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 23, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
St. Clair County, Illinois, has about 251,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from St. Clair County depends on where the incident happened: the St. Clair 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 Illinois 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: St. Clair County public records, St. Clair County arrest records, St. Clair County warrants, St. Clair County inmate search, St. Clair County property records, Illinois arrest records and Illinois inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from St. Clair 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 St. Clair County that is the St. Clair 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 carries Alton and Southern Railway and Union Pacific Railroad in St. Clair County (other agency) and Southwestern Illinois College (campus police), each with a records office of its own.
The Columbia Police Department, the New Baden Police Department, the Collinsville Police Department and one more are each listed by the FBI across several counties including St. Clair County, so their arrests are not broken out for St. Clair County here.
Reports from the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office
The St. Clair County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 130 violent and 310 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 248 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at (618) 277-3505. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at co.st-clair.il.us/departments/sheriffs-department (page title: Sheriff's Department | Departments | St. Clair), phone (618) 277-3505, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in St. Clair County
The 22 cities the FBI lists in St. Clair 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:
- Belleville: 193 violent and 658 property crimes reported for 2025; 929 arrests reported for 2025.
- O'Fallon: 45 violent and 296 property crimes reported for 2025; 744 arrests reported for 2025.
- East St. Louis: 0 arrests reported for 2019.
- Cahokia Heights: 1,152 arrests reported for 2025. The Cahokia Heights police department's page is at cahokiaheightsil.us/?page_id=6370, phone 618.337.9508 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Fairview Heights: 67 violent and 475 property crimes reported for 2025; 1,028 arrests reported for 2025. The Fairview Heights police department's page is at fhpd.org, phone (618) 489-2100 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Shiloh: 15 violent and 70 property crimes reported for 2025; 112 arrests reported for 2025. The Shiloh police department's page is at shilohil.org/village-hall/police-department, phone 618-624-4545 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Swansea: 10 violent and 99 property crimes reported for 2025; 182 arrests reported for 2025.
- Mascoutah: 3 violent and 39 property crimes reported for 2025; 54 arrests reported for 2025.
- Lebanon: 4 violent and 22 property crimes reported for 2025; 3 arrests reported for 2025.
- Freeburg: 0 arrests reported for 2024.
- Caseyville: 10 violent and 35 property crimes reported for 2025; 0 arrests reported for 2025.
- Millstadt: 1 violent and 13 property crimes reported for 2025; 91 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.
The rest: Smithton, Dupo, Washington Park, Fairmont City, New Athens, Marissa, Brooklyn, East Carondelet, Summerfield and Sauget.
How Many Reports: St. Clair County in 2025
The 15 agencies in St. Clair County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 498 violent and 2,113 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the 17 agencies in St. Clair County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 6,114 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Illinois Freedom of Information Act Requires
The Illinois Freedom of Information Act sets the rules: an answer within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension, at a charge of copying only after the first 50 pages, from the agency that holds the report.
Any other county record goes through the county records request page SearchSystems verified, at stclaircountyil.justfoia.com/publicportal/home/newrequest (page title: St. Clair County, IL Public Portal | JustFOIA).
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the State's Attorney, (618) 277-3892, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in St. Clair County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension.
How long does an agency in St. Clair County have to answer?
Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension. It may charge copying only after the first 50 pages.
How do I get a report from the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at (618) 277-3505. Under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days, with one 5-day extension.
Is this the official St. Clair 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.