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 on September 24, 2026.
Sumter County, South Carolina, has about 105,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A DUI arrest in Sumter County 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: Sumter County public records, Sumter County arrest records, Sumter County warrants, Sumter County inmate search, Sumter County criminal records, South Carolina arrest records and South Carolina inmate search.
The DUI Law in South Carolina
Drunk driving is charged as DUI in South Carolina, at a blood alcohol level of 0.08 or more.
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 Sumter County
The Sumter County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Sumter make the DUI arrests in Sumter County.
The FBI's agency list also places five state agencies and one state police unit in Sumter County (the arrest records guide names each one); the Highway Patrol in Sumter County makes the arrests on the state highways.
Together, the two agencies in Sumter County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,375 arrests to the FBI that year, all offenses together; the FBI's count for Sumter County does not break DUI out.
Booking After a DUI Arrest in Sumter County
A driver arrested for DUI and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Sumter County Sheriff's Office, held about 280 people on an average day in 2023 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a jail page SearchSystems verified at sumtercountysc.gov/departments/a_-_d/detention_center/index.php, phone 803-436-2340. The Sumter County 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 sumtercountysc.gov, phone 803-436-2185.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at sumtercountysc.gov/departments/a_-_d/clerk_of_court/index.php, phone 803-436-2227.
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: Sumter County arrest records, Sumter County police reports and Sumter County court records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DUI limit in South Carolina?
0.08 percent blood alcohol.
Where is a DUI case from Sumter County heard?
In a Magistrate or Municipal Court. The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at sumtercountysc.gov.
Where is a person arrested for DUI in Sumter County held?
At the county jail, run by the Sumter 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 Sumter 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.