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 between September 23, 2026 and October 1, 2026.
Columbia County, Pennsylvania, has about 66,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Columbia County depends on where the incident happened: the Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Police to Citizen - Inmates Search 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 Right-to-Know Law 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: Columbia County public records, Columbia County arrest records, Columbia County warrants, Columbia County inmate search, Columbia County criminal records, Pennsylvania arrest records and Pennsylvania inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Columbia 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 Columbia County that is the Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Police to Citizen - Inmates Search 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 places the Columbia County State Police in Columbia County; a report taken on a state highway by it comes from that agency's own records office.
The FBI's agency list also places three state agencies, one campus police department and four other agencies in Columbia County, each with a records office of its own.
Reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Police to Citizen - Inmates Search
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its jail page, at columbiacountyso.policetocitizen.com/Inmates/Catalog (page title: Police To Citizen), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 1, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Columbia County
The five cities the FBI lists in Columbia County with a reporting agency of their own:
- Bloomsburg: 34 violent and 99 property crimes reported for 2025; 335 arrests reported for 2025.
- Berwick: 15 violent and 96 property crimes reported for 2025; 397 arrests reported for 2023.
- Catawissa: 3 violent and 7 property crimes reported for 2025; 183 arrests reported for 2020.
- Benton: 0 violent and 0 property crimes reported for 2025; 11 arrests reported for 2025.
- Briar Creek: 6 violent and 23 property crimes reported for 2025; 71 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: Columbia County in 2025
The ten agencies in Columbia County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 61 violent and 386 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the seven agencies in Columbia County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 612 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Right-to-Know Law Requires
Under the Right-to-Know Law the agency must answer a request within 5 business days, with a 30-day extension, and it may charge copying at 25 cents a page. The request goes to the agency that holds the report, in writing, and does not have to say why the report is wanted.
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney, 570-389-5656, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Columbia County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Police to Citizen - Inmates Search for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Right-to-Know Law the answer is due within 5 business days, with a 30-day extension.
How long does an agency in Columbia County have to answer?
Under the Right-to-Know Law, within 5 business days, with a 30-day extension. It may charge copying at 25 cents a page.
Who has a crash report from a state highway in Columbia County?
The state agency whose officer took it; the FBI lists the Columbia County State Police in Columbia County.
How do I get a report from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Police to Citizen - Inmates Search?
From its records unit. Under the Right-to-Know Law the answer is due within 5 business days, with a 30-day extension.
Is this the official Columbia 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.