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 2, 2026.
St. Joseph County, Indiana, has about 274,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from St. Joseph County depends on where the incident happened: the St. Joseph 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 Indiana Access to Public Records 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. Joseph County public records, St. Joseph County arrest records, St. Joseph County warrants, St. Joseph County inmate search, St. Joseph County criminal records, Indiana arrest records and Indiana inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from St. Joseph 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 St. Joseph County that is the St. Joseph 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 Indiana University at South Bend and the University of Notre Dame (campus police) and the St. Joseph County Airport Authority (other agency), each with a records office of its own.
Reports from the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office
The St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 127 violent and 575 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 589 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at 574-235-9611. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its custody page, at sjcpd.org/inmate-search (page title: Inmate Search | St. Joseph County Police Department), phone 574-235-9611, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in St. Joseph County
The seven cities the FBI lists in St. Joseph County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- South Bend: 2,766 arrests reported for 2023. The South Bend police records page is at police.southbendin.gov/about-sbpd/record-bureau, phone (574) 235-9212 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Mishawaka: 156 violent and 1,332 property crimes reported for 2025; 904 arrests reported for 2025. The Mishawaka police records page is at mishawaka.in.gov/government/departments/police-department/records-a..., phone (574) 256-6330 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Osceola: 3 violent and 27 property crimes reported for 2025; 7 arrests reported for 2025.
- Walkerton: 4 violent and 26 property crimes reported for 2025; 32 arrests reported for 2025.
- New Carlisle: 48 arrests reported for 2023.
- North Liberty.
- Roseland: 3 violent and 23 property crimes reported for 2025; 50 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: St. Joseph County in 2025
The five agencies in St. Joseph County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 293 violent and 1,983 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the five agencies in St. Joseph County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,582 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Indiana Access to Public Records Act Requires
The Indiana Access to Public Records Act sets the rules: an answer within 24 hours for a request made in person and 7 days for one sent by mail or email, at a charge of a copy fee set by the agency, within statutory limits, from the agency that holds the report.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in St. Joseph County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act the answer is due within 24 hours for a request made in person and 7 days for one sent by mail or email.
How long does an agency in St. Joseph County have to answer?
Under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act, within 24 hours for a request made in person and 7 days for one sent by mail or email. It may charge a copy fee set by the agency, within statutory limits.
How do I get a report from the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at 574-235-9611. Under the Indiana Access to Public Records Act the answer is due within 24 hours for a request made in person and 7 days for one sent by mail or email.
Is this the official St. Joseph 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.