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 23, 2026 and September 28, 2026.
Cherokee County, Texas, has about 53,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office, five city agencies and five other agencies. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the District Attorney files charges, a case in the Cherokee County District Court. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it, with the arrest counts each agency reported.
This guide covers who makes arrests, how many arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Cherokee County public records, Texas arrest records, Texas inmate search and Texas criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Cherokee County
The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Cherokee County. It reported 439 arrests for 2025.
Arrests inside five of the county's cities are reported to the FBI by an agency of the city's own, listed here with the Census population and what each reported:
- Jacksonville, 14,639 residents: 407 arrests reported for 2024.
- Rusk, 5,553 residents: 135 arrests reported for 2024.
- Alto, 1,064 residents: 3 arrests reported for 2025.
- New Summerfield, 906 residents.
- Cuney, 117 residents: 0 arrests reported for 2025.
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.
The Bullard Police Department and the Troup Police Department are each listed by the FBI across several counties including Cherokee County, so their arrests are not broken out for Cherokee County here.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Cherokee County: the Cherokee County Constable's Precincts 1, 2, 3 and 4 and the New Summerfield Independent School District (other).
How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Cherokee County
Each agency reports its arrests to the FBI by month, and the FBI publishes them on the Crime Data Explorer. These are the full-year totals, all offenses, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026; a year with months missing or not reported is left out.
- Cherokee County Sheriff's Office: 439 for 2025, 265 for 2024, 261 for 2023, 384 for 2022, 356 for 2021 and 345 for 2020.
- Alto: 3 for 2025 and 1 for 2024.
- Cuney: 0 for 2025, 0 for 2024, 6 for 2023, 2 for 2022, 5 for 2021 and 0 for 2020.
- Jacksonville: 407 for 2024, 400 for 2023, 406 for 2022, 356 for 2021, 316 for 2020 and 496 for 2019.
- Rusk: 135 for 2024, 166 for 2023, 190 for 2022, 172 for 2021, 149 for 2020 and 138 for 2019.
Together, the three agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 442 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 442 in 2025 against 266 in 2024, up 66 percent.
Through August 2026, the three agencies with every month so far on file reported 261 arrests, against 342 in the same months of 2025.
Jacksonville and Rusk reported only part of 2025 (10 months and 9 months) and are left out of the totals.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Cherokee County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Cherokee County 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.
So far in 2026 the jail has held about 170 people on an average day, up from about 140 in 2019. Its rated capacity is 188 beds, and it is running at 90 percent of it. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office at co.cherokee.tx.us/ips/cms/countyoffices/sheriff.html (page title: Cherokee County | Sheriff), phone 903-683-2271, 272 Underwood St. Rusk, TX 75785, Mon-Fri from 8am to 5pm., which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 28, 2026.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice lists its inmates at inmate.tdcj.texas.gov/InmateSearch/start.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Cherokee County
An arrest in Cherokee County can be traced in two places, depending on where the case stands: the case index of the Cherokee County District Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at co.cherokee.tx.us/ips/cms/districtcourt/districtClerk.html, phone 903-683-6908); the District Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at co.cherokee.tx.us/ips/cms/districtcourt/districtAttorney.html, phone 903-683-2573).
Texas is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: the Conviction Database search lets anyone look up convictions and deferred adjudications by name, for $3 a search, through the Texas Department of Public Safety. 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 Cherokee County
An arrest report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, and that agency releases it, not the court or the jail. Under the Texas Public Information Act the agency must answer within 10 business days, and it may charge the copy rates set by the Attorney General, plus labor for large requests.
- An arrest by the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at 903-683-2271.
- An arrest in Jacksonville, Rusk, Alto, New Summerfield or Cuney: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city; the city guides linked above name each city's records office.
- An arrest by the Cherokee County Constable's Precincts 1, 2, 3 and 4 or the New Summerfield Independent School District: the records office of the agency involved.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney, 903-683-2573, handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Cherokee County District Court, through the court records page at co.cherokee.tx.us, phone 903-683-6908.
- Your own statewide record: a fingerprint-based request to the Department of Public Safety.
Cities in Cherokee County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for five of the eight cities in Cherokee County: Jacksonville, Rusk, Alto, New Summerfield and Cuney. Wells, Reklaw and Gallatin have no separate reporting agency in the FBI's list.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Cherokee County District Court.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Cherokee County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own arrest records guide opens there:
- Jacksonville (14,639)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Cherokee County each year?
The Cherokee County Sheriff's Office reported 439 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the three agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 442 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Cherokee County?
Ask the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office at 903-683-2271; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at co.cherokee.tx.us.
Where are people arrested in Cherokee County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Cherokee County?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the Texas Department of Public Safety: the Conviction Database search lets anyone look up convictions and deferred adjudications by name, for $3. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Texas Public Information Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Cherokee County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Texas Public Information Act the answer is due within 10 business days.
Is this the official Cherokee 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.