Search Turner County Criminal History

Turner County criminal history records are managed by the Superior Court Clerk and the Sheriff's Office in Ashburn, Georgia. With a population of around 7,985, Turner County is a small rural county in south-central Georgia. Criminal records here include arrest data, jail bookings, court case filings, and sentencing information. The sheriff's office keeps booking logs and arrest records. The clerk holds case files that track charges, pleas, and court outcomes. You can access these records at the local offices in Ashburn or through statewide search tools run by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. This page walks through each method for searching criminal history in Turner County.

Turner County Sheriff's Office Records

The Turner County Sheriff's Office is in Ashburn, GA 31714. Call (229) 567-4397 to reach them. The sheriff provides law enforcement across the county and runs the Turner County Jail. Every person booked into the jail gets a record. That record shows the name, arrest date, charges at booking, bond amount, and current status. These booking logs are one side of the criminal history picture in Turner County.

You can call the sheriff's office to ask about someone in custody. Staff can confirm if a person is being held and what the charges are. For arrest reports, you need to file an open records request. Put it in writing and send it to the sheriff's office. There may be a small fee for copies.

The sheriff also processes fingerprint-based criminal history checks. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37, any person can request their own criminal history. Go to the Turner County Sheriff's Office with a valid ID, get fingerprinted, and the request goes to the Georgia Crime Information Center. The GCIC pulls your full record and sends it back. This is the most complete way to see what is on your criminal history in Georgia. It pulls records from all 159 counties.

Arrest data from the Turner County Sheriff feeds into the state system. Under O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-34, every law enforcement agency in Georgia must report arrest information to the GCIC. When someone gets booked into the Turner County Jail, that data goes into the statewide database over time.

Turner County Superior Court Clerk

The Turner County Superior Court Clerk is in Ashburn, GA 31714. Call (229) 567-2011 for help. This office holds case files for criminal matters that move through the Turner County court system. Felonies, some misdemeanors, and probation violations all get filed here. Each case file tracks charges, court dates, plea information, the verdict, and the sentence.

Visit the clerk's office in person to search the case index. Copy fees apply for documents. Certified copies cost more but they carry the clerk's seal, which is needed for official purposes. Turner County is part of the Tifton Judicial Circuit. The clerk works with the Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority, which runs a statewide database of court filings. Not every Turner County record appears in that system right away. Some take time as data gets reported to the state level.

Under Georgia law, local agencies must report criminal history data to the GCIC. A Turner County conviction should show up in a state-level search after the data flows from the clerk's office to the state database. Some records move in days. Others take weeks. If you search the state system and can not find a record you expected, try the local offices in Ashburn.

Record Restriction in Turner County

Georgia does not use expungement. The state uses record restriction instead. A restricted record in Turner County gets sealed from public view. It still exists. Law enforcement can still see it. But the general public cannot access it through normal search channels.

There are several ways to get a Turner County record restricted. Charges that were never sent to a prosecutor can be restricted after a waiting period. Misdemeanors require two years from the arrest date. Most felonies need four years. Serious violent felonies take seven years. If the charges were dropped or the person was found not guilty, restriction can happen sooner. The prosecutor in the Tifton Judicial Circuit gets ten days to object after an acquittal. If no objection comes, the record is sealed.

The full process is set out in O.C.G.A. Section 35-3-37. For Turner County arrests on or after July 1, 2013, you start the process through the local District Attorney. For arrests before that date, contact the arresting agency first. In Turner County, that usually means the sheriff's office in Ashburn.

State Search Tools for Turner County

The Georgia Felon Search lets you check the GCIC database for felony convictions across Georgia. It costs $15 per search. You enter a first name, last name, date of birth, and sex. Results come back fast. The fee applies even if no record is found. This tool only covers felony convictions. Misdemeanors and pending charges will not show. A felony conviction from Turner County would appear once the local data has been reported to the state.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free. It shows people currently in a state prison. Someone convicted in Turner County and sent to a GDC facility would show up. People in the Turner County Jail or those who already finished their sentence will not appear. It is a narrow tool, but useful when you know the person went to state prison.

The GBI FAQ page on criminal history records answers common questions about the process. It covers what records you can request, how long the process takes, and how the system works across all Georgia counties.

How to Search Turner County Criminal History

There are several ways to get criminal history records in Turner County. The best choice depends on the type of record you need.

• Call the Turner County Sheriff at (229) 567-4397 for jail bookings and arrest data
• Visit the Superior Court Clerk in Ashburn for case files and certified copies
• Use the Georgia Felon Search for statewide felony conviction records
• Search the GDC offender database for people in state prison
• File an open records request with the sheriff's office for specific arrest reports

Each source covers a different part of the system. Court records from the clerk show charges and outcomes. The sheriff holds arrest and jail records. State tools fill in the picture with felony conviction data and corrections records from across Georgia. The clerk is the best source for case results. The sheriff is best for arrest and booking data. Between the two offices and the state tools, you can get a solid picture of what is on file.

First Offender Act in Turner County

The First Offender Act at O.C.G.A. Section 42-8-60 gives first-time offenders in Turner County a way to avoid a formal conviction on their record. A judge sentences the person under First Offender status. They serve probation, jail time, or both. When they complete all the terms, the court enters a discharge. That discharge triggers the restriction of their criminal history from public searches.

In Turner County, First Offender cases are heard in Superior Court or State Court depending on the charge level. After discharge, the record drops out of public view in both county and GCIC systems. People who were sentenced in Turner County before the law changed may petition the court to apply First Offender status retroactively. Not all crimes qualify. Certain serious offenses are excluded from eligibility. Check with the Tifton Judicial Circuit DA or a local attorney for details.

Nearby Counties

Turner County borders several other counties in south-central Georgia. Crimes near the county line may end up filed in a neighboring jurisdiction. If you can not find a record in Turner County, try one of these nearby counties.

Tift County is to the south and home to Tifton, which is the hub of the Tifton Judicial Circuit. Worth County is to the west near Sylvester. Crisp County sits to the north near Cordele. Wilcox County borders Turner to the northeast. Ben Hill County is to the east near Fitzgerald, and Irwin County is to the southeast near Ocilla. Each county has its own court clerk and sheriff, but they all report criminal data to the same GCIC database managed by the GBI.