Can I find details about a manslaughter case from 1942?

May 7, 2012 11:34 AM

Can I and should I request court records from a 1942 manslaughter case in Tucson, AZ?

Genealogical research has revealed a family member was killed in Tucson, AZ and a manslaughter case was brought against a suspect in 1942. I found mention of a case before a superior court judge in a contemporary Tucson newspaper but I cannot find any mention of a verdict.

Can I request court records about the case? If so, what governmental entity would I contact and what can I expect to find in the records? Would I need to visit Tucson or would the records be microfilmed/digitized? Would it be so detailed as to contain transcripts and such?

posted by anonymous to law & government (4 answers total)

The local court can answer this question best; make a phone call.
posted by Dasein at 11:35 AM on May 7, 2012

Here is a link for Pima Court Records. The information you want may be on microfische or some other long forgotten media. Another option would be the local newspaper, the Arizona Daily Star.


Pima County Court Records
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 11:39 AM on May 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

Contact the Pima County Superior Court Clerk's Office, through Ruthless Bunny's link. That should be your starting point for all of these questions. I'd be surprised if they held onto transcripts, but they might have.
posted by craven_morhead at 11:40 AM on May 7, 2012

Here is the retention schedule for Arizona Superior Court records (pdf). It looks like non-capital criminal cases would fall under this rule:

Case records designated for retention for a period of “Permanent (for cases filed prior to 1960)” may be either retained in the custody of the clerk of court or transferred to the state archivist and not destroyed. For example in the year 2011, a civil malpractice case record filed in 1959 may be transferred to the state archivist or retained by the clerk at the clerk’s discretion.

posted by Knappster at 12:29 PM on May 7, 2012 [1 favorite]