Criminal Records in Giles County

Giles County criminal records are maintained by the Circuit Court Clerk, the General District Court, and the Sheriff's Office in Pearisburg. You can search Giles County criminal records through the Virginia Judiciary online case portal, visit the courthouse in person, or mail a written request to the appropriate office. This page covers who holds which records, how the system works, and the steps to take to get the records you need.

Giles County Circuit Court Criminal Records

The Giles County Circuit Court Clerk is the official custodian of all felony criminal records in the county. The courthouse is in Pearisburg, the county seat. The Clerk's Office is open Monday through Friday during regular business hours. Felony indictments, motions, court orders, judgments, and sentencing documents are filed and stored here. These records are public unless a judge has sealed them.

Giles County is part of Virginia's Twenty-Seventh Judicial Circuit. This circuit covers Montgomery, Floyd, Carroll, Grayson, and Wythe counties as well as the cities of Galax and Radford. The Circuit Court handles the most serious criminal offenses, civil cases over $25,000, family law matters, and appeals from lower courts. The Clerk is an elected constitutional officer who serves an eight-year term. The office also maintains deed records, marriage licenses, and probate records for the county.

Copy fees follow Virginia Code section 17.1-275. Standard copies are $0.50 per page. Certified copies cost $2.00 per document. Exemplified copies are $5.00. Older records stored off-site may require advance notice for retrieval. Contact the clerk's office ahead of time if you need historical records.

The Virginia Judiciary Online Case Information System lets you search Giles County Circuit Court records for free. Look up cases by party name or case number to see case status, hearing dates, and dispositions. For complete case file review or certified copies, you need to contact the clerk in person or by mail.

The Virginia Courts case information system provides online access to Giles County criminal case records at both the Circuit Court and General District Court levels.

Use this portal to look up Giles County criminal cases by name or case number without visiting the Pearisburg courthouse in person.

General District Court Records in Giles County

The Giles County General District Court handles misdemeanor criminal cases, traffic violations, and preliminary hearings for felony charges. Giles County is part of Virginia's Twenty-Seventh General District. All cases are decided by a judge without a jury. Records include warrants, summonses, charging documents, continuances, court orders, and sentencing records for misdemeanor offenses.

These records are public. You can search them using the Virginia Judiciary Online Case Information System. The portal shows case status, hearing dates, and dispositions. For copies of actual documents, you need to contact the General District Court Clerk at the Giles County Courthouse in Pearisburg. Standard copy fees apply under state law.

When a preliminary hearing in the General District Court finds probable cause on a felony charge, the case is certified to the Circuit Court for grand jury action. Records of preliminary hearings are public unless sealed by order of the court. Decisions from the General District Court can be appealed to the Circuit Court within 10 days of judgment. The appeal is tried completely fresh in Circuit Court.

Note: Online case records may not include all filed documents. Contact the clerk's office if you need a complete record for any legal matter.

Giles County Sheriff's Office Records

The Giles County Sheriff's Office is the main law enforcement agency for the county. It keeps arrest records, incident reports, and investigative files for criminal activity in Giles County. The Sheriff also runs the county jail. The jail holds pretrial detainees and sentenced inmates serving terms up to one year.

Under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, basic arrest records are available to the public. This includes the name of the arrested person, the date, time, and location of the arrest, and the charges filed. Records tied to active investigations may be withheld. The Sheriff's Office must report all arrests to the Virginia State Police Central Criminal Records Exchange under Virginia Code section 19.2-390 within 72 hours.

To get records from the Giles County Sheriff's Office, put your request in writing. Include the name of the person involved, the date or approximate date of the incident, and any case or report numbers you have. The county has five working days to respond to a FOIA request. Fees may apply for searching and copying.

How to Request Giles County Criminal Records

There are several ways to get criminal records in Giles County. For basic case lookups, start with the free online portal at vacourts.gov. It is available around the clock and shows status and disposition data. For actual copies of filed documents, you need to contact the right office directly.

For Circuit Court records, contact the Giles County Circuit Court Clerk at the Pearisburg courthouse. Bring or mail the defendant's name, the approximate case date, and the case number if you have it. Tell the clerk what specific documents you need. For mail requests, include a self-addressed stamped envelope and a check or money order for estimated fees. Allow 7 to 10 business days for mail processing. General District Court records use the same process but go to that court's clerk.

You can pay criminal fines online through the Virginia Judiciary Online Payment System. This system accepts Visa, MasterCard, and Discover with a 4% convenience fee. This portal is for fine payments only, not record requests.

For FOIA requests involving law enforcement records, submit a written request to the Giles County Sheriff's Office or the county FOIA officer. The county must respond within five working days. Records exempt from release include active investigation files, juvenile records, and sealed court documents. The Virginia FOIA Advisory Council provides public guidance on the process.

Virginia CCRE and Giles County Criminal History

The Virginia State Police maintain the Central Criminal Records Exchange, a statewide database that collects criminal history data from all Virginia law enforcement agencies and courts. The Giles County Sheriff's Office and the courts report all arrests and case dispositions to this system. A state-level criminal history search covers all Virginia localities, giving you a more complete picture than a single county court search.

The Virginia State Police Criminal History Records page explains how to request a statewide check. The fee is $15 for a name-based search. Use the SP-167 form from the State Police forms page. Results include all Virginia arrests and convictions reported to the CCRE, including those from Giles County.

The image below links to the Code of Virginia section governing the Central Criminal Records Exchange, which sets the reporting requirements for all Virginia agencies, including those in Giles County.

Under Virginia Code Title 19.2, Chapter 23, law enforcement agencies in Giles County must report arrests and courts must report dispositions to the Central Criminal Records Exchange. This keeps the statewide system accurate and current.

Public Access and Expungement in Giles County

Virginia's FOIA law gives the public access to most government records. The statute is at Virginia Code Title 2.2, Chapter 37. Giles County must respond to FOIA requests within five working days. Fees are based on the actual cost of searching and copying records. If the expected cost exceeds $200, the county may ask for a deposit before processing the request.

Not all records are available. Active investigation files, juvenile records, sealed court documents, and confidential informant information are typically exempt. If any part of your request is denied, you must receive a written explanation citing the specific exemption used. For help with the process, contact the Virginia FOIA Advisory Council.

Virginia law allows eligible people to petition for expungement of criminal records. The statute is at Virginia Code Title 19.2, Chapter 23.1. You may qualify if the charge was dismissed, you were acquitted, or you received an absolute pardon. The petition is filed in the Circuit Court where the original charge was brought. Giles County cases go to the Giles County Circuit Court in Pearisburg. If the petition is granted, the record is removed from public access, though law enforcement agencies may still see it in some situations.

Note: Virginia significantly updated its expungement eligibility rules in recent years. Check the current statute at law.lis.virginia.gov before filing to confirm eligibility.

Communities in Giles County

Giles County is a rural mountain county in southwest Virginia along the New River. Pearisburg is the county seat and largest community. All criminal cases from Giles County go through the courthouse in Pearisburg.

Communities in Giles County include Narrows, Rich Creek, Pembroke, Eggleston, and Newport. None of these communities have independent city pages on this site. All criminal filings for these areas are handled by the Giles County court system.

Nearby Counties

Giles County borders several southwest Virginia counties. Confirm the correct county when searching records, since the offense location determines which court has jurisdiction.