Decatur County 24 Hour Booking

Decatur County 24 hour booking records track all arrests processed through the county jail in Bainbridge, Georgia. Located in southwest Georgia near the Florida state line, Decatur County is part of the South Georgia Judicial Circuit. The sheriff's office handles all jail operations and maintains booking records for every person brought into custody. You can search for recent Decatur County bookings by contacting the sheriff's office directly or by filing a request under Georgia's open records law. The jail processes arrests from local police and county deputies alike.

Decatur County Sheriff 24 Hour Booking Office

The Decatur County Sheriff's Office is at 115 S. Cuthbert Street in Bainbridge. This office runs the county jail and keeps all booking records. Every arrest that happens in Decatur County gets processed here. The intake staff collect the person's information, document the charges, and enter the data into the booking system. A unique booking number is assigned to each new arrest so the record can be tracked through the Decatur County system.

Call (229) 248-3011 to reach the Decatur County Sheriff's Office. The staff can look up whether a person is in custody and share basic booking details over the phone. For written records or copies of booking documents, you will need to submit a formal request. The jail runs all day and night, but office staff for records work during regular hours in Bainbridge.

Note: The Bainbridge Police Department also makes arrests in the city, but all bookings go through the Decatur County jail.

Decatur County 24 Hour Booking Requests

Booking records in Decatur County are public under Georgia law. O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 defines public records to include documents maintained by any county agency, and that covers the sheriff's office. Initial arrest reports stay open to the public even when an investigation is still active per O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72. The only things that get redacted are personal identifiers like social security numbers and bank details.

To get copies of Decatur County booking records, file a request with the sheriff's office in Bainbridge. You can do this in writing or just walk in and ask. The office has three business days to respond under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71. The first quarter hour of search time costs nothing. After that, fees are based on the hourly rate of staff doing the search work. Copies run $0.10 per page. If the total cost goes over $500, the Decatur County Sheriff's Office can require prepayment before starting the search.

The Governor's Office open records page outlines the full process for making these requests at any Georgia agency. The same rights and rules apply whether you are in a big metro county or in Decatur County.

How 24 Hour Booking Works in Decatur County

When someone is arrested in Decatur County, the arresting officer transports them to the jail in Bainbridge. Jail staff handle the intake from there. They gather the person's full name, date of birth, home address, and any other identifying details. The charges get recorded along with the arresting agency and officer name. Staff assign a booking number and note the time of intake. All of this goes into the Decatur County booking log.

Bond hearings typically happen within 48 hours of arrest. A magistrate judge in Decatur County reviews the charges and sets bail. Some offenses have a preset bond schedule that the jail can apply right away. For more serious charges, the person waits for a judge to hear the case before bond is set. Either way, the booking record stays in the system whether the person bonds out or stays in the Decatur County jail.

Georgia law under O.C.G.A. § 35-1-18 restricts the posting of booking photos online. The Decatur County Sheriff's Office follows this rule and does not publish mugshots on a website. If you need a booking photo, submit a written request to the sheriff's office. You must state in writing that you will not use the image in a way that violates state law.

Georgia Booking Resources for Decatur County

People who are convicted in Decatur County and sentenced to state prison get transferred out of the county jail to a Georgia Department of Corrections facility. The GDC Find Offender tool shows where state inmates are housed. It does not cover the Decatur County jail. The GDC recommends verifying any data through written correspondence with their Inmate Records office at PO Box 1529, Forsyth, GA 31029.

The image below shows the Georgia state records management portal, which explains how open records requests work across all agencies in Georgia.

The DOAS records management page covers the rules and fees that apply to records requests at the state level, and county agencies like Decatur County follow similar guidelines.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation maintains criminal history records through the Georgia Crime Information Center. If you need a full criminal history rather than just a single booking record from Decatur County, the GBI is the agency to contact. Under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-34, felony conviction records are public. Other records require written consent from the person being searched. Fingerprint-based checks go through the GAPS system, which returns results in 24 to 48 hours.

Restricting Decatur County 24 Hour Booking Records

If charges from a Decatur County arrest were dismissed or never prosecuted, you can apply to have the record restricted under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37. The local prosecutor has to approve the restriction. Once it goes through, the arrest record is sealed from public view. Only judicial officials and criminal justice agencies can see restricted records from Decatur County after that point.

Qualifying dispositions include charges that were dismissed, not presented to a grand jury, nolle prossed, or placed on the dead docket. Guilty verdicts do not qualify. The First Offender Act under O.C.G.A. § 42-8-60 also allows sealing when someone finishes their sentence. Send restriction applications to the Georgia Crime Information Center at P.O. Box 370808, Decatur, Georgia 30037.

Note: Record restriction for Decatur County bookings only covers the criminal history file, not physical documents held at the courthouse.

Cities in Decatur County

Bainbridge is the county seat and largest city in Decatur County. All arrests across Decatur County go through the county jail in Bainbridge for processing and booking.

Nearby Counties

Decatur County sits in southwest Georgia. These neighboring counties each maintain their own jail and booking records. Check the right county if you are unsure where an arrest took place.