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 on September 23, 2026.
Licking County, Ohio, has about 185,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). An OVI arrest in Licking County starts two cases, a criminal case in a Municipal or County Court and a license case before the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, and leaves three records. This guide follows the arrest from the roadside to the court file and the driving record.
This guide covers the law, the arrest, booking, the court case, the license case, the records and common questions.
Related guides: Licking County public records, Licking County arrest records, Licking County warrants, Licking County inmate search, Licking County criminal records, Ohio arrest records and Ohio inmate search.
The OVI Law in Ohio
Drunk driving is charged as OVI in Ohio, at a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or more.
Driving in Ohio is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect OVI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.
For charging and sentencing, Ohio counts prior offenses within 10 years.
Who Makes OVI Arrests in Licking County
The Licking County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Newark, Pataskala, Heath, Granville, Johnstown, Buckeye Lake and five more cities make the OVI arrests in Licking County.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Licking County: the Licking Park District and Central Ohio Drug Enforcement Task Force (other agency); Ohio State University at Newark (campus police).
Together, the seven agencies in Licking County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,221 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Licking County does not break OVI out.
The New Albany Police Department and the Reynoldsburg Police Department are each listed by the FBI across several counties including Licking County, so their arrests are not broken out for Licking County here.
Booking After an OVI Arrest in Licking County
A driver arrested for OVI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Licking County Sheriff's Office, held about 250 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at lickingcounty.gov/depts/sheriff/jail_inmate/default.htm, phone 888-506-8407. The Licking County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
An OVI charge from Licking County is heard in a Municipal or County Court; the Prosecuting Attorney or, in a municipal court, the city's own prosecutor brings it.
The Prosecuting Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at lickingcounty.gov, phone 740-670-5255.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at lickingcounty.gov/depts/clerk/records_search.htm.
Ohio has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
The court case is only half the record. The Bureau of Motor Vehicles runs a separate administrative case over the license, which can suspend it before the criminal case is decided, and the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles keeps the driving record the conviction goes on.
The Records an OVI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the Ohio Public Records Act.
- The court file: from a Municipal or County Court, kept by the Clerk of Courts.
- The driving record: from the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
More on each: Licking County arrest records, Licking County police reports and Licking County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the OVI limit in Ohio?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is an OVI case from Licking County heard?
In a Municipal or County Court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at lickingcounty.gov.
Where is a person arrested for OVI in Licking County held?
At the county jail, run by the Licking County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after an OVI arrest in Ohio?
The Bureau of Motor Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
How long does an OVI count as a prior in Ohio?
10 years.
Is this the official Licking 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.