North Augusta Criminal Records Access

North Augusta criminal records are maintained by the North Augusta Department of Public Safety, Aiken County courts, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. North Augusta is a city in Aiken County in the 2nd Judicial Circuit. Although North Augusta borders Augusta, Georgia, criminal cases arising within North Augusta city limits are handled entirely within South Carolina's judicial and law enforcement systems. Felony charges are prosecuted in Aiken County General Sessions Court in Aiken, the county seat. This page covers all primary sources for searching North Augusta criminal records and criminal history information.

North Augusta Department of Public Safety

The North Augusta Department of Public Safety (DPS) serves as the city's combined law enforcement agency. The department is located at 444 East Buena Vista Avenue, North Augusta, SC 29841, and can be reached at (803) 279-2121. The DPS generates arrest records, incident reports, and criminal case documentation for offenses occurring within North Augusta city limits.

Records produced by the North Augusta Department of Public Safety are subject to public access under South Carolina's Freedom of Information Act, S.C. Code Ann. § 30-4-10. Written requests for incident reports or arrest records should be submitted directly to the department. Under § 30-4-30, the agency has 10 business days to respond to a written records request. The response will fulfill the request, deny it with a written explanation, or notify the requester of the need for additional processing time.

Certain records are exempt from disclosure under § 30-4-40, including files related to active criminal investigations and information that could compromise an ongoing prosecution. Once an investigation closes or a case reaches final disposition, records that were previously withheld may become accessible upon a renewed request.

The image below is sourced from sled.sc.gov and illustrates the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division's SLED CATCH criminal records portal, which is the primary statewide resource for North Augusta criminal history searches.

SLED CATCH covers arrest and disposition records from all contributing agencies in South Carolina, including the North Augusta Department of Public Safety and the Aiken County Sheriff's Office.

Aiken County Sheriff and Criminal Records

The Aiken County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement services throughout Aiken County, including unincorporated areas adjacent to North Augusta. The Sheriff's Office is located at 420 Hampton Avenue NE, Aiken, SC 29801, and can be reached at (803) 642-1761.

Arrests made by Aiken County Sheriff's deputies in or around North Augusta follow the same record-keeping and disclosure rules as North Augusta DPS records. Both agencies contribute arrest and disposition data to the SLED CATCH statewide system. For North Augusta residents with a criminal history that spans multiple agencies, a SLED CATCH search is the most comprehensive starting point because it aggregates records from all contributing South Carolina agencies.

Aiken County also operates a detention facility where individuals arrested in North Augusta may be held pending bond hearings or court proceedings. Booking records and inmate information are accessible through the Sheriff's Office. The Aiken County Sheriff's website at aikencountysheriff.org provides public resources and agency contact information.

Note: Because North Augusta sits directly across the Savannah River from Augusta, Georgia, it is important to confirm which state's records system you are searching. Georgia criminal records are held in Georgia's court system and are not accessible through South Carolina's SLED CATCH or Public Index.

Aiken County Court Records and Clerk of Court

The Aiken County Clerk of Court is located at 109 Park Avenue SE, Aiken, SC 29801, and can be reached at (803) 642-1715. The Clerk's Office holds Circuit Court criminal records for all felony cases prosecuted in Aiken County, including those originating from North Augusta. Case documents on file include indictments, arraignment records, plea agreements, and sentencing orders from General Sessions Court.

Criminal cases initiated by the North Augusta Department of Public Safety that involve misdemeanor charges may be heard in North Augusta Municipal Court. Municipal Court records are maintained separately from the Aiken County Circuit Court records. For matters that advance to the county level, the Aiken County Clerk of Court becomes the official record custodian.

In-person access to Aiken County Circuit Court records is available during business hours at 109 Park Avenue SE. Copies of specific documents are available for a per-page fee. The Clerk's staff can assist with identifying case numbers and locating records within the court's filing system.

SC Public Index for North Augusta Cases

The free online tool for searching Aiken County court records is the SC Public Index for Aiken County, maintained by the SC Judicial Branch at sccourts.org. The Public Index allows name-based and case number searches and returns charge descriptions, filing dates, case type, and current case status.

Searches through the Public Index reflect Circuit Court and Family Court filings for Aiken County. This includes felony criminal cases from North Augusta prosecuted in Aiken County General Sessions Court. Sealed records, expunged cases, and juvenile proceedings are not accessible through the Public Index. Juvenile records are sealed under S.C. Code Ann. § 63-19-2010. Cases successfully expunged under § 17-22-910 are removed from the publicly accessible record.

The Public Index is a useful tool for confirming whether a criminal case exists in the Aiken County system. For cases heard in North Augusta Municipal Court or Aiken County Magistrate Court, those records may not appear in the Public Index and require a separate request to the relevant court.

SLED CATCH and SC Criminal History for North Augusta

The SLED CATCH system provides statewide criminal history searches for $25 per individual under S.C. Code Ann. § 23-3-115. A CATCH search for someone with North Augusta connections will reflect records contributed by the North Augusta Department of Public Safety, Aiken County Sheriff's Office, and any other South Carolina agency that has generated a criminal record involving that individual.

CATCH results include arrests that did not result in conviction as well as convictions. Records that have been expunged following the process under § 17-22-910 are removed from CATCH and will not appear in results once the expungement takes effect. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division main portal at sled.sc.gov also links to the SC Sex Offender Registry, which includes individuals registered in Aiken County.

The image below is sourced from sccourts.org and represents the SC Judicial Branch website, the source for free North Augusta court records through the Aiken County Public Index.

The SC Judicial Branch website at sccourts.org provides access to the Public Index, court calendars, and general information about the state's court system including the 2nd Judicial Circuit, which covers Aiken County.

For individuals currently held in South Carolina state correctional facilities, the SC Department of Corrections inmate search at scdc.state.sc.us provides name-based lookup by current facility and status.

• North Augusta Department of Public Safety: 444 E. Buena Vista Avenue, North Augusta, (803) 279-2121
• Aiken County Sheriff's Office: 420 Hampton Avenue NE, Aiken, (803) 642-1761
• Aiken County Clerk of Court: 109 Park Avenue SE, Aiken, (803) 642-1715
• SC Public Index - Aiken County: publicindex.sccourts.org/aiken/
• SLED CATCH statewide criminal history: sled.sc.gov/CATCH/ ($25 fee)
• SCDC inmate search: scdc.state.sc.us