Northampton County Police Blotter and Incident Reports
Northampton County sits in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, bordered by the Delaware River and home to around 320,000 residents. The Northampton County police blotter is produced by dozens of local police departments, the Northampton County Sheriff's Office, and Pennsylvania State Police. This guide explains how to access police blotter records, submit records requests, and use state and local portals to look up law enforcement activity in Northampton County.
Northampton County Quick Facts
Northampton County Sheriff's Office
The Northampton County Sheriff's Office is located at 669 Washington Street, Easton, PA 18042. You can reach the office by phone at (610) 829-6500. The Sheriff is responsible for court security, civil process service, and License to Carry Firearms applications throughout Northampton County. The Sheriff's Office works alongside municipal police departments and State Police to support public safety across the county.
The Northampton County official government website at northamptoncounty.org provides access to all county departments including the Sheriff's Office and public records services.
Residents in Easton and throughout Northampton County can find contact information and records request guidance through the county's official web portal.
The county's main website at northamptoncounty.org links to all county departments including the Sheriff. If you need to submit a Right-to-Know request or reach a specific records officer in Northampton County, start with the county portal. The Sheriff's Office online permit portal at northamptonso.permitium.com has experienced HTTP 404 errors, but License to Carry Firearms applications can still be processed by contacting the Sheriff's Office directly at 669 Washington Street in Easton.
| Sheriff's Office |
Northampton County Sheriff's Office 669 Washington Street Easton, PA 18042 Phone: (610) 829-6500 |
|---|---|
| County Website | northamptoncounty.org |
| Permit Portal | northamptonso.permitium.com (HTTP 404 reported) |
Police Departments and Coverage in Northampton County
Northampton County is served by a large number of municipal police departments. The Easton Police Department, Bethlehem Police Department, Allentown Police, Northampton Borough Police, and many township agencies each keep their own police blotter records. There is no single Northampton County blotter. Each agency handles its own incidents and its own records requests.
Bethlehem straddles both Northampton and Lehigh counties. The Bethlehem Police Department serves the entire city regardless of which county a particular address falls in. Police blotter records from Bethlehem Police would include incidents from both the Northampton County and Lehigh County portions of the city. If you are looking for Bethlehem police blotter entries, contact the Bethlehem Police Department directly.
Pennsylvania State Police Troop M covers the Lehigh Valley area including parts of Northampton County. In areas without local coverage, State Police respond to calls and produce separate blotter records. Those records are accessed through the State Police RTK process, not through the Northampton County Sheriff or any municipal department.
Note: Bethlehem straddles both Northampton and Lehigh counties, so police blotter records from Bethlehem may be relevant to both county jurisdictions.
Right-to-Know Requests for Police Blotter Records in Northampton County
Pennsylvania's Right-to-Know Law at 65 P.S. §§ 67.101-67.3104 gives you the right to request public records from any government agency in Northampton County. This includes police incident reports and blotter entries. To make a request, identify the agency that handled the incident, then write to that agency's open records officer. Describe what you need clearly, including the date, location, and type of incident.
The agency must respond within five business days. If they need more time, they must tell you in writing and explain why. They can deny a request, but only for a legally valid reason such as an active investigation or a specific exemption under state law. If a Northampton County agency denies your request, you can appeal to the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records at openrecords.pa.gov at no cost. The Office of Open Records reviews the denial and issues a binding decision within 30 days in most cases.
Pennsylvania State Police Records for Northampton County
The Pennsylvania State Police handle RTK requests separately from local agencies. Submit your request at pa.gov. State Police records for Northampton County incidents are processed through the State Police headquarters, not the Northampton County Sheriff or any local department. You need to include the incident date, the Northampton County location, and a description of what you are looking for.
The State Police Public Information Release Reports system at pa.gov publishes summaries of law enforcement activity statewide on a regular basis. These reports cover Northampton County incidents handled by State Police and are a useful reference when you want an overview of State Police activity in the area. Review PIRRS reports before filing a formal RTK to narrow down the incident you need.
PIRRS is free to access and covers statewide State Police activity including Northampton County patrols.
Northampton County Court Records and Arrest Logs
Arrests in Northampton County result in criminal filings at magisterial district courts across the county or at the Northampton County Court of Common Pleas in Easton. All of these records are public. Search them through the Unified Judicial System Portal at ujsportal.pacourts.us. You can search by party name, docket number, or court location to find cases tied to a Northampton County police blotter entry.
Court dockets show the full path of a case from initial filing through final outcome. They include charges, bail hearings, plea entries, and verdicts or sentences. A police blotter entry documents the original call or arrest. The court docket traces what followed. Used together, these two sources give a thorough account of a law enforcement matter in Northampton County. Visit pacourts.us for background on how the Pennsylvania court system is organized and how to use docket search tools effectively.
The UJS portal covers all Pennsylvania courts including those in Northampton County and is free to search for basic docket information.
Criminal History Checks in Northampton County
The Pennsylvania Access To Criminal History system, PATCH, provides statewide criminal background information for $22 per search. It is available at epatch.pa.gov. PATCH is not a local Northampton County police blotter. It gives you a summary of criminal convictions and related records on file with the State Police for a specific individual, covering all of Pennsylvania.
PATCH is a useful tool when you want to know whether a person has a statewide criminal record. It does not replace a police blotter lookup for incident-level information. For recent or pending matters in Northampton County, the UJS portal or a direct RTK request to the relevant police agency will give you more current detail. PATCH may not reflect arrests that occurred in the past few days or that have not yet been processed into the state system. Use PATCH alongside other sources for a complete view of law enforcement records tied to a specific person or incident in Northampton County.
Criminal records in Pennsylvania are governed in part by 18 Pa.C.S. Chapter 91, which sets statewide rules for collecting and releasing criminal history information.
Cities in Northampton County
Northampton County includes one of Pennsylvania's most historically significant cities. Bethlehem's police blotter is maintained by the Bethlehem Police Department and covers both the Northampton County and Lehigh County portions of the city.
Nearby Counties
Northampton County borders four other counties in eastern Pennsylvania. Incidents near a county boundary may be covered by a neighboring county's police agencies depending on the responding jurisdiction.