Reviewed and updated October 9, 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.
Cedar County, Iowa, has about 18,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Cedar County depends on where the incident happened: the Cedar 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 Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22) 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: Cedar County public records, Cedar County arrest records, Cedar County warrants, Cedar County inmate search, Cedar County criminal records, Iowa arrest records and Iowa inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Cedar County
The report of an incident is released by the agency that took it; the court and the jail hold their own records of the same event, but not the report.
In Cedar County that is the Cedar 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 Wilton Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Cedar County, so its arrests are not broken out for Cedar County here.
Reports from the Cedar County Sheriff's Office
The Cedar County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 13 violent and 24 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 93 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at 563-331-9900. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its custody page, at cedarcounty.iowa.gov/sheriff/inmate_roster (page title: Inmate Roster | Sheriff's Office | Cedar County, Iowa), phone 563-331-9900, 400 Cedar St Tipton, IA 52772, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 30, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Cedar County
The five cities the FBI lists in Cedar County with a reporting agency of their own:
- Tipton: 4 violent and 14 property crimes reported for 2025; 26 arrests reported for 2025.
- West Branch: 6 violent and 18 property crimes reported for 2025; 4 arrests reported for 2025.
- Durant: 0 violent and 3 property crimes reported for 2025; 10 arrests reported for 2025.
- Clarence: 0 violent and 0 property crimes reported for 2025; 2 arrests reported for 2025.
- Mechanicsville: 0 violent and 3 property crimes reported for 2025; 1 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 Reports: Cedar County in 2025
The six agencies in Cedar County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 23 violent and 62 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the six agencies in Cedar County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 136 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22) Requires
The Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22) sets the rules: an answer without delay; the law sets no fixed number of days, and a delay past 20 days must be justified, at a charge of the actual cost of copying and retrieval, from the agency that holds the report.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Cedar County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Cedar County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22) the answer is due without delay; the law sets no fixed number of days, and a delay past 20 days must be justified.
How long does an agency in Cedar County have to answer?
Under the Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22), without delay; the law sets no fixed number of days, and a delay past 20 days must be justified. It may charge the actual cost of copying and retrieval.
How do I get a report from the Cedar County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at 563-331-9900. Under the Iowa Open Records Law (Chapter 22) the answer is due without delay; the law sets no fixed number of days, and a delay past 20 days must be justified.
Is this the official Cedar 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.