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 on September 24, 2026.
Yellowstone County, Montana, has about 172,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Yellowstone County depends on where the incident happened: the Yellowstone 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 Montana 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: Yellowstone County public records, Yellowstone County arrest records, Yellowstone County warrants, Yellowstone County inmate search, Yellowstone County criminal records, Montana arrest records and Montana inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Yellowstone 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 Yellowstone County that is the Yellowstone 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 Montana State University at Billings (campus police), with a records office of its own.
Reports from the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office
The Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 183 violent and 436 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 787 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at yellowstonecountymt.gov/sheriff/detention/dcsearch.asp (page title: Yellowstone County, Montana), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Yellowstone County
The two cities the FBI lists in Yellowstone County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Billings: 935 violent and 3,083 property crimes reported for 2025; 3,930 arrests reported for 2025. The Billings police records page is at billingsmt.gov/2853/Order-Police-Reports, phone (406) 657-8460 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Laurel: 22 violent and 225 property crimes reported for 2025; 108 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: Yellowstone County in 2025
The three agencies in Yellowstone County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,140 violent and 3,744 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the three agencies in Yellowstone County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 4,825 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Montana Public Records Act Requires
The Montana Public Records Act sets the rules: an answer in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days, at a charge of the actual cost of fulfilling the request, from the agency that holds the report.
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the County Attorney, 406-256-2832, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Yellowstone County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Montana Public Records Act the answer is due in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days.
How long does an agency in Yellowstone County have to answer?
Under the Montana Public Records Act, in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days. It may charge the actual cost of fulfilling the request.
How do I get a report from the Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit. Under the Montana Public Records Act the answer is due in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days.
Is this the official Yellowstone 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.