Search Clayton County Booking Releases
Clayton County booking releases are public records kept by the Clayton County Sheriff's Office in Jonesboro, Georgia. The county has a population of more than 290,000 and sits just south of Atlanta in the metro area. The sheriff maintains a printed jail docket book for public viewing as required by state law, and also runs an online inmate search portal. Clayton County booking releases show who is currently held at the jail and who has been released. Sheriff Victor Hill oversees all jail operations, and the department publishes booking data as required by Georgia law.
Clayton County Quick Facts
Clayton County Sheriff's Office
The Clayton County Sheriff's Office manages the county jail and keeps all booking release records. The main office is at 9157 Tara Blvd in Jonesboro. You can call 678-479-5350 for general questions about Clayton County booking releases. The classification unit is reachable at (770) 477-4441, Monday through Friday from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. This unit handles inmate housing and status questions.
The Clayton County Sheriff's website provides access to inmate search tools and department contact information.
The site links to the online docket book, which is the primary public tool for searching Clayton County booking releases.
Clayton County processes a steady flow of jail bookings from local police departments and the sheriff's own patrol division. Every arrest in Clayton County goes through the jail for booking and processing. The sheriff creates a booking release record for each inmate that includes the person's name, charges, and dates. These jail records are part of the public file and can be viewed by anyone. The department states clearly that its booking data reflects detention only, not conviction. Charges may change as cases move through the Clayton County court system.
| Address | 9157 Tara Blvd, Jonesboro, GA 30236 |
|---|---|
| General Phone | 678-479-5350 |
| Classification Unit | (770) 477-4441 (Mon-Fri 8am-5pm) |
| Sheriff | Victor Hill |
| Website | claytonsheriff.com |
Clayton County Online Docket Book
The Clayton County Inmate Search page hosts the online docket book for booking releases. This tool lets you search in two ways. You can search by booking date and pick a range of 48 hours, 14 days, or 31 days. You can also search by name, which shows active inmates only. Both methods give you access to Clayton County booking releases through a simple web form.
The Clayton County inmate search page shows the docket book interface.
This search tool lets you filter Clayton County booking releases by date range or by inmate name.
The Clayton County page displays a disclaimer before you can use it. It reads: "BY UTILIZING THIS SERVICE YOU HEREBY ACKNOWLEDGE" followed by terms about data accuracy. Clayton County wants you to know that this is a printed jail docket book maintained for public viewing as required by state law. Information can change rapidly without notice. What you see reflects detention in the Clayton County jail, not a conviction. These are important points to keep in mind when you review Clayton County booking releases through the online system.
The docket book system is free to use for Clayton County booking release searches. No account is needed. Just pick your search method and enter the criteria. Results show the inmate's name, charges, booking date, and jail status. For more detailed booking release records from Clayton County, you may need to file a formal open records request with the sheriff's office. The jail records in the docket book are a good starting point for most Clayton County booking release searches.
Open Records for Clayton County Booking Releases
Georgia's Open Records Act gives you the right to get booking release documents from Clayton County. O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 says that public records held by county agencies are open for inspection and copying. This includes booking release records at the Clayton County jail. You can submit a request in writing to the sheriff's office at 9157 Tara Blvd, Jonesboro, GA 30236.
Include your name, address, and a clear description of what Clayton County records you need. Be specific about dates and names when asking for Clayton County booking releases. The Clayton County agency has three business days to respond. Copy fees are $0.10 per page in Clayton County. The first 15 minutes of staff search time are free. After that, Clayton County charges based on the hourly rate of the lowest paid employee who can process your request. If the total goes over $25, the Clayton County agency must tell you the cost before doing the work.
Some records may be exempt under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72. Records tied to pending investigations or those that could put someone in danger can be withheld. But standard Clayton County booking release data like names, charges, dates, and release info is public in most cases. Initial arrest reports and incident reports are always public, even during an active investigation.
