Acadia Parish Death Records

Acadia Parish death records are kept by the Clerk of Court in Crowley, Louisiana, and are available for deaths that occurred after July 2012. If you need to search for older death records or request certified copies going further back, you will need to contact the Louisiana Vital Records Registry or the Louisiana State Archives, both of which hold historical records for the state.

Acadia Parish Clerk of Court - Death Records

The Acadia Parish Clerk of Court handles death certificate requests for deaths that occurred within the parish after July 2012. The office is located on Court Circle in Crowley. Yvette W. Salvatiera currently serves as Clerk of Court. Staff can issue certified death certificates while you wait, though the average wait time is about 30 minutes depending on how many people are in line.

Death certificates are usually ready for pickup about 30 days after the date of death. If you need a certificate sooner, check first to make sure enough time has passed. The office will not be able to issue a certificate that has not yet been registered in the system.

The vital records page on the clerk's website has current information about what documents you need to bring and how the process works. Checking that page before you go can save you a trip.

The Acadia Parish Clerk vital records page explains the full process for requesting death records locally.

The page outlines eligibility, required documents, and fees for obtaining death certificates at the Crowley courthouse.

Acadia Parish Death Certificate Fees and Eligibility

A certified death certificate costs $26.00 at the Acadia Parish Clerk's office. That fee covers one copy. If you need more than one copy, each additional copy costs the same amount. Payment methods accepted by the office include standard forms of payment; it is worth calling ahead to confirm what they take if you have questions.

Louisiana is a closed-record state. That means death records are not open to the general public. Only certain people can request a certified death certificate. Those who qualify include: the surviving spouse (who must present a marriage license), an adult child, a parent, a sibling, a grandchild, or a grandparent of the deceased. A legal guardian may also request a certificate, but must provide a judgment of custody from a court -- a notarized custody document alone is not accepted. Beneficiaries listed on an insurance policy and succession representatives may also qualify.

The Acadia Parish death certificate fee schedule is posted on the clerk's website.

The fee schedule page lists current costs for death certificates and other vital records at the Acadia Parish Clerk of Court office.

If the person whose death you are requesting records for was born before 1986, be aware that the process may take longer. The clerk's office notes that those cases require an update from the Vital Records Office, which can add 5 to 15 minutes to your wait time.

Acadia Parish Death Records - Statutes and Privacy Rules

Louisiana law sets firm rules around who can get death records and what happens if someone tries to get them under false pretenses. Under R.S. 40:41, death records are treated as confidential for 50 years from the year of death. This is not a guideline -- it is state law, and clerks are required to follow it.

The penalty for trying to get around those rules is serious. Louisiana law states that anyone who "willfully and knowingly makes any false statement on any application for a certified copy of a vital record" can face a fine of up to $10,000 or imprisonment of up to five years, or both. That comes directly from R.S. 40:61, and the Acadia Parish Clerk's office explicitly cites it on their fee information page.

Fees for death certificates are set by R.S. 40:40. The definitions that govern what counts as a vital record -- and how the state classifies death records -- are found in R.S. 40:32.

Older Acadia Parish Death Records - State and Historical Sources

For deaths that happened before July 2012, you cannot get a certificate from the Acadia Parish Clerk. Those records are held by the Louisiana Vital Records Registry, which is part of the Louisiana Department of Health. You can contact them by phone or request records by mail.

Mail orders sent to the Vital Records Registry take about 8 to 10 weeks to process. If you need a record faster, walking in during their hours or using VitalChek (the state's authorized online ordering partner, reachable at (877) 605-8562) can speed things up.

For very old Acadia Parish death records -- those from 1911 through 1974 -- the Louisiana State Archives in Baton Rouge holds the statewide collection. Records at the Archives are only accessible if they are more than 50 years old. Their research library is open Monday through Friday.

Acadia Parish Death Records - Contact and Office Info

If you have questions before heading to the courthouse, you can email the clerk's office or call during business hours. The contact page on the official website has the most current phone numbers and staff information.

The Acadia Parish Clerk contact page lists current phone numbers and staff contact details.

The contact page shows office addresses, fax numbers, and email for reaching clerk staff about death records and other vital records requests.

The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. If you are coming in person, try to arrive with enough time before closing -- staff cannot always process requests submitted right at the end of the day.

Online Ordering - Acadia Parish Death Certificates

The Acadia Parish Clerk's office does not offer online ordering directly. However, VitalChek is the state's authorized online ordering partner and can process requests for Louisiana death records, including those for Acadia Parish. Orders placed through VitalChek typically arrive faster than mail requests sent directly to the state.

You can reach VitalChek at vitalchek.com or by phone at (877) 605-8562. Note that VitalChek charges a service fee on top of the state fee, so factor that in when budgeting.

Nearby Parishes

Acadia Parish borders several other Louisiana parishes. If you need death records from a neighboring area, each parish has its own clerk of court office.

• Allen Parish
• Calcasieu Parish
• St. Landry Parish
• Evangeline Parish
• Vermilion Parish
• St. Martin Parish