Lexington County Criminal History Records

Lexington County Clerk of Court

The Lexington County Clerk of Court is Lisa M. Comer, elected in 2016 and sworn into office in January 2017. Before her election, she worked as a paralegal and began her career with the Lexington Clerk of Court's office in 2009. Clerk Comer serves on the Board of the South Carolina Association of Clerks of Court and Registers of Deeds and was appointed in 2022 by Chief Justice Donald W. Beatty to the Clerks of Court and Registers of Deeds Advisory Committee.

The Clerk's office is at 205 East Main Street, Suite 128, Lexington, SC 29072. The main phone is (803) 785-8212. For criminal records specifically, call the criminal records line at 803-467-8745. Fax is (803) 785-8220. The Clerk maintains all court records for the 11th Judicial Circuit, covering General Sessions criminal cases, Common Pleas civil matters, and Family Court files.

To request records, visit in person during business hours. Bring a valid photo ID and know the case number or party name. Staff can locate files but do not perform open-ended background searches. The Lexington County Clerk of Court website has current staff contacts, fee schedules, and office policies.

Lexington County Criminal Records: Copy Fees and Process

Standard copies at the Lexington County Clerk's office cost $0.25 per page. Certified copies run $5.00 plus $0.25 per page. Exemplified copies are $15.00 per document plus $0.25 per page. Payment is accepted by cash, check, money order, or credit card for in-person transactions.

The records request process is straightforward. Visit the office, present valid photo ID, provide the case number or party name, specify the documents you need, pay the fees, and receive the documents the same day or within 24 hours when the file is on site. The Clerk does not give legal advice. Sealed or expunged records are not accessible, and staff cannot confirm they ever existed.

General Sessions criminal records at the Clerk's office include indictments, pleadings and motions, sentence sheets, bench warrants, bond records, and full criminal case files. Common Pleas records cover civil judgments, orders, and execution records. Family Court files include divorce decrees, custody orders, and protection orders. Juvenile and adoption records are restricted or sealed.

Lexington County Criminal History on the Public Index

The Lexington County Public Index is available 24/7 through the SC Judicial Branch. No login is required. Search by defendant or plaintiff name, by case number in YYYY-GS-XX-XXXX format, by attorney bar number, or by date range. Results can be filtered by case type.

Each result shows the case number and filing date, defendant name and charges, scheduled court dates, case status, attorney of record, and judge assignment. Dockets update in real time. This is enough detail to confirm whether a case exists and how it resolved. Actual documents are not downloadable. For filings, orders, or sentence sheets, visit the Clerk's office on East Main Street.

Juvenile records, sealed cases, and expunged matters do not appear in the Public Index. A recent arrest may not show up for several business days. Court rosters for upcoming Lexington County hearings are also available through the Public Index portal and update more often than individual case records.

Lexington County Sheriff's Department and Arrest Records

The Lexington County Sheriff's Department is led by Sheriff Jay Koon. The main office is at 521 Gibson Road, Lexington, SC 29072, phone (803) 785-8230. The Detention Center is at the same address, reachable at (803) 785-2707. The front desk operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and handles a wide range of tasks including copies of reports, jail visitation scheduling, fingerprinting, and bond court information.

The Records Division maintains incident reports, accident reports, arrest records, and warrant information. Crime victims can receive a copy of an incident report free of charge by submitting an online request. Other individuals must visit in person and pay a small fee. Reports are available 48 hours after filing, once supervisory review is complete. Online requests take up to three business days to process and are delivered as PDF files by email.

Fingerprinting services are available Tuesday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., closed on county holidays. Call (803) 785-8230 for appointments. The Telephone Reporting Unit at (803) 785-8611 or (803) 785-2480 handles minor incidents where no evidence collection is needed, such as fraud, vandalism, or stolen property reports.

The Fugitive Unit at (803) 785-2499 works with the U.S. Marshals Service to locate wanted violent criminals and sex offenders. Sex offender registration is also handled at the Sheriff's Office, Tuesday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Searching Lexington County Criminal History Through SLED

SLED maintains the statewide criminal records repository. Lexington County courts and law enforcement agencies report arrest and disposition data to SLED as required by state law. The SLED CATCH portal allows anyone to submit a name-based criminal history search for $25. Results reflect the statewide repository, not just Lexington County records.

Name-based searches are not fingerprint-verified. The same name can match multiple people, and records entered with spelling errors may not appear. For legal purposes requiring accuracy, a fingerprint-based check through the SLED Public Dissemination Unit at 803.896.1443 is the recommended option.

The SLED Sex Offender Registry lists registered offenders in Lexington County and can be searched by county, city, or zip code. The SC Department of Corrections inmate search covers state prison inmates. People on community supervision are tracked at dppps.sc.gov.

Lexington County Magistrate and Municipal Courts

Lexington County has multiple magistrate court locations. The Bond Court is at 521 Gibson Road, Lexington, SC 29072, phone (803) 785-2528. The West Columbia Magistrate is at 2271 Charleston Highway, Cayce, SC 29033, phone (803) 794-3545. The Swansea Magistrate is at 320 West Third Street, Swansea, SC 29160, phone (803) 568-9006. The Pelion Magistrate is at 611 Pelion Road, Pelion, SC 29123, phone (803) 894-3351. The Batesburg-Leesville Magistrate is at 660 West Columbia Avenue, Batesburg-Leesville, SC 29006, phone (803) 532-4600.

Magistrate courts handle misdemeanor criminal cases, traffic violations, and preliminary hearings for felony arrests. Municipal courts operate in West Columbia, Cayce, Springdale, Batesburg-Leesville, Swansea, Pelion, Pine Ridge, Gaston, and Lexington. Each handles ordinance violations and lower-level traffic matters within its city limits. Records from these courts may appear in the Public Index once entered into the statewide system.

Lexington County Records Law and Expungement

South Carolina's Freedom of Information Act at Title 30, Chapter 4 covers public access to government records including court files. Written requests must be submitted. The agency has 10 business days for records under 24 months old and 20 days for older records. Fees are based on actual reproduction costs.

Under South Carolina Code Section 23-3-115, SLED is the central criminal records authority. The Clerk of Court must report case dispositions to SLED within set timeframes under Section 23-3-120, keeping the statewide database current with Lexington County outcomes.

Expungements in Lexington County follow Section 17-1-40. A completed expungement removes the record from the Public Index, from SLED, and from Clerk of Court files. Contact the 11th Circuit Solicitor's Office to start the process. The Solicitor reviews the petition, and the judge signs the order. The Clerk then handles record destruction. The process typically takes several months. Violent offenses and most serious felonies are not eligible.

Nearby Counties

Lexington County borders several other South Carolina counties. Use the links below to find criminal history resources in neighboring areas.

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