County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Ontario (filed by the FBI as Ontario Police Department) serve warrants in and around Ontario.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Malheur County: the Malheur County Liquor Commission (state agency); the Malheur County State Police (state police); each serves warrants on its own ground.
The agency that serves a warrant from Malheur County is whichever one finds the person; an Oregon warrant is valid across Oregon.
Together, the two agencies in Malheur County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 1,132 arrests to the FBI that year; arrests on warrants are counted among them, not separately.
Each agency and what it reported is in Ontario arrest records.
Where a Person Arrested on a Warrant from Ontario Is Held
A person arrested on a warrant and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Malheur County Sheriff's Office, held about 72 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at sheriff.malheurco.org. The Ontario inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
A person arrested in Ontario on a warrant from another county is held at the same jail until that county takes custody.
How to Check for a Warrant in Ontario
The places to check for a warrant from Ontario:
- The court file of the case, through the trial court administrator at 541-473-5171, since a warrant is recorded in the case it was issued in.
- Oregon eCourt Case Information, the Oregon Judicial Department's online case search, free for basic case information, for a case whose register of actions shows a warrant.
- The District Attorney, phone (541) 473-5127, which can say whether charges were filed; a warrant on a complaint follows the filing.
Not one of the Malheur County pages SearchSystems verified (the sheriff's, the court's, the prosecutor's and the records request page) is a list of open warrants, so a check means asking the court or the prosecutor about a case by name.
Clearing a Warrant from Ontario
Only the judge who issued a warrant can recall it. For a case from Ontario that means appearing before the Malheur County Circuit Court, with the case put back on the calendar through the trial court administrator.
A lawyer can often arrange the appearance in advance. The District Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at malheurco.org, phone (541) 473-5127.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I check for a warrant online in Ontario?
Not from the Malheur County pages SearchSystems verified; none of them is a warrant list. Oregon eCourt Case Information is the Oregon Judicial Department's online case search, free for basic case information, and a case whose register of actions shows a warrant is the record of it. The court file is the record of a warrant: ask the trial court administrator at 541-473-5171.
Who serves warrants in Ontario?
The agency that reports for Ontario inside the city and the Malheur County Sheriff's Office outside it, or whichever agency finds the person; an Oregon warrant is valid anywhere in the state.
Where is a person arrested on a warrant in Ontario held?
At the county jail, run by the Malheur County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
How is a warrant from Ontario cleared?
By appearing before the court that issued it; the judge recalls the warrant in court. The case is put back on the calendar through the trial court administrator at 541-473-5171.
Is this the official Ontario 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.