Search Grand Rapids DUI Records

Grand Rapids DUI records are spread across two courts: the 61st District Court handles first and second offense OWI cases as misdemeanors, while the 17th Circuit Court processes felony drunk driving charges for Kent County. Michigan law uses the term OWI (Operating While Intoxicated) under MCL 257.625, so all Grand Rapids court records will use that language. Public access to these records is available online through MiCOURT at no cost, and the state's ICHAT database provides full criminal history for a $10 fee.

61st District Court: First and Second OWI Cases

The 61st District Court is where Grand Rapids OWI cases begin when charged as misdemeanors. The court is located at 61 Sheldon Ave SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49503. The main phone number is (616) 632-5700. Its website is at 61stdistrictcourt.org. The 61st District Court serves the City of Grand Rapids and handles the bulk of drunk driving cases filed in this part of Kent County.

First and second OWI offenses in Grand Rapids go through this court. The standard OWI charge applies at a BAC of 0.08% or more. High BAC, sometimes called Super Drunk, applies when BAC reaches 0.17% or higher and carries stiffer mandatory minimums. Operating While Visibly Impaired (OWVI) is a lesser charge that does not require a specific BAC threshold but requires visible impairment. The 61st District also handles under-21 cases under Michigan's zero tolerance law, where the BAC limit drops to just 0.02%.

Case records from the 61st District Court are searchable through MiCOURT, the free statewide court lookup system. Search by name, case number, or date. Misdemeanor OWI cases appear under case type codes OD (Ordinance Drunk Driving), SD (Statute Drunk Driving), or FD (Felony Drunk Driving for cases upgraded to circuit). MiCOURT shows case status, charge descriptions, and scheduled hearings. It does not provide access to actual documents.

Grand Rapids Police Department Records and FOIA

Arrest records for Grand Rapids OWI cases are held by the Grand Rapids Police Department (GRPD). The department is headquartered at 1 Monroe Center NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503. The general line is (616) 456-3400. For FOIA requests, the designated email is foiagrpd@grcity.us. The Records Unit is also located at 1 Monroe Center NW and handles public records requests directly.

Michigan's Freedom of Information Act, MCL 15.231, gives the public the right to access government records. Agencies must respond within five business days. They can extend that window or deny a request with written explanation, but denial cannot be based on who is asking. You do not have to be the subject of a record to request it. Grand Rapids Police arrest reports, incident reports, and field sobriety test documentation from OWI cases are public once a case is no longer active. These records come from the police, not the court, and are separate from court case files.

Accident reports from Grand Rapids are available through a third-party vendor online. If the OWI case involved a crash, the accident report is a separate document from the arrest report. Both can be relevant when reviewing a DUI case. The arrest report shows what the officer observed, the BAC reading, and the charges filed at the scene. The court record shows what happened after the arrest.

Statewide Tools for Searching Grand Rapids OWI Cases

Three main tools give you access to Grand Rapids DUI records at the state level. Each one covers different information and has a different cost.

MiCOURT is free. It covers all Michigan courts including the 61st District and 17th Circuit. You can search by name or case number and see charge descriptions, case status, and court dates. MiCOURT does not show documents, but it tells you whether a case exists and how it resolved. This is the first place to check for any Grand Rapids OWI case.

ICHAT costs $10 per search and returns a full Michigan criminal history from the Michigan State Police database. When you need to know someone's complete OWI history, ICHAT is the right tool. Michigan removed the 10-year lookback period for prior OWI convictions in 2007. That means every prior conviction counts when determining whether a new case is a misdemeanor or a felony. ICHAT shows convictions from all 83 Michigan counties in one place.

The OTIS offender search from the Michigan Department of Corrections is free and covers people who are currently or previously incarcerated or under supervision. Third-offense felony OWI cases in Grand Rapids that resulted in a prison term will appear in OTIS. It is most useful when a case reached the 17th Circuit level and resulted in incarceration rather than probation.

17th Circuit Court: Felony OWI in Kent County

The 17th Circuit Court handles felony OWI cases for Kent County, including Grand Rapids. It is located at 180 Ottawa Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503. The phone number is (616) 632-5440. The court's web presence is through kentcountymi.gov/circuit-court/. For a full overview of how Kent County handles felony drunk driving cases, see the Kent County DUI Records page.

A third OWI offense in Michigan is a felony, regardless of when prior offenses occurred. Michigan removed the 10-year lookback in 2007, so old convictions still count. Grand Rapids felony OWI cases also include OWI causing serious impairment and OWI causing death, both of which carry much harsher penalties. Once a case reaches the 17th Circuit, it is a different process than district court, and the record appears under a different case type in MiCOURT.

Michigan OWI Law: What Grand Rapids Records Reflect

Grand Rapids DUI cases are filed under MCL 257.625, Michigan's main drunk driving law. The standard OWI charge applies at 0.08% BAC or more. High BAC, sometimes called Super Drunk, kicks in at 0.17% and carries mandatory minimums including at least 48 hours in jail for a first offense. Drivers under 21 face a 0.02% limit under zero tolerance rules.

Michigan's implied consent law under MCL 257.625c requires any driver lawfully arrested for OWI to submit to a chemical test. Refusing results in a one-year license suspension for a first refusal, and two years for a second refusal within seven years. Implied consent refusal records show up on the driving record and often appear in the court record too. These are separate from the criminal OWI charge itself.

OWI convictions in Michigan are permanent on both the criminal record and the driving record. Normal expungement does not apply. Michigan's Clean Slate law does allow expungement of a first-time OWI conviction, but only after five years and only under narrow conditions. That is the only route available under current Michigan law.

License consequences for a Grand Rapids OWI conviction are handled by the Michigan Secretary of State, not the court. The court handles the criminal side. The Secretary of State handles suspension, revocation, restricted license, and ignition interlock requirements. Both actions can happen from the same OWI incident, and they run on separate tracks.

Driving Records vs. Court Records in Grand Rapids

Court records and driving records are two different things. A Grand Rapids OWI case in MiCOURT or ICHAT is a criminal court record. The driving record is held by the Michigan Secretary of State. An OWI conviction feeds into both, but you access them from different agencies.

The driving record shows what happened to the license: suspensions, revocations, points added, ignition interlock requirements, and implied consent actions. It does not include arrest details or criminal history. For license-related questions after a Grand Rapids OWI, the Secretary of State's driving record is the right document to pull, not a court record. You can request a driving record through the Michigan SOS online portal.

For a certified criminal history, the Michigan State Police Criminal History Records division is the authoritative source. ICHAT pulls from that database. Courts, law enforcement agencies, and some employers use the MSP database for background checks. If a certified copy of a Grand Rapids OWI conviction is needed for legal or employment purposes, contact MSP directly or request it through the 61st District Court clerk's office.

Nearby Cities in Kent County

Wyoming is the other qualifying city in Kent County with local court and records information for OWI cases.