Echols County Busted Mugshots and Arrest Records

Echols County is one of Georgia's smallest counties by population, with about 3,754 residents, and its county seat is Statenville near the Florida border. The Echols County Sheriff's Office handles all local bookings and jail operations. This page covers how to search Echols County busted mugshots, arrest records, and inmate data through local and statewide Georgia resources.

Echols County Sheriff Inmate Search and Booking Records

The Echols County Sheriff's Office operates the county jail in Statenville and is the sole local agency for arrest records and busted mugshots in the county. You can contact the Echols County Sheriff's Office by phone at (229) 559-5566. The office is located at 110 Highway 129 N, Statenville, GA 31648. Because of the county's very small size, phone contact is the most direct way to check whether someone is currently in custody and get basic booking information.

Echols County does not have a public online inmate roster. This is common for very small Georgia counties with limited staffing and technology resources. For current arrest records, calling the jail or visiting in person during business hours is the practical approach. The Echols County Courthouse in Statenville holds court records for criminal cases. Echols County is part of the Alapaha Judicial Circuit, which covers several South Georgia counties. Felony cases from Echols County busted mugshots move through this circuit for trial and sentencing.

Because Echols is such a small county, the volume of arrests is low. But the same public records laws apply here as in any other Georgia county. Booking photos are public records, and you can request them through formal channels. The Georgia Open Records Act gives you the right to request those records in writing, and the agency must respond within three business days.

The screenshot below shows the Georgia Department of Corrections offender query database, which is free and useful for finding state prison inmates with prior Echols County arrest records.

The GDC database covers all Georgia state correctional facilities and is one of the best free tools for finding photo-included inmate records at the state level.

Georgia Law on Booking Photos and Mugshot Removal

Georgia's 2014 statute, O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19, prohibits Georgia law enforcement agencies from posting booking photos online. The Echols County Sheriff follows this rule. You can get a booking photo by submitting a written open records request, but the sheriff's office will not display mugshots on a public website. Third-party sites that show Echols County busted mugshots are operating on their own, pulling from public records channels that exist outside the sheriff's direct online presence.

If your photo appears on a third-party mugshot site, a 2013 Georgia law gives you the right to request free removal. Under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.5, mugshot websites must remove photos at no cost within 30 days when you submit a certified mail request and the arrest qualifies for record restriction. The Georgia Consumer Protection Division explains the process, which records qualify, and how to write the request letter. This applies to Echols County busted mugshots on covered websites.

The Georgia Open Records Act at O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 governs how agencies handle public records requests. Agencies must respond within three business days. The first 15 minutes of staff search time is free. Pages beyond the first 20 cost $0.10 each. These rules apply to Echols County Sheriff's Office records requests, including requests for booking photos and arrest reports.

The screenshot below shows the GBI GCIC division information page, which is the statewide system that holds criminal history from all Georgia counties including Echols.

GCIC aggregates arrest and disposition records from all Georgia law enforcement agencies, making it the most complete source for a Georgia-wide criminal history check.

Statewide Resources for Echols County Arrest Records

Because Echols County does not have an online jail roster, statewide Georgia databases are especially useful. The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free and shows photos for state prison inmates. If someone arrested in Echols County received a state sentence, the record may appear there. The Georgia Sex Offender Registry is also free and searchable by name. It covers all Georgia counties and includes photos.

For felony conviction records, the Georgia Felon Search charges $15 and returns results quickly. The GCIC, run by the GBI, holds the most thorough statewide criminal history data available. A formal GCIC check pulls all arrests and dispositions reported by Echols County law enforcement agencies over time. That's often more useful than a jail roster lookup for a county this small, since arrests may be infrequent and older records harder to access locally.

The screenshot below shows the GBI Sex Offender Registry information page, a free tool for searching registered offenders by name or location across Georgia.

The Sex Offender Registry is one of the only free photo-included Georgia public databases that lets you search by name without paying a fee.

Open Records Requests for Echols County Busted Mugshots

To request a certified copy of an Echols County arrest record or booking photo, write to the Echols County Sheriff's Office at 110 Highway 129 N, Statenville, GA 31648. Include the subject's full name, date of birth, and any booking number or arrest date you have. Under state law, the office must respond within three business days. If the record is not restricted, you'll receive it or get a cost estimate for copying and staff time.

For a broader statewide criminal history that includes Echols County arrests, submit a request through the GBI open records portal. GBI records drawn from GCIC cover all arrests and dispositions from Echols County reported to the state. For a county this small, state-level records may actually be easier to access in some cases than tracking down old paper records at the local level.

Cities in Echols County

Statenville is the county seat of Echols County. The county has no incorporated cities that meet the population threshold for a dedicated page on this site. Arrest records for all Echols County residents are handled through the sheriff's office and the statewide Georgia resources listed on this page.

Nearby Counties

Echols County borders a few South Georgia counties and sits along the Florida state line. Each neighboring county has its own inmate search and arrest record resources.