Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. 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 between September 24, 2026 and September 26, 2026.
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, in Beaufort County, has about 38,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). An arrest in the city leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the Solicitor files charges, a case in the Beaufort County Circuit Court. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it.
This guide covers who makes arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies and common questions.
Related guides: Hilton Head Island public records, Beaufort County arrest records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
Who Makes Arrests in Hilton Head Island
The FBI lists no arrest reporting agency under the name of Hilton Head Island. In Beaufort County the county agency that reports arrests is the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Beaufort County: the Highway Patrol in Beaufort County (state police); the Department of Natural Resources in Beaufort County, the Beaufort County Forestry Commission, Beaufort County South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Department of Health and Environmental Control Drug Control in Beaufort County and one more (state agency); the University of South Carolina at Beaufort (campus police).
Booking: Where People Arrested in Hilton Head Island Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Hilton Head Island is held at the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest, apart from the short stay some city departments' own holding cells allow; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked at all. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and the court file takes over from there.
On an average day in 2021 the jail held about 120 people, down from about 340 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 181 beds, and it ran at 187 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office at beaufortcountysc.gov/detention-center/inmate-inquiry-system.html (page title: Inmate Inquiry System), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the South Carolina Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.sc.gov/inmate-search-disclaimer.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Hilton Head Island
For Hilton Head Island the place to look is the case index of the Beaufort County Circuit Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at beaufortcountysc.gov/clerk-of-court/index.html, phone (843) 255-5710).
South Carolina is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: the CATCH service lets anyone run a name-based criminal record search online, for $25 a search, through the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. That record shows what agencies reported to the state, which is wider than one county's court index but can lag it.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Hilton Head Island
The report of an arrest is released by the agency that made it; the jail and the court hold their own records of the same event, but not the report. Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old, and it may charge search, retrieval and copying at the agency's actual cost.
- An arrest by the Hilton Head Island police: the police records page SearchSystems verified at hiltonheadislandsc.gov/services/foia.php (page title: Public Records Request), phone 843-341-4640, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 26, 2026.
- An arrest by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Beaufort County Circuit Court, through the court records page at beaufortcountysc.gov, phone (843) 255-5710.
- Your own statewide record: the same request described above, for your own name.
The Beaufort County guide covers every agency in the county: Beaufort County arrest records.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Hilton Head Island?
Ask the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at beaufortcountysc.gov.
Where are people arrested in Hilton Head Island booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Hilton Head Island?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division: the CATCH service lets anyone run a name-based criminal record search online, for $25. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Hilton Head Island?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old.
Is this the official Hilton Head Island website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.