Rabun County Arrest Records and Busted Mugshots

Rabun County sits in the far northeast corner of Georgia, bordering both South Carolina and North Carolina, with its county seat in Clayton, and all local busted mugshots and arrest records flow through the Rabun County Sheriff's Office. If you want to search Rabun County arrest records, check inmate status, or find booking data from a recent jail intake, the resources on this page cover both county-level and statewide Georgia tools available to the public.

Rabun County Sheriff Inmate Search and Booking Records

The Rabun County Sheriff's Office in Clayton is responsible for operating the county jail and maintaining arrest and booking records for the county. Rabun County busted mugshots and arrest records go through the sheriff's office first. The county does not run a real-time online inmate lookup portal, so direct contact with the sheriff's office or use of statewide Georgia tools is the most reliable way to get current booking data.

The Rabun County Sheriff's Office can be reached by phone for general inquiries about inmate status and jail bookings. If you need an actual copy of an arrest report or booking photo, a written request under the Georgia Open Records Act is the right approach. Include the person's full name, approximate arrest date, and any booking number you already have. Under state law, the sheriff's office must respond within three business days.

Rabun County falls under the Mountain Judicial Circuit, which it shares with Towns, Union, and Fannin counties. When a Rabun County case moves from the local level to circuit court, some records may transfer to the circuit court clerk rather than staying solely with the sheriff's office. If you are searching for records on an older case, check with the Mountain Circuit Superior Court clerk in addition to the sheriff's office.

The screenshot below shows the Georgia Crime Information Center page, which coordinates criminal history data for all counties including Rabun.

GCIC maintains criminal history data for every Georgia county and is one of the most complete statewide sources for Rabun County arrest records.

Georgia Law on Booking Photos and Busted Mugshots

A 2014 Georgia law, O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19, prohibits law enforcement agencies from posting booking photos online. The Rabun County Sheriff's Office cannot publish mugshots on its website. You can still get a booking photo through a formal open records request, but the county won't display one directly on a public web page. This law applies to all county jails across the state.

Third-party mugshot websites operate outside this restriction and often publish Rabun County busted mugshots collected from public booking records. If a photo of you or someone you know appears on one of these sites, Georgia law offers a removal path. Under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.5, mugshot companies must remove photos free of charge within 30 days when the arrest qualifies for restriction. You submit the request by certified mail. The Georgia Consumer Protection Division has a page that walks through the process step by step and lists which types of sites are covered.

The Georgia Open Records Act at O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 sets the rules for how county agencies respond to records requests. Agencies must respond within three business days. The first 15 minutes of staff time and first 20 pages are free. Pages beyond 20 cost $0.10 each. These rates apply to Rabun County Sheriff open records requests for arrest files and booking photos.

Statewide Georgia Tools for Rabun County Arrest Records

Several statewide tools can help you find Rabun County arrest records when the county itself does not have an online search portal. The Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC), run by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, holds criminal history data for every county in the state. GCIC criminal history requests cover arrests, charges, and dispositions and are one of the most complete sources available for Rabun County records.

The Georgia Felon Search at georgia.gov costs $15 and returns instant felony conviction results statewide. The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is free and covers people currently held in state prison, with photos displayed automatically. A person sitting in the Rabun County Jail won't show in GDC yet, but past state sentences tied to Rabun County convictions may appear. The Georgia Sex Offender Registry is free and searchable by name or address and includes photos for all registered offenders across the state.

The screenshot below shows the Georgia Department of Corrections offender query database, a free statewide tool with photos for state prison inmates from every Georgia county.

The GDC offender search is free and includes inmate photos for people serving state sentences, including those with Rabun County convictions.

Rabun County Arrest Records and Formal Records Requests

When you need a certified copy of a Rabun County arrest record or booking photo, a formal open records request is the right path. The GBI processes statewide open records requests through its online portal. For records held by the Rabun County Sheriff specifically, submit a written request directly to the sheriff's office in Clayton. Include the subject's name, the approximate date of arrest, and any case or booking number you have. The office must respond within three business days under state law.

Booking photos from Rabun County are public records under the Georgia Open Records Act, but because the 2014 law bars online posting by law enforcement, you have to go through the request process to get one. News media and researchers often use the same formal request channel. The GBI also operates a consumer information page about your rights when a Rabun County busted mugshot appears on a third-party website.

The screenshot below shows the Georgia Consumer Protection Division page on mugshot websites, which outlines state law and removal rights for Georgia residents.

Georgia law requires mugshot companies to remove photos within 30 days, free of charge, when the underlying arrest qualifies for record restriction under state law.

Cities in Rabun County

Clayton is the county seat of Rabun County. No cities in Rabun County meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site. Residents and searchers can use the county-level and statewide resources above to find arrest records and busted mugshots tied to any address in Rabun County.

Nearby Counties

Rabun County borders several counties in northeast Georgia as well as counties in South Carolina and North Carolina. Georgia counties nearby include: