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 23, 2026 and October 9, 2026.
Washington County, Maryland, has about 157,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Washington County Sheriff's Office, four city agencies and two campus, state or other 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 State's Attorney files charges, a case in the Circuit Court for Washington County. 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, Maryland arrest records, Maryland inmate search and Maryland 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 2,618 arrests for 2025.
The FBI lists four cities in Washington County with a reporting agency of their own, with the Census population and what each reported:
- Hagerstown, 43,909 residents: 1,632 arrests reported for 2025.
- Boonsboro, 3,850 residents: 18 arrests reported for 2025.
- Smithsburg, 3,194 residents: 4 arrests reported for 2025.
- Hancock, 1,570 residents: 9 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 FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Washington County: Hagerstown Community College (campus police); the Washington County State Police (state police).
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: 2,618 for 2025, 2,674 for 2024, 2,352 for 2023, 2,233 for 2022, 1,792 for 2021 and 3,011 for 2020.
- Hagerstown: 1,632 for 2025, 1,448 for 2024, 1,488 for 2023, 1,506 for 2022, 1,097 for 2021 and 1,788 for 2020.
- Boonsboro: 18 for 2025, 3 for 2024, 5 for 2023, 1 for 2021, 6 for 2020 and 8 for 2019; 2022 is missing months.
- Hancock: 9 for 2025, 6 for 2024, 6 for 2023, 2 for 2021, 10 for 2020 and 3 for 2019; 2022 is missing months.
- Smithsburg: 4 for 2025, 7 for 2024, 3 for 2023, 16 for 2020 and 18 for 2019; 2021 and 2022 are missing months.
Together, the five agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 4,281 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 4,281 in 2025 against 4,138 in 2024, up 3.5 percent.
Through July 2026, the four agencies with every month so far on file reported 2,609 arrests, against 2,484 in the same months of 2025.
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 2024 the jail held about 350 people, up from about 320 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 581 beds, and it ran at 67 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Washington County Sheriff's Office at news.washeriff.net/divisions/bookings (page title: Bookings | WCSO), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone who was booked recently; a person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
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 three places: the custody page of the Washington County Sheriff's Office described above, for anyone booked into the county jail; the case index of the Circuit Court for Washington County, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at courts.state.md.us/clerks/washington/records, phone 301-733-8660); the State's Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at washco-md.net/states-attorney-office, phone 240-313-2000).
Statewide, Maryland Judiciary Case Search is the free statewide case search of every Maryland court.
Maryland does not let the public search another person's statewide criminal history. The record kept by the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, Criminal Justice Information System 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 Maryland Public Information Act the agency must answer within 30 days, with a denial due within 10 working days, and it may charge staff time after the first two hours, plus copying.
- An arrest by the Washington County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit.
- An arrest in Hagerstown, Boonsboro, Smithsburg or Hancock: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city; the city guides linked above name each city's records office.
- An arrest by Hagerstown Community College or the Washington County State Police: the records office of the agency involved.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the State's Attorney, 240-313-2000, handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Circuit Court for Washington County, through the court records page at courts.state.md.us/clerks/washington/records, phone 301-733-8660.
- Any county record that is not posted: the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at washco-md.net (page title: Request a Public Record | Washington County).
- Your own statewide record: a fingerprint-based request to the CJIS Central Repository.
The other Washington County guides go further: warrants, inmate search, criminal records, court records, police reports, traffic tickets, DUI, divorce records and property records.
Cities in Washington County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for four of the nine cities in Washington County: Hagerstown, Boonsboro, Smithsburg and Hancock. Williamsport, Keedysville, Funkstown, Sharpsburg and Clear Spring 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 Circuit Court for Washington County.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Washington County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own arrest records guide opens there:
- Hagerstown (43,909)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Washington County each year?
The Washington County Sheriff's Office reported 2,618 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the five agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 4,281 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Washington County?
Look on the custody page of the Washington County Sheriff's Office at news.washeriff.net/divisions/bookings. It covers people booked into the county 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 Circuit Court for Washington County are public and can be looked up through the court. The statewide criminal history kept by the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, Criminal Justice Information System is not public; you can get your own. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Maryland Public Information Act.
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 Maryland Public Information Act the answer is due within 30 days, with a denial due within 10 working days; the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at washco-md.net.
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.