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 October 4, 2026.
Franklin County, Washington, has about 101,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). Every warrant for Franklin County comes from a judge of the Franklin County Superior Court or the District Court, is served by whichever agency finds the person, and is recorded in the court file of the case it was issued in. This guide says who issues and serves warrants here, where a person arrested on one is held, how to check for one and how one is cleared.
This guide covers who issues warrants, who serves warrants, after a warrant arrest, checking for a warrant, clearing a warrant and common questions.
Related guides: Franklin County public records, Franklin County arrest records, Franklin County inmate search, Franklin County criminal records, Franklin County court records, Washington arrest records and Washington inmate search.
Who Issues Warrants in Franklin County
In Washington an arrest warrant is signed by a judge. For Franklin County that means the Franklin County Superior Court, which hears felonies, civil cases over $100,000, divorces, probate and juvenile matters; the District Court, which takes misdemeanors, traffic infractions, small claims and civil cases up to $100,000, issues its own warrants on the cases before it. A city with a municipal court of its own issues warrants on the tickets and ordinance cases it tries.
When a defendant misses a court date the judge issues a bench warrant, and either kind of warrant lives in the court file of the case, kept by the County Clerk.
The court records page SearchSystems verified for the county is at courts.wa.gov/court_dir/orgs/271.html (page title: Washington State Courts | Court Directory), phone 509-736-3071, 1016 N 4th Ave Pasco, WA 99301-3706, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Statewide, Washington Courts Search Case Records is the Administrative Office of the Courts' free statewide case search.
Who Serves Warrants in Franklin County
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Pasco and Connell serve warrants in Franklin County.
The agency that serves a warrant from Franklin County is whichever one finds the person; a Washington warrant is valid across Washington.
Together, the three agencies in Franklin County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 2,536 arrests to the FBI that year; arrests on warrants are counted among them, not separately.
Each agency and what it reported is in Franklin County arrest records.
Where a Person Arrested on a Warrant from Franklin County Is Held
A person arrested on a warrant and kept in custody goes to the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest. The jail, run by the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, held about 120 people on an average day in 2021 by the Vera Institute of Justice's count and has a custody page SearchSystems verified at jail.co.franklin.wa.us/InmateList/currentinmatelist.html. The Franklin County inmate search guide covers the jail in full.
A person arrested in Franklin County on a warrant from another county is held at the same jail until that county takes custody.
How to Check for a Warrant in Franklin County
Whether a warrant is out from Franklin County shows in four places:
- The court file of the case, through the County Clerk at 509-736-3071, since a warrant is recorded in the case it was issued in.
- Washington Courts Search Case Records, the Administrative Office of the Courts' free statewide case search, for a case whose register of actions shows a warrant.
- The Prosecuting Attorney, phone 509-545-3543, which can say whether charges were filed; a warrant on a complaint follows the filing.
- The custody page of the Franklin County Sheriff's Office at jail.co.franklin.wa.us, which shows people already arrested and booked, not open warrants.
Not one of the Franklin County pages SearchSystems verified (the sheriff's, the court's and the prosecutor's) is a list of open warrants, so a check means asking the court or the prosecutor about a case by name.
Clearing a Warrant from Franklin County
A warrant is recalled by the court that issued it, so clearing one from Franklin County starts with the County Clerk at 509-736-3071: the case goes back on the calendar and the judge recalls the warrant when the person appears.
A missed date in a case before the District Court is handled by that court, not by the Franklin County Superior Court.
A lawyer can often arrange the appearance in advance. The Prosecuting Attorney's page SearchSystems verified is at franklincountywa.gov/prosecutor, phone 509-545-3543.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I check for a warrant online in Franklin County?
Not from the Franklin County pages SearchSystems verified; none of them is a warrant list. Washington Courts Search Case Records is the Administrative Office of the Courts' free statewide case search, and a case whose register of actions shows a warrant is the record of it. The court file is the record of a warrant: ask the County Clerk at 509-736-3071.
Who serves warrants in Franklin County?
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office, and the agency that reports for the city where the person is found; a Washington warrant is valid anywhere in the state.
Where is a person arrested on a warrant in Franklin County held?
At the county jail, run by the Franklin County Sheriff's Office, if kept in custody.
How is a warrant from Franklin County cleared?
By appearing before the court that issued it; the judge recalls the warrant in court. The case is put back on the calendar through the County Clerk at 509-736-3071.
Is this the official Franklin 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.