Burke County Arrest Data and Booking Reports
Burke County booking reports are kept by the Sheriff's Office in Waynesboro and are public records available to anyone under Georgia's Open Records Act. Each report is created when someone is processed into the Burke County Jail, documenting the person's name, the charges against them, and when the booking happened. Whether you are checking on a current inmate, looking up a past arrest, or verifying jail status, the sheriff's office in Waynesboro is the correct place to start.
Burke County Quick Facts
How to Search Burke County Booking Reports
The Burke County Sheriff's Office in Waynesboro maintains all jail booking data for the county. Walking in during business hours is the most direct way to see the public docket. You can ask to view the current roster or request a specific entry by name or date. You do not need to show a reason for the request, and staff will assist you in locating the records you need.
Written requests work just as well for those outside the area or who need official copies. Georgia's Open Records Act (O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 et seq.) requires a three-business-day response. The first 15 minutes of search time costs nothing. After that, the office may charge a reasonable fee for staff time. Mail and email requests are both valid. If a request is denied, the sheriff must provide the denial in writing with the specific legal exemption cited.
Note: Burke County is one of Georgia's largest counties by land area, though its population is relatively small. The jail in Waynesboro handles bookings from across a wide geographic area, including arrests from state and federal land within the county.
What Burke County Booking Records Include
State law specifies the minimum content every booking record must contain. Under O.C.G.A. § 42-4-7, the Burke County Sheriff must document the full name, age, sex, race, charges, and dates of booking and release for each person taken into custody. These fields are mandatory and are part of the public record for every person booked, regardless of how serious the charge or how long they stay in the jail.
Beyond the required minimums, Burke County records may also show the arresting agency, bond status, holds from other agencies, and any transfer details. Booking photos may be included in the file. Under O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19, Georgia law bars law enforcement from sharing those photos with commercial mugshot websites. Burke County follows this state rule. Booking photos can be requested directly through the sheriff's office under the Open Records Act.
State Prison Records and the Georgia Department of Corrections
Burke County booking records cover only the local county jail. Once someone is convicted and transferred to a state prison, the county no longer holds their records. The Georgia Department of Corrections takes over from that point. The two systems are independent and do not automatically share data.
Look up state inmates at the GDC offender search portal. The GDC direct query form supports name and offender ID searches. For written certified records, mail your request to Inmate Records and Information, PO Box 1529, Forsyth, GA 31029. If someone has left Burke County custody, the GDC is the right next step.
Georgia Department of Corrections offender search for state prison records
State prison records are managed by the GDC. Burke County local jail records stay with the sheriff's office in Waynesboro.
GBI GCIC Criminal History Database
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation maintains GCIC, the statewide criminal history database. GCIC covers arrest and court data from all 159 Georgia counties. Unlike a local jail search, GCIC includes a person's full history across multiple counties and courts. This is the right tool if you need more than a single booking event or a current jail roster.
GCIC access requires a scheduled appointment. The GBI office at 3121 Panthersville Road, Decatur, GA 30034 does not accept walk-ins. Call 404-244-2639 to schedule. Read the GBI FAQ before your appointment. The GCIC program page explains what the database contains and how the records are compiled.
VINE Notification Service and Open Records Rights
VINE provides free inmate status alerts for the Burke County Jail. Register at VINELink.com and choose your preferred notification method. VINE monitors jail records continuously and sends an alert any time the inmate's custody status changes. It covers Burke County and all other Georgia counties without any subscription fee.
Georgia's Open Records Act gives everyone the same access rights to Burke County booking data. The law applies to county residents and non-residents equally. You can walk into the sheriff's office in Waynesboro and ask to see the booking docket without explaining why. The agency can only deny access under specific legal exemptions, and those denials must be documented in writing. Routine booking records are typically fully available.
For court records showing what happened after a Burke County arrest, the Georgia Courts website provides contact information for the Superior Court Clerk and links to case lookup tools. The Georgia Sheriffs' Association jail report publishes monthly data on statewide jail populations, including occupancy and pretrial percentages across all Georgia counties. As of January 2026, 67.9% of Georgia county jail inmates were awaiting trial.
Nearby Counties
These counties share borders with Burke in east-central Georgia. Each keeps its own jail records through the local sheriff's office.