Kent Booking Releases Lookup
Kent booking releases come from a few different offices. The Kent Police Department holds incident reports, case files, and arrest data for events inside the city. The City of Kent also contracts with the King County Sheriff's Office for some services. People booked into jail after a Kent arrest often end up at the SCORE Jail in Des Moines, which serves much of south King County. To find a Kent booking release, you go to the agency that holds the file. This page tells you which one to ask, what they charge, and how long it takes.
Kent Overview
Kent Police Booking Releases
The Kent Police Department maintains police records including incident reports, case reports, accident reports, and arrest bookings. Records staff are available from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. You can call or stop in to ask about a Kent booking release. Most simple jobs come back inside five business days.
Kent is the sixth largest city in Washington. The police department handles thousands of cases each year. For the police records page, the city points users to its main records portal. The screenshot below shows the layout.
That page covers what types of records you can ask for, what the fees look like, and how long staff has to respond. Inspection is free at the police station. Paper copies are billed at actual cost.
Note: Kent records are public under the Washington Public Records Act, codified at RCW 42.56.
King County Sheriff Records for Kent
For certain records, requests should be made to the King County Records Unit. The unit is at the King County Courthouse, 516 Third Avenue, Room W-150, Seattle, WA 98104. Phone: (206) 263-2626. The sheriff's public disclosure page is at kingcounty.gov/sheriff. You can put in a request 24 hours a day on the website.
If you are seeking investigative records or any other case-related documents (incident report, statements, 911 calls, photos, etc.) you may make your request online at the King County Sheriff site. Select "Records Request" from the menu. Otherwise, requests to the Public Disclosure Unit are also accepted in writing, by calling, or asking in person using the request form. Be sure you submit a detailed description of your request.
For accident reports, the King County brochure points people to the Washington State Patrol at wsp.wa.gov/driver/collision-records. Call WSP at 360-570-2355 or email collisionrecords@wsp.wa.gov.
The King County Sheriff Public Disclosure Unit address is again King County Courthouse, 516 3rd Avenue, Room W-150, Seattle, WA 98104. Email: KCSODisclosure@kingcounty.gov. Phone: 206-263-2103. Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Closed weekends and holidays.
For more on county-level resources, visit our King County booking releases page.
SCORE Jail and Kent Bookings
The South Correctional Entity (SCORE) is a regional jail serving multiple cities in south King County including Des Moines, Federal Way, Auburn, Kent, and Renton. The jail is located at 20817 17th Avenue South, Des Moines, WA 98198. Many people arrested in Kent are booked into SCORE rather than the King County downtown jail.
SCORE runs an online inmate lookup. You can search by name and find current inmates with booking date, charges, and bond. The lookup tool is at jils.scorejail.org. The facility ID is 298198. Friends and family can put money into an inmate trust account using TouchPay.
For formal records requests, SCORE has a public disclosure team. They take requests in person, by phone, by fax, or by email at publicrecords@SCOREjail.org. Per RCW 70.48.100, jail records are confidential. The only info that can be released is the name of the arrestee, date and time of booking, reason for booking, date and time of release, and reason for release. The SCORE public records page is at scorejail.org/public-records.
There is no charge to inspect public documents. A copying fee of fifteen cents per page may apply if you want copies. A response will be provided within five business days of the time the request is received.
Kent Records Request Tips
To get a Kent booking release fast, give the records team enough info to find the file. A name and a date range usually do the job. A case number is even better. Body camera video has a separate fee for redaction time. The agency reviews each frame to remove sensitive content before release.
The five-day clock starts when the agency gets your request. Within those five days they will give you the records, give you a date when records will be ready, ask for clarification, or deny part of the request and cite the legal exemption.
If your request is denied, you can appeal in writing. Each agency has its own appeal path. The chief of police or the public records officer is usually the first stop.
Kent Court Records
After a booking, cases head to municipal court for misdemeanors or to King County Superior Court for felonies. Court records line up with the arrest record but live in a separate database. You can search court files by name at courts.wa.gov. The Washington Courts public case search covers all courts of record in the state.
For King County Superior Court files, the Clerk's office at the Seattle courthouse holds the case papers. Check the King County Clerk site for online tools and copy fees. Linking the booking release to the court file gives you the full picture of the case.