How Booking Works at the Clayton County Jail
When police arrest someone in Clayton County, the person is taken to the Clayton County jail for booking. This process creates the booking release record. Staff take the person's photo, record identifying details, log the charges, and assign a Clayton County booking number. The whole process feeds into the jail's computer system. Once the data is entered, it shows up in the online docket book for Clayton County booking releases.
After booking, the person is held at the Clayton County jail until they post bond, have charges dropped, or go to court. Bond amounts in Clayton County depend on the charges. A judge or magistrate sets the bond at the first hearing. When the person leaves the Clayton County jail for any reason, the release gets logged in the system. The record then shows both the booking and the release, completing the Clayton County booking release entry.
The Clayton County Sheriff's Office notes that information in the docket book "can change rapidly without notice." Charges may be added or dropped. Bond amounts can change after a hearing. Status may shift from active to released at any point. If you need the most current data on a Clayton County booking release, call the classification unit at (770) 477-4441 during business hours to verify what you see online.
State Booking Release Resources for Clayton County
The GDC Offender Search is the state tool for finding inmates who were sentenced to Georgia state prison from Clayton County. If someone was held at the Clayton County jail and later transferred to a state facility, GDC tracks them from that point forward. You can search the database by name or inmate ID number. It shows booking info, charges, sentence length, and current location for state inmates.
The VINE notification system covers Clayton County and lets you track an offender's status for free. Sign up to get alerts when someone booked in Clayton County is released, transferred, or has a status change. This tool is run by a third party and connects to jail data across Georgia. It is useful if you want updates on Clayton County booking releases without checking the docket book every day.
For broader questions about criminal records in Georgia, the GBI Open Records Portal handles requests to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. GBI runs the state criminal history database through the Georgia Crime Information Center. If you need records that span multiple Georgia counties or tie into state-level systems, GBI is the place to ask. Their portal uses the same GovQA system that GDC uses for open records requests.
Booking Photos in Clayton County
Georgia law puts specific limits on booking photo releases. O.C.G.A. § 35-1-18 controls when and how agencies like the Clayton County Sheriff's Office can share mugshots with the public. This law applies statewide and sets rules that go beyond the general Open Records Act. If you want a booking photo from the Clayton County jail, you should file a written open records request and reference the statute.
Standard Clayton County booking release data is easier to get. Names, charges, booking dates, and release dates are public under Georgia law. Photos have extra rules because the legislature wanted to balance public access with privacy concerns. The Clayton County Sheriff's Office follows these state guidelines when responding to Clayton County photo requests.
What Clayton County Booking Releases Show
A Clayton County booking release record contains several pieces of information about the detained person and their case. The statutory reference for these records is O.C.G.A. § 42-4-7, which lists what data must be kept. Each Clayton County booking release entry typically shows the following data points.
- Full name and physical description of the person booked
- Booking date and time
- Charges filed at the time of booking
- Bond amount and bond type for each charge
- Status showing whether the person is active or released
- Release date and type of discharge if applicable
The law also requires the record to show the court that issued the commitment order and the court that authorized the discharge. Age, sex, and race are part of the required data under the statute. Clayton County booking releases are subject to public inspection, meaning anyone can ask to see them at the sheriff's office. You do not have to be involved in the case to look up a record. The online docket book makes this even easier by putting the data on the web for free access.
Cities in Clayton County
Clayton County has several cities and unincorporated areas. All arrests in these communities result in booking releases processed at the Clayton County jail in Jonesboro. City police make the arrest, but the county sheriff handles the booking and maintains the release records. Cities in Clayton County include Jonesboro, Morrow, Forest Park, Riverdale, College Park (partly in Clayton), and Lake City. None of these cities meet the population threshold for a separate page, but all jail booking releases go through the Clayton County system. Each arrest creates an inmate record that stays in the Clayton County booking release database.
Nearby Counties
These counties border Clayton County. If you are trying to find a jail booking release but are not sure which county jail processed the inmate, check the arrest location. Each county keeps its own separate booking release records at the local jail.