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 24, 2026.
Dorchester County, South Carolina, has about 175,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Dorchester County depends on where the incident happened: the Dorchester 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 South Carolina Freedom of Information 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: Dorchester County public records, Dorchester County arrest records, Dorchester County warrants, Dorchester County inmate search, Dorchester County criminal records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Dorchester 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 Dorchester County that is the Dorchester 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 places the Highway Patrol in Dorchester County in Dorchester 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 five state agencies in Dorchester County, each with a records office of its own.
The North Charleston Police Department is listed by the FBI across two counties including Dorchester County, so its arrests are not broken out for Dorchester County here.
Reports from the Dorchester County Sheriff's Office
The Dorchester County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 244 violent and 1,123 property crimes reported for 2025 and reported 964 arrests for 2025.
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its custody page, at dorchestercountysc.gov/government/public-safety/sheriff-s-office/de... (page title: Inmate Lookup | Dorchester County, SC website), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Dorchester County
The four cities the FBI lists in Dorchester County with a reporting agency of their own:
- Summerville: 163 violent and 1,018 property crimes reported for 2025; 1,569 arrests reported for 2025.
- St. George: 5 violent and 75 property crimes reported for 2025; 114 arrests reported for 2025.
- Ridgeville: 0 arrests reported for 2022.
- Harleyville.
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: Dorchester County in 2025
The three agencies in Dorchester County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 412 violent and 2,216 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the three agencies in Dorchester County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,647 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act Requires
The South Carolina Freedom of Information Act sets the rules: an answer within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old, at a charge of search, retrieval and copying at the agency's actual cost, from the agency that holds the report.
Any other county record goes through the county records request page SearchSystems verified, at dorchestercountysc.gov/government/public-safety/sheriff-s-office/re... (page title: Records Requests | Dorchester County, SC website).
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the Solicitor, (843) 563-0097, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Dorchester County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Dorchester 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.
How long does an agency in Dorchester County have to answer?
Under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act, within 10 business days, or 20 for records more than two years old. It may charge search, retrieval and copying at the agency's actual cost.
Who has a crash report from a state highway in Dorchester County?
The state agency whose officer took it; the FBI lists the Highway Patrol in Dorchester County in Dorchester County.
How do I get a report from the Dorchester County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit. 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 Dorchester 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.