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 between September 24, 2026 and October 2, 2026.
Lake City, South Carolina, in Florence County, has about 5,900 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Lake City starts two cases, a criminal case in a Magistrate or Municipal Court and a license case before the Department 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: Lake City public records, Florence County DUI, Lake City arrest records, Lake City warrants, Lake City inmate search, Lake City criminal records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
The DUI Law in South Carolina
In South Carolina the offense is DUI, and the limit is 0.08.
Driving in South Carolina is consent to a breath or blood test when an officer has cause to suspect DUI; the license case that follows a refusal or a failed test is run by the Department of Motor Vehicles, separately from the criminal case.
For charging and sentencing, South Carolina counts prior offenses within 10 years.
Who Makes DUI Arrests in Lake City
The Florence County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Lake City (filed by the FBI as Lake City Police Department) make the DUI arrests in and around Lake City.
The FBI's agency list also places one other agency, five state agencies, one state police unit and one campus police department in Florence County (the arrest records guide names each one); the Highway Patrol in Florence County makes the arrests on the state highways.
Together, the seven agencies in Florence County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 5,013 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Florence County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Lake City
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Florence County Sheriff's Office, held about 460 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at fcso.org/inmateSearch. The Lake City inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
The Court Case
The case is heard in a Magistrate or Municipal Court, brought by the Solicitor or, in a municipal court, by the city's own prosecutor.
The Solicitor's page SearchSystems verified is at florencecountysc.gov.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at sccourts.org/case-records-search.
South Carolina has no single public index of every trial court case; each court's records are looked up through that court.
The License Case
A DUI arrest starts two cases: the criminal one above and an administrative one over the license, run by the Department of Motor Vehicles. The driving record, kept by the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, carries the result of both.
The Records a DUI Leaves
- The arrest report: from the agency that made the arrest, under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act.
- The court file: from a Magistrate or Municipal Court, kept by the Clerk of Court.
- The driving record: from the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles.
More on each: Lake City arrest records, Lake City police reports and Lake City court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in South Carolina?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Lake City heard?
In a Magistrate or Municipal Court.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Lake City held?
At the county jail, run by the Florence County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
Who handles the license after a DUI arrest in South Carolina?
The Department of Motor Vehicles, in an administrative case separate from the court case.
How long does a DUI count as a prior in South Carolina?
10 years.
Is this the official Lake City 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.