Chattahoochee County Police Blotter Search

Chattahoochee County police blotter records capture law enforcement activity in one of Georgia's smallest counties by population. The sheriff's office in Cusseta is the primary source for incident reports, arrest logs, and calls for service. Much of Chattahoochee County is taken up by Fort Moore, the large U.S. Army installation formerly known as Fort Benning. Military police handle incidents on base, while the sheriff handles everything off base. For civilian police blotter data in Chattahoochee County, the sheriff's office is where you go. Georgia open records law gives the public a right to see these reports.

Chattahoochee County Police Blotter Office

Sheriff Henry Lynch III leads the Chattahoochee County Sheriff's Office from Cusseta. The office has a small team that covers all civilian law enforcement needs. Deputies handle patrol, investigations, warrant service, and the county jail. Every arrest and incident in the non-military parts of Chattahoochee County goes into the police blotter at this office. Given the small population, the volume of calls is lower than in urban counties, but the records are just as detailed.

Fort Moore takes up a large portion of Chattahoochee County. Incidents that happen on the base fall under federal military jurisdiction and are not part of the sheriff's police blotter. If you need records from the base, you would contact the military police directly. But for anything that happens off base in Chattahoochee County, the sheriff's office is the right place to ask. They keep logs going back years and can pull records on request.

Reading Chattahoochee County Police Blotter

Call the sheriff's office at (706) 989-3644 to request police blotter records from Chattahoochee County. Give the staff the date, name, or incident details. They will check the files and let you know what is available. You can pick up copies in person or have them mailed. Written requests go to PO Box 124, Cusseta, GA 31805. Include what records you need and your contact information.

Under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71, the response time is three business days. Copies are up to 10 cents per page. The first quarter hour of search time has no charge. Most police blotter requests in Chattahoochee County are simple and cost very little because the volume of records is manageable for the staff to search through quickly.

Chattahoochee County Police Blotter Records

The Georgia Open Records Act at O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 covers all police blotter records in Chattahoochee County. The law defines public records as all documents prepared and kept by a government agency. You have the right to see them without giving a reason. The sheriff's office must produce the records within three business days or explain in writing why more time is needed.

Exceptions exist under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72. Active investigations can stay sealed. Confidential informant identities are protected. Records that would endanger someone's safety are withheld. Personal details get blacked out on copies. But the substance of the police blotter, including what happened and who was arrested, remains public in Chattahoochee County.

State Resources for Chattahoochee County

Highway incidents in Chattahoochee County handled by state troopers go through the Georgia Department of Public Safety. Request those reports through the EPORTS system. Incident reports cost $2.00. Crash reports cost $5.00. The first traffic citation is free through the system.

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation provides support on major crimes. You can file requests through their records request portal. Criminal history data beyond felony convictions needs consent under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-34. The Georgia Sheriffs' Association directory lists all 159 county sheriffs, including Chattahoochee County.

The Georgia Department of Corrections offender search tracks inmates who may have been first arrested in Chattahoochee County. The GBI tip line at (800) 597-8477 takes anonymous tips for serious crimes.

Note: The DPS fee schedule applies to all state patrol reports, including those from highways near Cusseta and Fort Moore in Chattahoochee County.

Civilian vs Military Police Records

Chattahoochee County has a split jurisdiction. The sheriff handles civilian matters. Military police handle on-base incidents at Fort Moore. The two systems are completely separate. A police blotter request to the Chattahoochee County Sheriff's Office will only return civilian records. If the incident happened on the military installation, you need to go through the Department of the Army for those records.

This distinction matters because a large share of the county's population lives on or near the base. Off-base incidents involving military personnel still go through the sheriff's office and appear on the Chattahoochee County police blotter. But anything that happened inside the gates of Fort Moore is federal, not county. Keep that in mind when making your records request.

Nearby Counties

These counties border Chattahoochee County. An incident near a county line may be on file with a neighboring sheriff's office instead. Make sure to check the right jurisdiction.