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 23, 2026.
Lorain County, Ohio, has about 322,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Lorain County depends on where the incident happened: the Lorain 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 Ohio 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: Lorain County public records, Lorain County arrest records, Lorain County warrants, Lorain County inmate search, Lorain County criminal records, Ohio arrest records and Ohio inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Lorain 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 Lorain County that is the Lorain 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 the Lorain County Metropolitan Park District and Lorain County Drug Task Force (other agency), each with a records office of its own.
Reports from the Lorain County Sheriff's Office
The Lorain County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 84 violent and 343 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 82 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit, reached through the office at 440-329-3709. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its custody page, at loraincountysheriff.com/inmates-jail/self-booking (page title: Self Booking | The Lorain County Sheriff’s Office), phone 440-329-3709, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Lorain County
The 14 cities the FBI lists in Lorain County with a reporting agency of their own, the largest twelve first, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Lorain: 372 violent and 893 property crimes reported for 2025; 1,651 arrests reported for 2025.
- Elyria: 100 violent and 716 property crimes reported for 2025; 1,544 arrests reported for 2025. The Elyria police records page is at cityofelyria.org/department/police/records-request, phone 440-322-2241 (verified September 25, 2026).
- North Ridgeville: 18 violent and 65 property crimes reported for 2025; 214 arrests reported for 2025.
- Avon Lake: 13 violent and 78 property crimes reported for 2025; 131 arrests reported for 2025.
- Avon: 11 violent and 243 property crimes reported for 2025; 298 arrests reported for 2025. The Avon police records page is at cityofavon.com/804/Incident-Report, phone 440-934-7860 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Amherst: 8 violent and 121 property crimes reported for 2025; 282 arrests reported for 2025. The Amherst police department's page is at amherstpolice.net, phone 440-988-2625 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Vermilion: 1 violent and 23 property crimes reported for 2025; 110 arrests reported for 2025. The Vermilion police department's page is at cityofvermilionohio.gov/2025-Main-Menu-Folder/2025-Public-Safety/Po..., phone (440) 967-6116 (verified September 25, 2026).
- Sheffield Lake: 11 violent and 43 property crimes reported for 2025; 37 arrests reported for 2025.
- Oberlin: 13 violent and 130 property crimes reported for 2025; 161 arrests reported for 2025.
- Grafton: 1 violent and 6 property crimes reported for 2025; 7 arrests reported for 2025.
- Wellington.
- Sheffield: 72 arrests reported for 2023.
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 rest: LaGrange and Kipton.
How Many Reports: Lorain County in 2025
The 11 agencies in Lorain County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 632 violent and 2,661 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the 12 agencies in Lorain County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 5,669 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Ohio Public Records Act Requires
The Ohio Public Records Act sets the rules: an answer promptly, within a reasonable period of time, at a charge of the actual cost of copying, from the agency that holds the report.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Lorain County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Lorain County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Ohio Public Records Act the answer is due promptly, within a reasonable period of time.
How long does an agency in Lorain County have to answer?
Under the Ohio Public Records Act, promptly, within a reasonable period of time. It may charge the actual cost of copying.
How do I get a report from the Lorain County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit, reached through the office at 440-329-3709. Under the Ohio Public Records Act the answer is due promptly, within a reasonable period of time.
Is this the official Lorain 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.