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 24, 2026.
Dane County, Wisconsin, has about 588,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Every warrant for Dane County comes from a judge of the Dane 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: Dane County public records, Dane County arrest records, Dane County inmate search, Dane County criminal records, Dane County court records, Wisconsin arrest records and Wisconsin inmate search.
Who Issues Warrants in Dane County
In Wisconsin an arrest warrant is signed by a judge. For Dane County that means the Dane County Circuit Court, which hears every civil, criminal, family, probate and juvenile case. A city with a municipal 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 Clerk of Circuit Court keeps that file.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at da.danecounty.gov/Court-Process/Records-and-Fines (page title: Records and Fines | The Dane County District Attorney's Office), phone (608) 266-4311, 215 S. Hamilton St. #1000 Madison WI 53703-3285, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Statewide, Wisconsin Circuit Court Access is the free statewide case search of every circuit court.
Who Serves Warrants in Dane County
The Dane County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Madison, Madison (town), Sun Prairie, Fitchburg, Middleton, Verona and 15 more cities serve warrants in Dane County.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Dane County: the University of Wisconsin at Madison (campus police); the Capitol Police (state agency); each serves warrants on its own ground.
The Edgerton Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Dane County, so its arrests are not broken out for Dane County here.
The agency that serves a warrant from Dane County is whichever one finds the person; a Wisconsin warrant is valid across Wisconsin.
Together, the 17 agencies in Dane County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 15,821 arrests to the FBI that year; arrests on warrants are counted among them, not separately.
Each agency and what it reported is in Dane County arrest records.
Where a Person Arrested on a Warrant from Dane County 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 Dane County Sheriff's Office, held about 620 people on an average day in 2025 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at danesheriff.com/Jail, phone (608) 266-4311. The Dane County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
A person arrested in Dane County on a warrant from another county is held at the same jail until that county takes custody.
How to Check for a Warrant in Dane County
Whether a warrant is out from Dane County shows in three places:
- The court file of the case, through the Clerk of Circuit Court at (608) 266-4311, since a warrant is recorded in the case it was issued in.
- Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, the free statewide case search of every circuit court, for a case whose register of actions shows a warrant.
- The District Attorney, phone (608) 266-9150, which can say whether charges were filed; a warrant on a complaint follows the filing.
Not one of the Dane 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 Dane County
A warrant is recalled by the court that issued it, so clearing one from Dane County starts with the Clerk of Circuit Court at (608) 266-4311: the case goes back on the calendar and the judge recalls the warrant when the person appears.
A lawyer can often arrange the appearance in advance. The District Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at da.danecounty.gov, phone (608) 266-9150.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I check for a warrant online in Dane County?
Not from the Dane County pages SearchSystems verified; none of them is a warrant list. Wisconsin Circuit Court Access is the free statewide case search of every circuit court, 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 Clerk of Circuit Court at (608) 266-4311.
Who serves warrants in Dane County?
The Dane County Sheriff's Office, and the agency that reports for the city where the person is found; a Wisconsin warrant is valid anywhere in the state.
Where is a person arrested on a warrant in Dane County held?
At the county jail, run by the Dane County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
How is a warrant from Dane County 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 Clerk of Circuit Court at (608) 266-4311.
Is this the official Dane 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.