South Carolina law states that an officer may arrest a suspect without an arrest warrant if he witnesses a crime being committed; however, it is preferred that the officer have an active warrant if possible before making an arrest. To get an arrest warrant, the officer “swears out a warrant” before a Magistrate Court judge. Most warrants in South Carolina are issued through the Magistrate Court. Thorough warrant searches in Williamsburg County should include searches through the courts and the sheriff’s office.
Williamsburg County, SC court records and arrest records
To begin searching for outstanding warrants in Williamsburg County, start with a search for open court cases. The best place to search court records is through the Williamsburg County Public Index provided by the Third Judicial Circuit. The online resource allows the public to search for open and closed cases filed in Williamsburg County. From this database, you can find criminal cases pending in both Magistrate Court (also known as the Summary Court) and the Circuit Court. After finding a specific case, you can contact the
Clerk of Court or the
Magistrate Court to obtain copies of court records or obtain more detailed information about a case.
Williamsburg County outstanding warrants
To find all of the outstanding warrants against a person, you must do a warrant search through the
Williamsburg County Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office must maintain detailed records of all arrests and all outstanding warrants that have not been served. By requesting information directly from the Sheriff’s Office, you can be sure that you are getting the most recent information about warrants and arrests within Williamsburg County. The Sheriff’s Office can also help perform criminal history backgrounds for a fee.
How do you find out about Williamsburg warrants and arrest records over the phone?
Police departments and legal offices sometimes provide criminal history details that the public can see. For deeper insights, such as past arrests and existing warrants, a visit to their office is necessary. You’ll find some phone numbers you can call for information:
- To file a report with the police (non-emergency only) call the Sheriff’s Office on 843-355-6381.
- To connect with the Detention Center, use the phone number 843-355-9696.
- To access judicial records, contact the Clerk of Court at 843-355-9321, ext. 7100.
- To know about the outstanding warrants and civil processes issued by the Magistrate’s court, call on 843-355-9565.
Williamsburg County, SC crime statistics
Williamsburg County witnessed an overall plunge in the rates of both violent and property crimes. In terms of the former, the incident rate went from a high of 180 plus in 2018 to 130 in 2019. As far as property crimes went, the annual figures dropped from a peak of 837 to 541 incidents.
On average, during 2002 and 2008, someone was a victim of crime in Williamsburg County every seven hours. The majority of those crimes were non-violent in nature, with only approximately thirteen percent of the crimes committed being described as violent.