Union County Busted Mugshots and Arrest Records

Union County is a mountain county in the far northeast corner of Georgia, bordering North Carolina, with its county seat in Blairsville, and all local arrest records and busted mugshots are handled by the Union County Sheriff's Office. If you want to search Union County arrest records, look up an inmate currently held in the local jail, or find booking information tied to a case in this area, the sheriff's office is the primary source and the statewide tools on this page provide additional resources for criminal history searches.

Union County Sheriff Arrest Records and Booking Information

The Union County Sheriff's Office in Blairsville handles all local law enforcement functions and detention for the county. Union County has grown steadily in recent years, with a current population of around 24,500. The jail processes bookings for local arrests, transfers from other agencies, and defendants awaiting court appearances. The sheriff's office maintains all booking records, inmate logs, and arrest data as required under Georgia law.

Union County busted mugshots are taken at the time of each booking. Georgia law prohibits the sheriff's office from posting these photos on a public website, so there is no online mugshot gallery for Union County. To access a booking photo, you need to submit a formal open records request. Do this in writing at the sheriff's office in Blairsville or by mail. Include the person's name and arrest date. A booking number speeds up the search if you have one. Under state law, the office must respond within three business days.

The Enotah Judicial Circuit handles felony matters for Union County, along with Towns, Fannin, and Gilmer counties. The circuit court clerk's office maintains records for felony cases filed in Union County Superior Court. These include indictments, pleas, verdicts, and sentencing records. Court records and sheriff's booking records are separate systems. If you want to track what happened after an arrest, check with the superior court clerk for case outcome information.

The screenshot below shows the Georgia Felon Search service, which covers felony convictions statewide and is one way to check for a prior felony record connected to Union County.

The Georgia Felon Search costs $15 and returns instant results for felony conviction records from Union County and all other Georgia counties.

Georgia Law on Booking Photos and Mugshot Websites

Georgia passed O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19 in 2014 to address booking photo publication by law enforcement. The law bans agencies from posting mugshots online. This is why Union County Sheriff does not maintain a public online mugshot database. The photos themselves are public records, but accessing them requires going through the formal open records process rather than a website.

A separate statute, O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.5, regulates commercial mugshot websites. These sites collect and publish booking photos from various sources and sometimes charge fees to remove them. Under this 2013 Georgia law, any company that publishes a booking photo must remove it within 30 days at no cost when the arrest qualifies for record restriction and the subject makes a written certified mail request. The Georgia Consumer Protection Division has a step-by-step guide on how to make this request and which sites must follow the law.

The Georgia Open Records Act, O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70, is the main law governing public record access in Georgia. Under this statute, Union County agencies must respond to any public records request within three business days. The first 15 minutes of search time and the first 20 pages of copies cost nothing. Pages beyond 20 run $0.10 each. These fees apply to copies, not to inspection of records in person.

Statewide Search Resources for Union County Records

The Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC), a division of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, is the primary statewide repository for criminal history data. Arrests and convictions from Union County that were reported to the state system will appear in a GCIC check. The GBI processes public requests for criminal history records. This is useful if you want a complete statewide picture of someone's arrest and conviction history rather than only Union County records.

For state prison inmates from Union County, the free Georgia Department of Corrections offender search shows current and former GDC inmates with photos. Someone still in the county jail will not appear there yet. The Georgia Sex Offender Registry is searchable by name or address and covers Union County registrants. The GBI's open records portal handles formal requests for GBI-held records tied to Union County cases.

The screenshot below shows the GBI open records request system, which handles formal document requests for state-level records including those tied to Union County arrest cases.

Use the GBI open records portal for state-level requests, or contact the Union County Sheriff's Office directly for locally held records.

Cities in Union County

Union County includes Blairsville and several smaller communities. None of these cities meet the population threshold for a dedicated city page on this site. For any Union County arrest record or busted mugshots search, use the sheriff's office and the statewide Georgia tools listed on this page.

Nearby Counties

Union County borders five other Georgia counties and the state of North Carolina. Each has its own arrest records and law enforcement resources.