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 24, 2026.
Pocahontas County, West Virginia, has about 7,700 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office, one city agency and three campus, state or other agencies. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the regional jail, and, if the Prosecuting Attorney files charges, a case in the Pocahontas County 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, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Pocahontas County public records, West Virginia arrest records, West Virginia inmate search and West Virginia criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Pocahontas County
The Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Pocahontas County. It reported 53 arrests for 2024, its latest complete year.
One city in Pocahontas County reports its arrests to the FBI separately:
- Marlinton, 954 residents: 1,152 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 FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Pocahontas County: the State Fire Marshal in Pocahontas County and the Department of Natural Resources in Pocahontas County (state agency); the Marlinton State Police (state police).
How Many Arrests Each Agency Reports in Pocahontas 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.
- Marlinton: 1,152 for 2025, 1,152 for 2024, 1,146 for 2023, 1,132 for 2022, 919 for 2021 and 1,146 for 2020.
- Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office: 53 for 2024, 49 for 2023, 82 for 2022, 83 for 2021 and 56 for 2020.
Together, the two agencies with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 1,205 arrests that year. The same agencies with both 2024 and 2023 complete reported 1,205 in 2024 against 1,195 in 2023, up 0.8 percent.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Pocahontas County Are Held
West Virginia closed its county jails in favor of regional jails run by the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, so a person held after an arrest in Pocahontas County goes to the regional jail that serves Pocahontas County, and the state's inmate search covers all of them.
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 22 people, down from about 29 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 20 beds, and it ran at 104 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office at pocahontascountycommission.com/officials/sheriff (page title: Sheriff | Pocahontas County Commission), phone 304-799-4445, 900 Tenth Avenue Marlinton, WV 24954, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison; the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation lists its inmates at dcr.wv.gov/offendersearch/Pages/default.aspx.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Pocahontas County
For Pocahontas County the place to look is the case index of the Pocahontas County Circuit Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at courtswv.gov/public-resources/court-information-county/pocahontas_c..., phone 304-647-6621).
West Virginia does not let the public search another person's statewide criminal history. The record kept by the West 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 Pocahontas 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 West Virginia Freedom of Information Act the agency must answer within 5 business days, and it may charge the actual cost of copying.
- An arrest by the Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at 304-799-4445.
- An arrest in Marlinton: the records unit of the agency that reports for that city.
- An arrest by the State Fire Marshal in Pocahontas County, the Marlinton State Police or the Department of Natural Resources in Pocahontas County: the records office of the agency involved.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Pocahontas County Circuit Court, through the court records page at courtswv.gov, phone 304-647-6621.
- Your own statewide record: a fingerprint-based request to the State Police Criminal Identification Bureau.
Cities in Pocahontas County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists a separate arrest reporting agency for one of the three cities in Pocahontas County: Marlinton. Durbin and Hillsboro 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 regional jail and the case goes to the Pocahontas County Circuit Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Pocahontas County each year?
Marlinton reported 1,152 arrests to the FBI for 2025. For 2024, the latest year most of the agencies in Pocahontas County sent in full, the two with every month on file reported 1,205 between them.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Pocahontas County?
Ask the Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office at 304-799-4445; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at pocahontascountycommission.com.
Where are people arrested in Pocahontas County booked?
In the regional jail that serves Pocahontas County, run by the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Are arrest records public in Pocahontas County?
The court files of criminal cases in the Pocahontas County Circuit Court are public and can be looked up through the court. The statewide criminal history kept by the West 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 West Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Pocahontas County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Pocahontas County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the West Virginia Freedom of Information Act the answer is due within 5 business days.
Is this the official Pocahontas 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.