Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest and crime counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Columbia County, Wisconsin, has about 58,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A police report belongs to the agency whose officer wrote it, so which office holds a report from Columbia County depends on where the incident happened: the Columbia County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county, the agency that reports for the city inside a city. This guide names each agency, where its records page is and what the Wisconsin Public Records Law requires of it.
This guide covers which agency, the sheriff's reports, the cities' reports, how many reports, what the law requires and common questions.
Related guides: Columbia County public records, Columbia County arrest records, Columbia County warrants, Columbia County inmate search, Columbia County criminal records, Wisconsin arrest records and Wisconsin inmate search.
Which Agency Holds a Report from Columbia County
The report of an incident is released by the agency that took it; the court and the jail hold their own records of the same event, but not the report.
In Columbia County that is the Columbia County Sheriff's Office for the unincorporated county and for any city that contracts with it for police service, and the agency that reports for a city where the city has one of its own.
Reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office
The Columbia County Sheriff's Office is the county agency; it had 44 violent and 142 property crimes reported for 2024 and reported 1,649 arrests for 2024.
Its reports come from its records unit. The office's page SearchSystems verified is its custody page, at co.columbia.wi.us/columbiacounty/sheriff/Sheriffs-Office/Jail-Bookings (page title: Columbia County Sheriff's Office | Jail Bookings), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Reports from the City Agencies in Columbia County
The seven cities the FBI lists in Columbia County with a reporting agency of their own, with the police records page SearchSystems verified where the city has a guide:
- Portage: 8 violent and 208 property crimes reported for 2024; 1,058 arrests reported for 2025. The Portage police department's page is at portagewi.gov/police-law-enforcement-documents-policies-and-assistance, phone 608-742-2176 (verified September 26, 2026).
- Columbus: 4 violent and 25 property crimes reported for 2024; 83 arrests reported for 2025.
- Lodi: 23 arrests reported for 2025.
- Wisconsin Dells: 589 arrests reported for 2022.
- Poynette: 6 violent and 1 property crimes reported for 2024; 44 arrests reported for 2024.
- Fall River: 182 arrests reported for 2023.
- Rio: 45 arrests reported for 2020.
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 Reports: Columbia County in 2024
The four agencies in Columbia County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 62 violent and 376 property crimes to the FBI that year, each one a report taken by the agency that holds it.
Together, the four agencies in Columbia County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 2,778 arrests to the FBI that year, and each arrest is a report of its own.
What the Wisconsin Public Records Law Requires
The Wisconsin Public Records Law sets the rules: an answer as soon as practicable and without delay; the law sets no number of days, at a charge of the actual cost of copying and locating, with no charge for the first $50 of locating, from the agency that holds the report.
A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the District Attorney, (608) 742-9650, handles discovery for pending cases.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a police report in Columbia County?
From the agency whose officer took it: the Columbia County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Wisconsin Public Records Law the answer is due as soon as practicable and without delay; the law sets no number of days.
How long does an agency in Columbia County have to answer?
Under the Wisconsin Public Records Law, as soon as practicable and without delay; the law sets no number of days. It may charge the actual cost of copying and locating, with no charge for the first $50 of locating.
How do I get a report from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office?
From its records unit. Under the Wisconsin Public Records Law the answer is due as soon as practicable and without delay; the law sets no number of days.
Is this the official Columbia 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.