Are criminal records a manner of public record?

If a person was arrested for assault and has committed violent felonies and misdemeanors, would this person's information be available to those wishing to press charges or to the general public? I ask this because a certain lawyer is being ridiculously sluggish with obtaining this information. I'm starting to wonder if he's not some sort of fraud.Are criminal records a manner of public record?
Court proceedings and criminal records not involving juveniles are public record.

Contrary to what another answered, states do not sell them. They are allowed to charge an administrative fee to cover the cost of researching and copying the files.
Some state laws, such as Massachusetts, allow "criminal offender record information" only to certified agencies, specific types of "requestors" (e.g., employers, victims, witnesses), and those of the public whose access is found (by a records commission) to be "consistent with the security and privacy of such information." The statute in MA even goes so far as to say, "Except as authorized by this chapter it shall be unlawful to request or require a person to provide a copy of his criminal offender record information.", meaning that you cannot even ASK a person to give you their criminal history unless authorized by law. The public may, however, request major felony conviction (over 5-yr sentence) info, current incarceration location or parole status, any felony in prior 2 years and misdemeanor convictions entered in the prior year.Are criminal records a manner of public record?
Yep! Totally public. Here is a law article that talks about public criminal records: http://www.dallasexpungementlawyer.com/a鈥?/a> You can go to your local municipal court and look it up. It's certainly weird that your lawyer is having trouble with it. :/Are criminal records a manner of public record?
If you're willing to pay.

State governments sell this info with impunity.

Added: Hey bruce, call it what you want...
States are selling it.
What you call a small administrative fee they call revenues.
Court records are available to anyone who wants to go through them. However, there is no private criminal prosecution in the u.s. and no private person can press charges against someone. The role is reserved to the DA, or city attorney or other prosecutor.
Yes it is public