Socastee Criminal History Records
Socastee is a census-designated place in Horry County, South Carolina, located near Myrtle Beach. It is not an incorporated town or city, which means it has no city police department and no municipal court. The Horry County Police Department provides all law enforcement in Socastee, and all criminal cases from the area go through the Horry County court system. This page explains how criminal history in Socastee works, which agencies hold the records, and how to access them under South Carolina law.
Socastee Quick Facts
Horry County Police Department Records for Socastee
Socastee has no city police. The Horry County Police Department is the law enforcement agency for the area. The department's address is 2560 North Highway 17, Longs, SC 29568, and the non-emergency line is (843) 915-5350. The department's website is at horrycounty.org/Police.
Records requests for incident and accident reports are handled by the Horry County Police records division. Requests are accepted in person or by mail. You need to provide the date of the incident, the type of report, and the names of those involved. Copy fees may apply. Records from open investigations are not available until the case is closed.
All Socastee arrests are made by Horry County Police and reported to SLED. There is no separate municipal records division for Socastee. Any criminal history search starting at the law enforcement level must go through Horry County Police.
Searching Criminal History in Socastee
The SLED CATCH system at catch.sled.sc.gov is the primary tool for a statewide name-based criminal history search covering Socastee. Each search costs $25. Results come from Horry County Police and the Horry County courts, along with all other reporting agencies in South Carolina.
For court records from Horry County, use the free Public Index at publicindex.sccourts.org/horry. Search by name or case number to see General Sessions cases, charges, and outcomes. Since Socastee has no municipal court, all criminal cases from the area appear at the county level in this index.
Horry County Magistrate Courts handle lower-level matters from the Socastee area. Magistrate court records may not fully appear in the Public Index. Contact the Horry County Clerk of Court at (843) 915-5080 for assistance with specific magistrate-level records connected to Socastee criminal history.
FOIA and Public Records in Socastee
South Carolina's Freedom of Information Act at S.C. Code Ann. Title 30, Chapter 4 applies to Horry County agencies. Because Socastee is unincorporated, there is no city government. All FOIA requests for law enforcement and public records in Socastee go to Horry County. The county's FOIA contact address is 1301 2nd Avenue, Conway, SC 29526, and the phone number is (843) 915-5080.
Agencies must respond within ten business days. Fees may be charged for copying and staff time. Exempt records include active investigation materials, records that could identify informants, and juvenile records. Written requests specifying the record type, date range, and the individuals involved produce the most useful results.
Many court records from the Socastee area are already available through the Horry County Public Index. FOIA is most useful when you need police incident reports or other county-held records not accessible through the court index.
County Court Criminal Records for Socastee Residents
The Horry County Clerk of Court is at 1301 Second Avenue, Conway, SC 29526. The phone number is (843) 915-5080. Since Socastee is unincorporated, all criminal cases from the area, whether felonies or misdemeanors, are handled by Horry County courts. There is no municipal court for Socastee.
General Sessions handles felony and serious misdemeanor cases. All indictments, plea agreements, verdicts, and sentencing documents from Socastee are filed at the Horry County Clerk. The Public Index at publicindex.sccourts.org/horry provides free access by name or case number.
Magistrate courts handle lower-level matters. The location of the relevant magistrate court for Socastee may vary. For specific magistrate records, contact the Horry County Clerk directly. The county seat of Conway is about fifteen miles from Socastee, where the main courthouse is located.
Criminal History Statutes and Socastee
S.C. Code Ann. § 23-3-115 gives SLED authority to compile criminal records from reporting agencies across the state. The Horry County Police Department reports all Socastee arrests to SLED under this statute. Horry County courts report conviction data. CATCH search results for Socastee criminal history draw from that statewide reporting system.
The Freedom of Information Act at Title 30, Chapter 4 governs public records requests to Horry County agencies that serve Socastee. Since the community has no city government, residents deal entirely with county-level offices for all public records matters. The same ten-day response window and exemption rules apply.
S.C. Code Ann. § 17-1-40 is the expungement statute. Records expunged under a court order are permanently destroyed and removed from all public sources. If a search of Socastee criminal history returns gaps, expungement may explain why certain records are not there.
Expungement in Socastee
Under S.C. Code Ann. § 17-1-40, qualifying individuals may petition to have criminal records physically destroyed. Eligible records include arrests without conviction, pretrial intervention completions, and certain first offenses following the required waiting period.
Socastee residents file the expungement petition at the Horry County Clerk of Court, 1301 Second Avenue, Conway, SC 29526. The filing fee is $250. If the court grants the petition, it orders the Horry County Police Department and SLED to destroy the records permanently. The destruction cannot be undone.
After expungement, those records will not appear in the Horry County Public Index or in any SLED CATCH search of Socastee criminal history. Magistrate court records included in the petition are also cleared. For eligibility guidance, contact the Horry County Clerk at (843) 915-5080 or consult a South Carolina attorney who handles criminal record expungements.
Socastee County Criminal History
Socastee is an unincorporated community in Horry County, and all criminal cases from the area go through the Horry County court system. For a full overview of Horry County criminal history resources and the Public Index, visit the county page.
Nearby South Carolina Cities
Other communities in the Horry County area and along the Grand Strand have local criminal history resources. Choose a city below to learn more.