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 25, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Smith County, Kansas, has about 3,500 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Smith County Sheriff's Office and one city agency. 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 County Attorney files charges, a case in the Smith County District 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: Smith County public records, Kansas arrest records, Kansas inmate search and Kansas criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Smith County
The Smith County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Smith County. It reported 21 arrests for 2022, its latest complete year.
The FBI lists one city in Smith County with a reporting agency of its own:
- Smith Center, 1,569 residents.
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 The Smith County Sheriff's Office Reports
The FBI publishes every agency's monthly arrest counts 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.
- Smith County Sheriff's Office: 21 for 2022 and 15 for 2020; 2021 is missing months.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Smith County Are Held
The county jail is where a person arrested in Smith County and kept in custody ends up, whichever agency made the arrest, though a city department may hold someone in its own cells first and a person cited and released at the scene is never booked. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and once the person is released or sentenced the record continues in the court file.
On an average day in 2019 the jail held about 9 people. Its rated capacity in 2019 was 12 beds, and it ran at 75 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 Smith County Sheriff's Office at ks1495.cichosting.com/main/elected-officials/sheriff (page title: Smith County, Kansas | Sheriff >), phone (785) 625-3518, 217 South Jefferson St, Smith Center, KS 66967, Monday - Thu rsday, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the Kansas Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.ks.gov/@@search?SearchableText=inmate+search.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Smith County
An arrest in Smith County can be traced in two places, depending on where the case stands: Kansas District Court Public Access Portal, the Kansas courts' statewide case search, which shows whether charges were filed; the County Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at ks1495.cichosting.com/main/elected-officials/attorney, phone (785) 282-6689).
Kansas is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: anyone can order a name-based criminal history record check online, through the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. That record shows what agencies reported to the state, which is wider than one county's court index but can lag it.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Smith County
An arrest report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, and that agency releases it, not the court or the jail. Under the Kansas Open Records Act the agency must answer within 3 business days, and it may charge staff time and copying.
- An arrest by the Smith County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at (785) 625-3518.
- An arrest in Smith Center: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the County Attorney, (785) 282-6689, handles discovery for pending cases.
- Your own statewide record: the same request described above, for your own name.
Cities in Smith County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for one of the six cities in Smith County: Smith Center. Kensington, Lebanon, Gaylord, Athol and Cedar have no separate reporting agency in the FBI's list.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Smith County District Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Smith County each year?
The Smith County Sheriff's Office reported 21 arrests to the FBI for 2022, its latest full year.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Smith County?
Ask the Smith County Sheriff's Office at (785) 625-3518; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at ks1495.cichosting.com.
Where are people arrested in Smith County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Smith County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Smith County?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation: anyone can order a name-based criminal history record check online. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Kansas Open Records Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Smith County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Smith County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Kansas Open Records Act the answer is due within 3 business days.
Is this the official Smith 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.