Search South Carolina Public Records - Free Government Databases

South Carolina keeps public records at three levels: federal (FBI, federal courts via PACER), state (court of last resort, state police, department of health, secretary of state), and county-level (sheriffs, clerks, recorders, assessors). Each county maintains its own court, criminal-justice, property, and vital-records offices linked from the county pages below.

For statewide trial-court information, start at the South Carolina Judicial Branch: www.sccourts.gov. South Carolina federal cases are searched through PACER. For local case dockets, see the Court Records tab and the county page for your area.

South Carolina's official statewide criminal-history check is run by the SC Law Enforcement Division (SLED) at catch.sled.sc.gov. Most state-level checks require fingerprints and a fee. A nationwide FBI Identity History Summary is available separately.

Certified South Carolina vital records are issued by the Official South Carolina Vital Records at scdhec.gov. Recent local events (births, deaths, marriages) can often also be requested from the county clerk or local registrar where the event was filed.

Most online record indexes in South Carolina are free to search; fees apply for certified copies, fingerprint background checks, full document images at the recorder, and statewide bulk data. Each agency publishes its current fee schedule — for example the South Carolina Judicial Branch (courts), the Official South Carolina Vital Records (vital records), the Official South Carolina Voter Records (elections), and the Official South Carolina Professional & Occupational Licenses (licenses).