Augusta Criminal History Records

Criminal history records in Augusta are managed through a consolidated city-county government that merged with Richmond County. The Richmond County Sheriff's Office handles law enforcement for the entire area, so there is no separate city police department. Court records go through the Richmond County Superior Court Clerk. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation also holds state-level criminal history data that includes Augusta arrests and case outcomes. If you need to search criminal history in Augusta, the sheriff's office and the county clerk are your two main starting points. State tools like the Georgia Felon Search cover Augusta cases as well.

Richmond County Sheriff and Criminal Records

Augusta and Richmond County consolidated their governments in 1996. That means the Richmond County Sheriff's Office is the primary law enforcement agency for the entire area. There is no separate Augusta police department. The sheriff handles patrol, arrests, jail operations, and criminal investigations for the city and the county.

The sheriff's office keeps arrest reports, incident reports, and booking records. When someone gets arrested in Augusta, the sheriff creates the initial criminal history record. This data gets sent to the Georgia Crime Information Center under state reporting rules. The GCIC database then includes the arrest in statewide criminal history searches.

You can request records from the sheriff through an open records request. Georgia's Open Records Act gives the public the right to ask for government documents, and that includes police and arrest records. Submit a request to the sheriff's office with the details of what you need. The office may charge fees for search time and copying costs. Simple requests usually come back within a few days. Response times go up for requests that involve a lot of records or older cases that need to be pulled from storage.

The sheriff also runs the Richmond County jail. Booking records from the jail are part of the criminal history system. They show when someone was brought in, the charges at the time of arrest, and bond amounts. If you need to check on someone held in the jail, call the sheriff's office.

Richmond County Court Records for Augusta

All criminal court cases from Augusta go through Richmond County. The Superior Court Clerk keeps case files for felonies and serious misdemeanors heard in the county court. This office holds the charges filed, plea information, trial outcomes, and sentencing details. The clerk's office is at the Augusta Judicial Center.

For more on how the county court system works, the Richmond County criminal history page has details on the clerk's office, court services, and how to request copies of case records. The clerk charges a per-page fee for certified copies of criminal history documents.

Augusta also has a court that handles city ordinance violations and some lower-level offenses. Cases heard in that court may not show up in the same system as Superior Court records. If you are looking for a minor offense or code violation, check with the court that handled the case directly. The Richmond County system covers the larger criminal matters.

People who need to search for court records from Augusta often start with the county clerk. That is where the most complete case files are kept for serious criminal matters in the area.

State Criminal History Tools for Augusta

Beyond local offices, state-run databases cover Augusta criminal history. The Georgia Felon Search costs $15. It checks the GCIC database for felony convictions across the whole state. You need a first name, last name, date of birth, and sex. Results show up right away. The fee applies even if no record is found. This tool includes felony cases from Augusta and Richmond County.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free. It shows people who are currently in a GDC state prison. Someone convicted in Augusta who is serving time at a state facility will appear here. The GDC search does not cover people held in the Richmond County jail or those who have finished their sentence already.

For general questions about getting criminal history records in Georgia, the GBI FAQ page is a good place to start. It explains the process for personal record requests and how third-party searches work. The GBI also offers a fingerprint-based criminal history check. That is the most thorough way to get your own record.

Criminal Record Restriction in Augusta

Georgia uses the term record restriction, not expungement. When a record gets restricted, it is sealed from public view. Law enforcement can still see it. But regular public searches will not show it.

If you were arrested in Augusta and the charges were dropped or dismissed, you may qualify for restriction. People who went through a pretrial diversion program and completed it are eligible too. First Offender cases also qualify. The First Offender Act, found in O.C.G.A. Section 42-8-60, lets first-time offenders complete their sentence without a formal conviction. Once done, the court can discharge them and the record gets restricted from public searches.

The rules for restriction are set out in O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37. For arrests that happened on or after July 1, 2013, you contact the prosecuting attorney who handled the case. For arrests before that date, go through the arresting agency. In Augusta, that would be the Richmond County Sheriff's Office since they handle all law enforcement for the area.

There is a retroactive First Offender option too. Someone who should have been sentenced under the act but was not can petition the court for that status after the fact. If granted, the conviction gets removed from the public criminal history record. This option has helped some people in Augusta clear old cases from their record that should have been handled differently at sentencing.

How to Search Augusta Criminal History

There are several ways to look up criminal history records in Augusta. Which path to take depends on the type of record you need and which agency has it.

• Contact the Richmond County Sheriff's Office for arrest and incident reports
• Visit the Richmond County Superior Court Clerk for court case records and certified copies
• Use the Georgia Felon Search for statewide felony conviction data
• Check the GDC offender search for people in state prisons

Each source holds a different piece of the picture. Sheriff records show arrests and booking details. Court records from the county clerk have charges, pleas, and case outcomes. State tools add felony conviction data and corrections information. You may need to check more than one source to get a full view of someone's criminal history tied to Augusta. The consolidated government means that there is no separate city police records system to search. Everything goes through the Richmond County Sheriff.

Nearby Cities With Criminal Records

Augusta sits along the Savannah River on the South Carolina border. A few smaller cities in the metro area have their own resources for criminal history. If you need records from a nearby community, check their local pages for details.