Spalding County Criminal History Records

Spalding County criminal history records are kept by offices in Griffin, Georgia. The county is part of the Griffin Judicial Circuit and has a population of about 66,703. The Sheriff's Office on Justice Boulevard handles arrest and jail data, while the Clerk of Superior Court on East Solomon Street maintains court case files. If you need to search for criminal records in Spalding County, both offices are key sources. State-level tools from the GBI and the Department of Corrections can also turn up records tied to this county. This page covers where to look for Spalding County criminal history and how to use each source.

Spalding County Sheriff Criminal Records

The Spalding County Sheriff's Office is at 401 Justice Boulevard in Griffin, GA 30224. You can reach them at (770) 228-2145. The sheriff runs the county jail and keeps booking records for anyone brought in on criminal charges in Spalding County. Each booking record includes the person's name, arrest date, the charges at the time of booking, bond amount, and the name of the officer who made the arrest. The jail phone line is (770) 467-4286 if you need to check on someone currently held at the facility.

The Spalding County Sheriff's Office website provides information about the department, jail operations, and community programs in the Griffin area.

That page has details on how to reach the sheriff's department and learn about their services. Arrest records from the Spalding County Sheriff feed into the statewide criminal history system. O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-34 requires all Georgia law enforcement agencies to report arrest data to the Georgia Crime Information Center. So when someone gets booked into the Spalding County Jail, that arrest record goes into the GCIC database and becomes part of the person's statewide criminal history.

The Griffin Police Department also handles law enforcement within the city limits. Arrests made by Griffin police go through the same system. The data ends up in the county jail records and the state GCIC database just the same.

Criminal Records at Spalding County Clerk's Office

The Spalding County Clerk of Superior Court is at 132 East Solomon Street in Griffin, GA 30223. The phone number is (770) 228-3585. The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The clerk keeps all criminal case files from the Spalding County Superior Court. These include felony cases, certain appeals, and other criminal matters that move through the Griffin Judicial Circuit. Each file has the charges brought by the district attorney, hearing dates, plea information, motions filed, and the final outcome of the case.

The Spalding County Clerk of Courts handles requests for copies of court documents tied to criminal cases in the county.

You can visit the office in person during business hours to search the case index. Staff can look up records by name or case number. Plain copies come with a per-page fee. Certified copies carry the court seal and cost more, but they are what most legal proceedings need. The Spalding County court system also supports e-filing through the Odyssey system, which some attorneys and parties use to submit filings electronically. If you are coming from outside Griffin, call the clerk's office first to confirm the case is on file.

Note: Spalding County State Court handles some misdemeanor criminal cases separately from Superior Court, so check both courts if you are not certain where a case was filed.

Spalding County Criminal Record Restriction

Georgia uses the term record restriction rather than expungement. When a Spalding County criminal history record is restricted, it gets sealed from public searches. Law enforcement retains access. The public does not. This is important for people in the Griffin area who want to clear their record after charges were dismissed, dropped, or resolved through the court system.

The restriction process has two tracks based on the arrest date. For arrests before July 1, 2013, you apply through the arresting agency first. In Spalding County, that is typically the sheriff's office or the Griffin Police Department. They forward the request to the Griffin Judicial Circuit District Attorney, who gets 90 days to respond. For arrests on or after July 1, 2013, you go straight to the DA. No agency application is needed. Charges that were never sent to a prosecutor get restricted on a fixed schedule under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37. Two years for misdemeanors. Four years for most felonies. Seven years for serious violent felony charges. Acquittals and dismissals can qualify for restriction sooner, though the DA can object within ten days of an acquittal.

The First Offender Act under O.C.G.A. Section 42-8-60 is another route to restriction in Spalding County. A judge can sentence a first-time offender without entering a formal conviction. When that person completes their sentence and the court discharges them, the criminal history record is restricted from public searches. This applies to both Superior Court and State Court cases in the Griffin Judicial Circuit. People who were eligible for First Offender treatment at the time of sentencing but did not receive it may petition the court to apply it retroactively.

State Criminal History Tools for Spalding County

State-level search tools can show criminal history data tied to Spalding County. The Georgia Felon Search costs $15 per query and checks the GCIC database for felony convictions across Georgia. You need a name, date of birth, and sex to run a search. Results show up fast. The fee applies even if nothing comes back. This tool only covers felony convictions. Misdemeanors, arrests without charges, and restricted records from Spalding County will not appear in the results.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free and shows people who are currently in a state prison. If someone convicted in Spalding County was sent to a GDC facility, they would show up in this tool. It does not list people held in the Spalding County Jail or those who have already completed their sentence and been released from custody.

For broader questions about how criminal history records work in Georgia, the GBI FAQ page covers common topics. It explains how to request your own criminal history record, the fees involved, and how to challenge errors. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37, every person in the state has the right to review their own record. The fee is capped at $15 plus the cost of fingerprinting. That applies to Spalding County residents and everyone else in Georgia.

What Spalding County Criminal Records Include

Criminal history records from Spalding County draw from more than one source. Arrest data from the sheriff's office shows the charges at booking, the date of arrest, and the bond set by the magistrate. Court records from the clerk's office track what happened after the arrest. You see the charges filed by the Griffin Judicial Circuit DA, any plea deals, trial outcomes, and the sentence. State-level data from the GCIC adds convictions from other counties and corrections information if the person served time in a state facility.

Not everything is open to the public. Records restricted under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37 will not show up in any public search. Juvenile records are sealed in most cases. Federal criminal cases go through federal courts and are not in the state GCIC system. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-34, the GCIC can share criminal history with a defendant's attorney when they submit a written request. In civil cases, criminal history is generally only available with the person's written consent unless a felony conviction is involved.

Criminal History in Spalding County Cities

Griffin is the county seat and the largest city in Spalding County. The Griffin Police Department handles arrests within the city limits. Those arrest records flow into the Spalding County criminal history system when cases go to Superior Court. Other communities in the county include Orchard Hill and Sunny Side. All criminal cases from these areas go through the Spalding County courts. The clerk on East Solomon Street and the sheriff's office on Justice Boulevard are the two main sources for criminal records in the entire county.

Nearby Counties for Criminal Records

Spalding County is south of Atlanta in the central part of the state. If you are looking for criminal records and cannot find what you need in the Spalding County system, check these neighboring counties. Cases near the county line can sometimes land in a different jurisdiction than you expect.

Fayette County is to the northwest and has a larger court system. Henry County sits to the northeast and is one of the faster-growing counties in the metro Atlanta area. Pike County borders Spalding to the south. Lamar County is to the southeast. Butts County is to the east, and Clayton County is directly to the north. Each county has its own sheriff, court clerk, and criminal record system that feeds into the statewide GCIC database.