Telfair County 72 Hour Booking Records

Telfair County 72 hour booking records are managed by the Telfair County Sheriff's Office in McRae-Helena. The county jail handles all local bookings, and Telfair County also hosts two state prison facilities within its borders.

Telfair County Sheriff's Office

Sheriff Sim Davidson runs the Telfair County Sheriff's Office. The office is at 19 E Oak St Suite B, McRae-Helena, GA 31055. The phone number is 229-868-6621. All bookings in Telfair County go through this office. Deputies, city police, and state troopers all bring their arrests here for processing.

Telfair County does not have an online inmate search tool. You need to call the sheriff's office or visit in person. When you call, give the person's full name and an approximate date of arrest. Staff can tell you whether someone is in custody, what charges they face, and whether bond has been set. The county jail is not large, so the staff are typically able to check quickly.

Telfair County is home to Telfair State Prison and McRae Correctional Institution. These are state and federal facilities, not county jails. People held there have already been convicted and sentenced. The county jail is separate. If someone was just arrested in Telfair County, they are in the county jail, not the state prison. This is a common point of confusion.

The county falls in the Oconee Judicial Circuit. The magistrate court in McRae-Helena handles first appearances, bond hearings, and warrant reviews. All of these start with the booking record at the county jail. The judge reviews the charges, sets bond where appropriate, and makes sure the hearing happens within the time limits set by state law.

72 Hour Booking Rules in Telfair County

O.C.G.A. § 17-4-26 requires that anyone arrested on a warrant in Georgia see a judge within 72 hours. This rule gives 72 hour booking its name. The magistrate judge in McRae-Helena handles these first appearance hearings. At the hearing, the person hears the charges and may get a bond set.

If the arrest was made without a warrant, the deadline drops to 48 hours under O.C.G.A. § 17-4-62. Warrantless arrests come up when law enforcement catches someone in the act. In Telfair County, this could be a traffic stop that leads to drug charges, a DUI arrest, or a domestic violence call. The shorter deadline means the court has to act fast.

Booking is the first step after an arrest. The jail staff photograph the person and take fingerprints. They record the charges, the arresting officer, the time and date of arrest, and personal information. This becomes the booking record. It is a public document under Georgia law. The record stays on file whether the person bonds out the same day or sits in jail for weeks.

Telfair County's location along major highways means that some arrests come from traffic stops by the Georgia State Patrol. Those troopers bring their arrests to the county jail just like everyone else. The booking record will note the GSP as the arresting agency in those cases.

72 Hour Booking Public Access

The Georgia Open Records Act, O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72, makes booking records available to anyone who asks. You do not need to provide a reason. Contact the Telfair County Sheriff's Office at 19 E Oak St Suite B, McRae-Helena, GA 31055, or call 229-868-6621. The office has three business days to respond.

Include the person's name, arrest date, and a description of what you want in your request. The office can charge for copies, but the fee is usually small. A few cents per page. If they deny any part of the request, they have to say why in writing.

O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19 restricts how booking photos can be distributed. Law enforcement cannot give booking photos to people who will put them on websites that charge money for removal. You can still request booking photos through the normal open records process for other purposes.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is especially relevant in Telfair County since the state prison is right there. Use this free tool to find anyone who has been convicted and sent to state prison after a booking in this county or any other.

The GDC search shows facility name, sentence length, and projected release date. It updates regularly as inmates move through the system.

Statewide 72 Hour Booking Resources

The Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) runs statewide criminal history checks. Under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37, the GCIC pulls data from all Georgia counties. Call 404-244-2639 for details. A GCIC check costs a fee but gives a full statewide arrest history.

The VINE notification system tracks inmates for free. Sign up for alerts about releases, transfers, and court dates. You can register by phone at 833-216-6670 or online. VINE covers Telfair County and most other counties in Georgia.

The Georgia Sheriffs' Association directory lists contact info for every sheriff in the state. Use it to check surrounding counties if you think a booking may have gone to a different jail.

The GBI and GCIC work together on statewide records. Between these tools and the local sheriff's office, you have multiple paths to find the booking info you need.

Record Restriction in Telfair County

O.C.G.A. § 42-8-60 allows certain booking records to be restricted through Georgia's First Offender Act. If the person completed their sentence under this program, they can ask the court to restrict the record. A judge decides whether to grant it.

Restricted records do not show up on public background checks. Law enforcement retains access, but the general public cannot see them. Violent felonies and sex offenses usually do not qualify for restriction. The person must finish every part of their sentence before filing a petition.

If you search for a Telfair County booking record and come up empty, record restriction is one possible explanation. The clerk of superior court in McRae-Helena can tell you if a specific record was restricted. Another possibility is that the arrest happened in a neighboring county, so check the counties around Telfair too.

Nearby Counties

Telfair County is in south-central Georgia. A number of counties share its borders. If the booking you are looking for is not in Telfair County, it might be in one of these.