Reviewed and updated October 7, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest and crime counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and September 30, 2026.
Kanawha County, West Virginia, has about 174,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Kanawha County depends on where the incident happened: the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county, the agency that reports for the city inside a city. This guide names each agency, where its records page is and what the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act requires of it.
This guide covers which agency, the sheriff's reports, the cities' reports, how many reports, what the law requires and common questions.
Related guides: Kanawha County public records, Kanawha County warrants, Kanawha County inmate search, Kanawha County criminal records, Kanawha County court records, West Virginia arrest records and West Virginia inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Kanawha County
A crime, incident or collision report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, and that agency releases it, not the court, the jail or the prosecutor.
In Kanawha County that is the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county and for any city that contracts with it for police service, and the agency that reports for a city where the city has one of its own.
The FBI's list also places the Bureau of Criminal Investigation Academy State Police, the Kanawha County State Police, Parkway Authority, the South Charleston State Police and the Quincy State Police in Kanawha County; a report taken on a state highway by one of them comes from that agency's own records office.
The FBI's agency list also places two campus police departments, four state agencies and two other agencies in Kanawha County, each with a records office of its own.
The Montgomery Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Kanawha County, so its arrests are not broken out for Kanawha County here.
Reports from the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office
The Kanawha County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 334 violent and 1,008 property crimes reported for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at 304-357-0216. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at kanawhasheriff.us (page title: Kanawha County Sheriff's Office | Charleston, West Virginia), phone 304-357-0216, 301 Virginia Street East, Charleston, WV 25301, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Kanawha County
The 14 cities the FBI lists in Kanawha County with a reporting agency of their own, the largest twelve first, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Charleston. The Charleston police department's page is at charlestonwv.gov/government/city-departments/police, phone (304) 348-6460 (verified September 26, 2026).
- South Charleston: 58 violent and 700 property crimes reported for 2025.
- St. Albans: 12 violent and 238 property crimes reported for 2025. The St. Albans police department's page is at stalbanswv.com/departments/police, phone 304-727-2251 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Dunbar: 26 violent and 161 property crimes reported for 2025. The Dunbar police department's page is at cityofdunbarwv.gov/police.html, phone 304-766-0204 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Nitro: 10 violent and 237 property crimes reported for 2025.
- Marmet.
- Chesapeake.
- Belle.
- Clendenin.
- East Bank.
- Glasgow.
- Cedar Grove.
A city on that list is reported separately whether the officers are the city's own or the sheriff's under contract; the FBI's list does not say which.
The rest: Pratt and Handley.
How Many Reports: Kanawha County in 2025
The five agencies in Kanawha County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 440 violent and 2,344 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
What the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act Requires
The West Virginia Freedom of Information Act sets the rules: an answer within 5 business days, at a charge of the actual cost of copying, from the agency that holds the report.
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the Prosecuting Attorney, (304) 357-0300, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Kanawha County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days.
How long does an agency in Kanawha County have to answer?
Under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act, within 5 business days. It may charge the actual cost of copying.
Who has a crash report from a state highway in Kanawha County?
The state agency whose officer took it; the FBI lists the state police in Kanawha County.
How do I get a report from the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at 304-357-0216. Under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days.
Is this the official Kanawha County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.