Find Forsyth County Criminal History

Forsyth County criminal history records are managed by a handful of offices in and around Cumming, Georgia. The county has grown fast over the past two decades, and with that growth came more cases in the court system. If you are trying to search for criminal records in Forsyth County, the two main stops are the Sheriff's Office and the Superior Court Clerk. Both keep records that tie into the statewide criminal history database. This page breaks down the key sources and walks you through how to find what you need in Forsyth County.

Forsyth County Sheriff and Criminal Records

The Forsyth County Sheriff's Office sits at 202 Veterans Memorial Boulevard, Cumming, GA 30040. Call (770) 781-2222 to reach them. The sheriff handles law enforcement across the county, runs the jail, and provides court security. When someone gets arrested in Forsyth County, the booking record created by the sheriff's office becomes part of the criminal history chain. That record shows the arrest date, charges filed, bond amount, and the arresting agency.

The Forsyth County Jail holds people awaiting trial and those serving short sentences. Booking records from the jail are updated as new arrests come in. You can call the sheriff's office to check on someone in custody. These records are separate from the court case files held by the clerk, but they connect. An arrest in Forsyth County leads to a booking record at the jail, then a case filing at the court if the prosecutor moves forward with charges. Both pieces are part of the full criminal history for that person in the county.

The sheriff's office can also process fingerprint-based criminal history requests. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37, any person can request their own criminal history record from the state. You go to the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office, provide your fingerprints, and pay the processing fee. The prints get sent to the GBI's Georgia Crime Information Center. They run your prints through the database and send back what they have on file.

Forsyth County Criminal History at the Clerk

The Forsyth County Clerk of Superior Court is at 100 Courthouse Square, Suite 010, Cumming, GA 30040. Their phone number is (770) 781-2120. The clerk keeps all criminal case files for matters handled in Forsyth County Superior Court. Felony cases, some misdemeanor cases, and appeals from lower courts all land here. Each file has the charges, hearing dates, motions, plea details, and the final outcome of the case.

The Forsyth County Clerk of Courts page shows how to access court records and other filings in the county system.

You can visit the clerk's office in person to search the case index and request copies of criminal records. There is a per-page copy fee, and certified copies cost more. The clerk's office processes requests during normal business hours at the Cumming courthouse. Some Forsyth County court data can also be found through the Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority, which maintains a statewide search tool. Not every Forsyth County record is in the online system yet, but the database keeps growing.

Note: Certified copies of Forsyth County criminal case records may take longer to process than standard copies due to the extra steps involved.

Criminal Record Restriction in Forsyth County

Georgia calls it record restriction, not expungement. A restricted criminal history record in Forsyth County gets sealed from public view. Law enforcement still has access to it. The general public does not. There are a few paths to restriction in the county.

If charges were never forwarded to a prosecutor, the record gets restricted on a time-based schedule. Misdemeanor charges restrict after two years. Most felonies take four years. Serious violent felonies need seven years. Charges that were dismissed or dropped can be restricted right away in many cases. The same goes for acquittals, though the prosecutor gets ten days to object. For people who went through the First Offender Act under O.C.G.A. Section 42-8-60 and completed their sentence, the court enters a discharge that triggers restriction of the Forsyth County criminal history record. This means no formal conviction appears on public searches once the restriction takes effect.

For arrests on or after July 1, 2013, the restriction process starts with the Forsyth County District Attorney. You do not go to the arresting agency first. For older arrests, contact the agency that made the arrest and they will forward your request to the prosecutor. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37, you can also dispute wrong information on your Forsyth County criminal history record. The agency has 60 days to review and respond to your challenge. Getting the wrong data fixed matters because errors can follow you across job applications and other checks that pull from the state database.

GBI Resources for Forsyth County Criminal History

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is the state agency that manages the criminal history database for all of Georgia, including Forsyth County. The GBI runs the Georgia Crime Information Center, which collects arrest data, court outcomes, and corrections information from local agencies across the state. Every arrest made by the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office gets reported to the GCIC under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-34. That data stays in the state system unless it gets restricted.

The GBI contact page provides details on how to reach the agency for criminal history questions and record requests in Georgia.

The GBI FAQ page on criminal history records is a helpful starting point. It explains who can request records, what the process looks like, and what fees apply. If you are trying to get a complete picture of criminal history tied to Forsyth County, the GBI's statewide database is the broadest source available. Local agencies in Forsyth County feed data into this system, so it captures what the county offices have plus records from other jurisdictions in Georgia.

State Criminal History Searches for Forsyth County

Two state tools let you search for criminal history that may include Forsyth County data. The Georgia Felon Search costs $15. It checks the GCIC database for felony convictions statewide. You need the person's name, date of birth, and sex. Results come back right away. The fee applies whether or not a record is found. This tool only covers felony convictions. Misdemeanors and pending charges are not included.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free to use. It shows people currently held in state prison. If someone was convicted in Forsyth County and sent to a GDC facility, they would appear in this search. People in the Forsyth County Jail or those who finished their sentence will not show up. Both tools give you a broader view of criminal history beyond what the local Forsyth County offices hold on their own.

What Forsyth County Criminal Records Show

A criminal history record tied to Forsyth County can come from a few different places, and each shows different things. Arrest records from the sheriff's office list the charges at the time of arrest, the date, and the bond set. Court records from the clerk's office show how the case moved through the system. You can see the charges filed by the prosecutor, any plea deals, the trial outcome if there was one, and the sentence. State-level records add a bigger picture by pulling in data from all Georgia counties.

Some records are not open to the public. Restricted records under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37 do not show up on public searches. Juvenile cases are sealed in most situations. Federal criminal cases handled in federal court do not appear in the state GCIC database at all. Those sit with federal agencies. If you are looking for a complete criminal history connected to Forsyth County, you may need to check more than one source to put the full picture together.

• Sheriff's Office for arrest and booking records in Forsyth County
• Clerk of Superior Court for court case files and outcomes
• GBI's GCIC for statewide criminal history data
• Georgia Felon Search for felony conviction checks
• GDC offender search for people in state prison

Each piece covers a different part of the criminal history system. Court records tell you how a case ended. Arrest records tell you how it started. State tools fill in the gaps between the two.

Nearby Counties for Criminal Records

Forsyth County sits north of Atlanta and shares borders with several other Georgia counties. If you cannot find what you need in the Forsyth County system, a neighboring county may have relevant records. Criminal cases near the county line sometimes end up in a different jurisdiction.

Cherokee County borders Forsyth to the west and is one of the more populated counties in the metro area. Gwinnett County is to the south and handles a very large volume of criminal cases. Hall County sits to the northeast. Dawson and Lumpkin counties are smaller and border Forsyth to the north and northwest. Each county has its own sheriff, court clerk, and criminal record system.