Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 24, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Washington County, Alabama, has about 15,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Washington County Sheriff's Office and three city agencies. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the District Attorney files charges, a case in the Washington County Circuit Court. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it, with the arrest counts each agency reported.
This guide covers who makes arrests, how many arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Washington County public records, Alabama arrest records, Alabama inmate search and Alabama criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Washington County
The Washington County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Washington County. It reported 317 arrests for 2025.
Arrests inside three of the county's cities are reported to the FBI by an agency of the city's own, listed here with the Census population and what each reported:
- Chatom, 1,056 residents: 31 arrests reported for 2024.
- Millry, 440 residents: 2 arrests reported for 2025.
- McIntosh, 196 residents: 45 arrests reported for 2025.
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.
How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Washington County
Each agency reports its arrests to the FBI by month, and the FBI publishes them on the Crime Data Explorer. These are the full-year totals, all offenses, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026; a year with months missing or not reported is left out.
- Washington County Sheriff's Office: 317 for 2025, 283 for 2024, 244 for 2023, 210 for 2022, 406 for 2021 and 344 for 2019; 2020 is missing months.
- McIntosh: 45 for 2025, 53 for 2024, 80 for 2023, 41 for 2022 and 39 for 2021.
- Millry: 2 for 2025, 4 for 2024 and 1 for 2022; 2023 is missing months.
- Chatom: 31 for 2024, 48 for 2023, 46 for 2022, 63 for 2021 and 117 for 2019; 2020 is missing months.
Together, the three agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 364 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 364 in 2025 against 340 in 2024, up 7.1 percent.
Through May 2026, the three agencies with every month so far on file reported 144 arrests, against 162 in the same months of 2025.
Chatom reported only part of 2025 (11 months) and is left out of the totals.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Washington County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Washington County is held at the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest, apart from the short stay some city departments' own holding cells allow; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked at all. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and the court file takes over from there.
On an average day in 2021 the jail held about 51 people, down from about 55 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 42 beds, and it ran at 131 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Washington County Sheriff's Office at washcoso.com/whos-in-jail (page title: Who’s in Jail | Washington County Sheriff's Office), phone 251-847-2202, 45 Court St. Chatom, AL 36518, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Washington County
Whether someone was arrested in Washington County, and what came of it, shows up in two places: the case index of the Washington County Circuit Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at washington.alacourt.gov, phone 251.847.2239); the District Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at jeffcobessemerda.org/lynneice-o-washington).
Statewide, Alacourt is the statewide online index of Alabama trial court cases, sold by subscription.
Alabama does not let the public search another person's statewide criminal history. The record kept by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency goes to the person it belongs to and to employers and agencies the law authorizes; for everyone else the court's own case index is the public record of an arrest that led to a charge.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Washington County
The report of an arrest is released by the agency that made it; the jail and the court hold their own records of the same event, but not the report. Under the Alabama Public Records Law the agency must answer within a reasonable time; the statute sets no fixed deadline, and it may charge a reasonable fee for copies.
- An arrest by the Washington County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at 251-847-2202.
- An arrest in Chatom, Millry or McIntosh: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Washington County Circuit Court, through the court records page at washington.alacourt.gov, phone 251.847.2239.
- Your own statewide record: a fingerprint-based request to ALEA.
Cities in Washington County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for every one of the three cities in Washington County: Chatom, Millry and McIntosh.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Washington County Circuit Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Washington County each year?
The Washington County Sheriff's Office reported 317 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the three agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 364 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Washington County?
Ask the Washington County Sheriff's Office at 251-847-2202; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at washcoso.com/whos-in-jail.
Where are people arrested in Washington County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Washington County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Washington County?
The court files of criminal cases in the Washington County Circuit Court are public and can be looked up through the court. The statewide criminal history kept by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency is not public; you can get your own. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Alabama Public Records Law.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Washington County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Washington County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Alabama Public Records Law the answer is due within a reasonable time; the statute sets no fixed deadline.
Is this the official Washington 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.