South Carolina law requires that probable cause exist before a judge can issue an arrest warrant. Probable cause is simply the belief that, based on the facts presented to the court, the suspect in question committed a crime. If the judge finds probable cause exists, he will issue an active warrant directing that the suspect be apprehended and detained until a hearing can be held. To do a warrant search in Kershaw County, you should begin by searching for open court cases.
Kershaw County court records
To search for open court cases filed in Kershaw County, you can use the Fifth Judicial Circuit’s Public Index. This online resource provides information on both closed and open cases filed in Kershaw County. You may search by name, date, type of case, or action type – – including warrants. The online database provides limited information about court cases; however, you can get information that is more detailed from the
Magistrate Court handling the case or the
Kershaw County Clerk of Court. Research fees and copy fees may apply for the information requested from either of these offices.
Warrant searches and criminal history reports
To get information on outstanding warrants or request a criminal history background report, you must contact the
Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office. Because the Sheriff’s Office is charged with executing arrest warrants for Kershaw County, it is the best resource for obtaining information about outstanding warrants. However, you must request information in person due to security and privacy concerns rather than over the telephone. Also, there may be charges for research and copies.
How do you get information on Kershaw County arrests and warrants over the phone? (2021-update)
You will have to head down to the Sheriff’s Office or the Kershaw County courthouse for a complete arrest records check. However, if you are only looking for bits and pieces of information, it is possible to find those by making a few phone calls. For instance:
- To file a non-emergency crime report, use the phone number of the Sheriff’s Office- 803-425-1512
- To know about active warrants, call the Warrants Division on 803-425-1512.
- To know how to conduct a local background check, call the Administrative Lieutenant on (803) 425-1512 ext. 1139.
- To connect with the Warrant Office, use the phone number 864-467-5335.
- To know about recent arrests, call the Detention Center on 803-425-1516.
- To know the procedure for accessing open records, including criminal court records, connect with the Clerk of Court on 803-425-7223.
- To get information on criminal cases handled by the Magistrate’s Court, call the Criminal Clerk of the Magistrate’s Court on (803) 425-7226 ext. 5255/ ext. 5386
- For traffic violations-related inquiries, call the Traffic Clerk on (803) 425-7226 ext. 5420.
Kershaw County, SC crime data
In 2019, the Sheriff’s Office of Kershaw County handled nearly 260 complaints against violent crimes and over 1750 reports of property crimes. While this may not seem like a lot when you compare the figures with those of other counties, pitching them against the averages of the previous year, brings out the truth.
As compared to 2018, the violent crime rate rose by almost 10% and the property crime rate increased by around 7%. If this is allowed to continue, a double-digit increase may be seen in the coming years.
From 1999 through 2008, crime rates in Kershaw County increased by about eighty percent, and violent crimes increased by approximately eighty percent. During this time, someone was a victim of a crime almost every six hours, with about one-half of those crimes occurring less than one mile from the victim’s home. The majority of crimes committed in Kershaw County were related to theft and burglary.
