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 23, 2026.
Stafford County, Virginia, has about 169,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Stafford County Sheriff's Office and one state agency. 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 Commonwealth's Attorney files charges, a case in the Stafford Circuit 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 and common questions.
Related guides: Stafford County public records, Virginia arrest records, Virginia inmate search and Virginia criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Stafford County
The Stafford County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Stafford County. It reported 3,616 arrests for 2024, its latest complete year.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Stafford County: the Stafford County State Police (state police).
How Many Arrests The Stafford County Sheriff's Office Reports
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.
- Stafford County Sheriff's Office: 3,616 for 2024, 5,019 for 2023, 4,286 for 2022, 3,945 for 2021, 4,306 for 2020 and 4,981 for 2019.
The Stafford County Sheriff's Office's 3,616 arrests in 2024 were down 28 percent from 5,019 in 2023.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Stafford County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Stafford 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.
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 530 people, down from about 630 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 580 beds, and it ran at 83 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the Virginia Department of Corrections lists its inmates at vadoc.virginia.gov/family-and-friends.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Stafford County
An arrest in Stafford County can be traced in two places, depending on where the case stands: the case index of the Stafford Circuit Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at staffordcountyva.gov/government/courts/circuit_court/circuit_court_..., phone (540) 658-8750); the Commonwealth's Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at staffordcountyva.gov/government/elected_and_appointed_officials/com..., phone (540) 658-8780).
Statewide, Online Case Information System is the Virginia courts' free statewide case search.
Virginia does not let the public search another person's statewide criminal history. The record kept by the Virginia State Police goes to the person it belongs to and to employers and agencies the law authorizes; for everyone else the court's own case index is the public record of an arrest that led to a charge.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Stafford County
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 Virginia Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer within 5 working days, and it may charge the actual cost of searching and copying.
- An arrest by the Stafford County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit.
- An arrest by the Stafford County State Police: the records office of the agency involved.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the Commonwealth's Attorney, (540) 658-8780, handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Stafford Circuit Court, through the court records page at staffordcountyva.gov, phone (540) 658-8750.
- Any county record that is not posted: the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at staffordcountyva.gov (page title: Stafford County, VA).
- Your own statewide record: a request to the State Police Central Criminal Records Exchange; a check on someone else needs their signed consent.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Stafford County each year?
The Stafford County Sheriff's Office reported 3,616 arrests to the FBI for 2024, its latest full year.
Where are people arrested in Stafford County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Stafford County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Stafford County?
The court files of criminal cases in the Stafford Circuit Court are public and can be looked up through the court. The statewide criminal history kept by the Virginia State Police is not public; you can get your own. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Stafford County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Stafford County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 working days; the county records request page SearchSystems verified is at staffordcountyva.gov.
Is this the official Stafford 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.