Arrest Records in Henry County
An arrest record is created at booking. The Henry County Sheriff's Office processes most county-area bookings at the Henry County Jail, located at 120 Henry Parkway in McDonough. The agency is led by Sheriff Reginald B. Scandrett, the county's 29th sheriff. City police departments also book arrestees into the county jail, so the roster typically reflects arrests from across the entire county and the four municipal jurisdictions. Sample inmate detail pages show charges tied to both the Henry County Superior Court and the Henry County Magistrate Court, which is normal because the initial warrant usually originates in Magistrate before any felony moves up to Superior.
An arrest record and a criminal court record are not the same. The arrest record is generated at booking and lists the charges as stated by the arresting agency. The criminal court record begins when the District Attorney or the State Court solicitor files an accusation or indictment. Full case histories are covered on the Henry County court records page.
How to Search Henry County Arrest Records
The fastest way to check a recent Henry County arrest is the Sheriff's official inmate inquiry portal. The Sheriff's Inmate Search page links the database and includes a scam-prevention notice.
- Open the official Henry County inmate inquiry.
- Enter a name, subject number, or booking number. The roster supports date-range filters and an in-custody checkbox.
- Click the matching result to open the inmate detail page with charges, bond, and arresting agency.
- Cross-check the case in the Superior Court search, State Court search, or Magistrate Court search based on the charge type.
- For state-level history, use the Georgia Department of Corrections offender search for people sent to state prison.
- Call Inmate Information at (770) 288-7038 if a person is not appearing online.
Statewide criminal history checks involve the Georgia Crime Information Center, which is administered by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. The full criminal history is not a casual online lookup; access is governed by O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37, which sets review, correction, and restriction procedures.
The GBI sex offender registry is a related search that runs separately. Georgia treats sex offender registry data as public under O.C.G.A. § 42-1-12.
The registry page requires accepting a conditions-of-use agreement before search fields appear.
Arrest Records vs Criminal Court Records
The two record types are created at different stages and live in different offices. An arrest record begins when a person is booked into the Henry County Jail. A criminal court record begins when the prosecutor files a charging document in a court.
| Arrest Record | Criminal Court Record | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Sheriff's Office or city police | Clerk of Superior, State, or Magistrate Court |
| Created When | Booking at the Henry County Jail | Accusation, indictment, or warrant filing |
| Contents | Charges as stated, bond, booking origin, housing facility | Pleadings, motions, plea, sentence, disposition |
| Where to Search | Henry County inmate inquiry portal | Superior, State, and Magistrate MicroPact portals |
Charges vs Convictions
A charge is what the arresting agency or prosecutor says happened. A conviction is what a judge or jury concludes after a plea or trial. The two are not interchangeable, and a Henry County arrest record may show charges that are later dismissed, reduced, or never prosecuted. People who run a casual search and assume that a charge equals a conviction often draw the wrong conclusion.
| Charge | Conviction | |
|---|---|---|
| Stage | Accusation, indictment, or warrant | Plea or verdict |
| Burden of Proof | Probable cause for arrest | Beyond a reasonable doubt at trial |
| Public Record | Yes (subject to record restriction) | Yes (subject to restriction or pardon) |
| Where Found | Sheriff jail roster and Magistrate filings | Superior or State Court docket and sentencing order |
Sealed vs Expunged Records in Georgia
Georgia does not use the word "expungement" in most of its statutes. The state uses "record restriction" under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37. Restriction limits public access to qualifying arrest and disposition entries but does not always remove them from law-enforcement databases. Some files are sealed by court order under separate procedures.
| Sealed | Restricted (Georgia term) | |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | Hidden from public access by court order | Removed from public criminal history reports |
| Law Enforcement | Accessible to law enforcement and courts | Accessible to law enforcement; visible for certain licensing checks |
| Eligibility | Often case-specific; requires motion | Set by O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37 with charge, disposition, and timing rules |
| Process | Motion in the court that decided the case | Application through the DA's office and the arresting agency |
The Henry County District Attorney maintains a record restrictions page with the local intake. The Clerk's criminal division also links the process. Eligibility depends on charge type, disposition, and waiting periods.
Booking Photos and Mugshots
Henry County booking photos are not always exposed on the public inmate inquiry detail page. A sample inmate detail observed during research showed name, subject number, booking number, housing facility, total bond, booking origin, bond table, charges, and arresting agency, but did not include a mugshot in the public view. The Sheriff's office releases booking photos in response to open records requests under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71. The office charges no more than ten cents per page for letter-size copies and provides a 15-minute free labor window before billing the lowest-paid qualified employee's hourly rate.
The Sheriff also enforces a strong scam warning that applies to anyone calling about a Henry County arrest. The office never asks for payment by phone, text, email, social media, gift cards, cryptocurrency, Cash App, Zelle, or Venmo. If someone receives a call demanding payment to release an arrestee or clear a warrant, the safest move is to hang up and call the Sheriff's main line at (770) 288-7100 to confirm. Scams that piggyback on arrest news show up regularly in Henry County and the surrounding metro Atlanta counties.
Federal Criminal Records and Henry County
Federal cases involving Henry County are filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division. The court information page lists Henry County among the ten counties in the Atlanta Division. Federal docket information is available through PACER, which can require a paid account. People in federal custody can be located through the BOP inmate locator.
The locator supports BOP register number searches and name searches, with optional race, sex, and age filters.
Background Check Considerations
People who need a criminal background report for employment, housing, or a license must use a process that meets the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. The casual public inquiries described on this page can give a snapshot of an arrest or a court file but are not the same as an FCRA-compliant background check. The Georgia Crime Information Center, administered by GBI, provides official criminal history with the consent of the subject. The Georgia Department of Public Safety handles driver records, which are a separate file.
Important: This site is not a consumer reporting agency under the FCRA, and the information found through these searches cannot be used for employment, credit, tenant, or insurance decisions.
Restricted Criminal Records in Henry County
Several categories are not part of the public Henry County criminal records picture. Juvenile records sit under Title 15, Chapter 11, Article 9 of the Georgia Code with statutory access rules. Active law-enforcement investigations and grand-jury material are exempt from open-records disclosure. Mental-health and medical files connected to a criminal matter are usually withheld under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-72. Some Probate Court involuntary-treatment files are also restricted.
The Henry County DA and Public Defender
The Henry County District Attorney's Office prosecutes felony crimes that occur in the county and the cities of McDonough, Stockbridge, Hampton, and Locust Grove. DA Darius Pattillo and the office handle felony case investigation, grand jury presentation, plea negotiations, trials in Superior Court, juvenile prosecution where applicable, appeals to the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court of Georgia, child-support prosecutions, and asset forfeiture. The office is at 1 Courthouse Square, 2nd Floor, West Tower, McDonough, GA 30253, phone (770) 288-6400. Victim advocates inside the office update victims on case status and explain the criminal justice process.
People who cannot afford to hire a lawyer can ask the court at first appearance to apply for indigent defense. The county Public Defender page is part of the official county courts site. Federal criminal cases use a separate Federal Defender for the Northern District of Georgia.