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 1, 2026.
Jefferson County, Washington, has about 34,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and one city 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 Prosecuting Attorney files charges, a case in the Jefferson County Superior 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: Jefferson County public records, Washington arrest records, Washington inmate search and Washington criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Jefferson County
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Jefferson County. It reported 185 arrests for 2025.
The FBI lists one city in Jefferson County with a reporting agency of its own:
- Port Townsend, 10,649 residents: 219 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.
How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Jefferson County
The FBI publishes every agency's monthly arrest counts 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.
- Port Townsend: 219 for 2025, 175 for 2024, 161 for 2023, 110 for 2022, 105 for 2021 and 95 for 2020.
- Jefferson County Sheriff's Office: 185 for 2025, 191 for 2024, 195 for 2023, 155 for 2022, 197 for 2021 and 341 for 2020.
Together, the two agencies with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 404 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2025 and 2024 complete reported 404 in 2025 against 366 in 2024, up 10 percent.
Through June 2026, the two agencies with every month so far on file reported 250 arrests, against 210 in the same months of 2025.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Jefferson County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Jefferson 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 2021 the jail held about 20 people, down from about 44 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 57 beds, and it ran at 77 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office at co.jefferson.wa.us/174/Jail-Inmate-Search (page title: Jefferson County, WA), phone 360-385-3831, 79 Elkins Road Port Hadlock, WA 98339, Monday - Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 1, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone who was booked recently; a person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the Washington State Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.wa.gov/records/incarcerated-data-search/incarcerated-search.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Jefferson County
An arrest in Jefferson County can be traced in three places, depending on where the case stands: the custody page of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office described above, for anyone booked into the county jail; the case index of the Jefferson County Superior Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at courts.wa.gov/court_dir/orgs/276.html, phone 360-385-9395); the Prosecuting Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at co.jefferson.wa.us/347/Prosecuting-Attorneys-Office, phone 360-385-5291).
Statewide, Washington Courts Search Case Records is the Administrative Office of the Courts' free statewide case search.
Washington is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: WATCH lets anyone search conviction records by name online, for $12 a search, through the Washington State Patrol. 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 Jefferson 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 Public Records Act (RCW 42.56) the agency must answer within 5 business days, and it may charge for copies at 15 cents a page, and set fees for electronic records.
- An arrest by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at 360-385-3831.
- An arrest in Port Townsend: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city; the city guides linked above name each city's records office.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the Prosecuting Attorney, 360-385-5291, handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Jefferson County Superior Court, through the court records page at courts.wa.gov/court_dir/orgs/276.html, phone 360-385-9395.
- Your own statewide record: the same request described above, for your own name.
Cities in Jefferson County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for Port Townsend, the one city in Jefferson County.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Jefferson County Superior Court.
SearchSystems has a guide to the offices of these cities in Jefferson County, with the 2024 Census Bureau population; a city with its own arrest records guide opens there:
- Port Townsend (10,649)
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Jefferson County each year?
Port Townsend reported 219 arrests to the FBI for 2025, and the two agencies with every month of 2025 on file reported 404 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Jefferson County?
Look on the custody page of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office at co.jefferson.wa.us/174/Jail-Inmate-Search, or call 360-385-3831. It covers people booked into the county jail.
Where are people arrested in Jefferson County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Jefferson County?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the Washington State Patrol: WATCH lets anyone search conviction records by name online, for $12. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Public Records Act (RCW 42.56).
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Jefferson County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Public Records Act (RCW 42.56) the answer is due within 5 business days.
Is this the official Jefferson 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.