The Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, created in 1973 inside the Attorney General's office, is the central repository under section 7-19-107 of the Criminal History Record Act, and its applicant questions explain why a name is never enough. All non criminal justice searches of Wyoming criminal history are based on positive identification through a fingerprint search, the applicant's images are compared against the arrest files, and the division says that with name changes and fraudulent identity documents widely available the fingerprint card is the only sure method of checking for a record.
That rule cuts both ways. The Criminal Records Unit says every arrest record it maintains must rest on a fingerprint card submitted by the arresting agency; if no card was sent, the arrest is not on the state or FBI record and the division cannot create one from court papers alone. Agencies must report within what the rules call the earliest time possible, not more than 72 hours. For the sheriffs who roll those prints and the clerks of district court who keep the case, see the Wyoming county pages.
- $15 for eight states: the fingerprint check fee for Wyoming and the Western Identification Network states, with $24 more for an FBI search where a statute allows and $10 for qualified volunteers.
- Forever: an adult arrest reported to the division stays on the record even after a dismissal or a declination to prosecute, until a court orders it expunged.
- Deleted at 18: a juvenile's Wyoming record is removed when the person reaches majority unless there is an adult conviction.
- 180 days, no fee: a petition to expunge the records of an arrest with no charge, no conviction or a full dismissal can be filed after 180 days, and section 7-13-1401 charges no filing fee.
Written by SearchSystems.net from Wyoming's own systems: the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation criminal records unit page, the division's background checks and applicant tracking system page, the division's applicant tracking system questions, the division's criminal history questions, Wyoming Statutes title 7, including sections 7-13-1401 and 7-19-101 through 7-19-109, the Wyoming Judicial Branch home page, the Wyoming Department of Corrections offender locator, each read on October 15, 2026 by the SearchSystems editorial team.
Ordering a check on yourself or an applicant
Wyoming law provides a voluntary record check that lets any person obtain a criminal record check on themselves from Wyoming and the Western Identification Network states and send it to anyone they designate, on a fingerprint card and a statutory fee; it does not include an FBI check, which the division runs only where a statute authorizes it and the FBI approves, for $24 on top of the $15. Qualified volunteers with youth or family violence organizations pay $10 for a Wyoming and network check only.
Prints are taken at a local law enforcement agency on its own schedule or at the division at 208 South College Drive in Cheyenne by appointment at 307-777-7181, for $5, with a current government photo identification. Payment goes to the Office of the Attorney General or DCI by money order, cashier's check or business check, or by card, and the applicant tracking page says cash and personal checks are never accepted.
The applicant is responsible for knowing where the result should go. Checks are generally completed within two weeks but can take five or six depending on monthly volume and print quality, and the unit averages more than 2,000 applicant checks a month. A person who wants a nationwide record for their own use is sent to the FBI, since FBI regulations do not let the division run one, and a hazardous materials endorsement goes through an FBI approved channeler. All fees for a Wyoming check go to the state general fund. The Wyoming background check guide covers the licensing boards and agencies that submit cards.
A record that never ages, except for juveniles
The division's criminal history questions answer the question people ask most. Do any adult arrests drop from the record? No: any offense arrest reported to the division remains on the individual's criminal record unless it is expunged. The records unit page says the same of dismissals and declinations to prosecute, and adds that even after an expungement the information stays available for criminal justice purposes. A juvenile's record is the exception, deleted when the person turns 18 unless there was a conviction as an adult.
Section 7-19-107(c) requires the division to keep all felonies, high misdemeanors and other misdemeanor arrests it deems necessary, so the file is broad. A person who finds an error uses the correction procedure in section 7-19-109, which applies only to Wyoming arrests; federal or other state entries must be fixed with that jurisdiction.
Who may receive the record under 7-19-106
The Criminal History Record Act, sections 7-19-101 through 109, gave the division authority over access and dissemination, and section 7-19-106 lists the recipients: other criminal justice agencies, the Department of Family Services, governmental agencies authorized by federal or state law or executive order, researchers who agree to use records only in non identifiable form, the record subject under 7-19-109, the Department of Health, and a long roll of boards and departments from nursing and optometry to transportation, audit, the retirement system, public fire departments and ambulance services, homeland security and the military department.
The Secretary of State checks felony convictions of voters through the voter registration system without fingerprints or a fee. What the list does not contain is the general public, which is why the only public product is a check on oneself. The Wyoming criminal records guide covers the agencies on that list.
Expunging an arrest after 180 days
Section 7-13-1401 lets a person petition the court where the proceeding occurred, or would have occurred, for an order expunging records of arrest, charges or dispositions once at least 180 days have passed since the arrest or the dismissal, no formal charges are pending, and the incident produced no conviction on any charge including a lesser one, no deferred disposition under 7-13-301 or 35-7-1037, and either no charges were ever filed or every proceeding was dismissed by the prosecutor or the court.
The petition is verified and served on the prosecuting attorney, who has 20 days to object; with an objection the court sets a hearing, without one it may enter the order summarily, and no order issues before the 20 days run. There is no filing fee. On a grant the court seals its own file, sends a certified copy to the division, and the person may answer any inquiry as though the arrest never happened, while the state may appeal and the division is immune from liability for its handling.
The division's questions point to that section and to 7-13-1501 and 7-13-1502 for convictions, and to 14-6-241 for juvenile arrests, and recommend counsel.
Courts and custody
The Judicial Branch describes the division of labor: circuit courts in all 23 counties handle misdemeanors, set bail and hold preliminary hearings in felony cases, district courts in nine districts try felonies, and the clerk of district court, an elected county official, keeps the electronic case file and the docket of every case filed and decided. The Supreme Court's public docket is online for appeals, and the redesigned branch site carries self help forms and criminal notice of appeal forms.
The Department of Corrections offender locator searches by inmate number or by the first two letters of a last name, with age and gender filters, listing people by the name in their court documents. The Wyoming court records guide covers the clerks, and the Wyoming inmate search guide covers the locator and the county detention centers that hold people after arrest.
The sheriff's card and the division's file
The sheriff of the county rolls the arrest fingerprint card that creates the state record, and keeps the booking record, the jail roster and the arrest report that the division never holds. The clerk of district court or the circuit court keeps the case and the expungement petition. The division keeps the fingerprint based history that only the subject or a listed agency can obtain, and it is the file an expungement order must reach by certified copy.
The division's own public records requests go to the Attorney General's office, not the records unit. For a person being sought, Wyoming wants and warrants covers the sheriffs and courts, and the Wyoming public records law guide covers the act that applies to the sheriff's reports.
Questions about Wyoming arrest records
Related Wyoming records
Wyoming readers can continue with the Wyoming background check guide for the agencies that submit fingerprint cards, Wyoming court records for the clerks of district and circuit court, Wyoming inmate search for the locator and county detention centers, the Wyoming sex offender registry guide, the Wyoming public records law guide, and the Wyoming county pages for every sheriff and clerk.