In Stafford County, VA, an arrest warrant is exclusively issued after the sitting magistrate of a local criminal court carefully considers all case-related facts, including evidence, the crime, reasons to believe why the individual in question has committed the crime, and sworn testimony from the witnesses.
In fact, an active arrest warrant cannot be issued unless the judge is convinced of probable cause. All arrest warrants bear the issuing magistrate’s signature, which serves as a seal of judicial approval. The arrest order is addressed to the police and is essentially a directive for a person’s detention.
The police, as well as the judiciary, hold information on all active arrest orders that have been served as well as outstanding warrants that have been held back in the system because they could not be executed and arrest records for cases in which the perpetrator was taken into custody at the scene of the crime.
To get your hands on this information, you will have to visit the office of these agencies in person. Do not forget to carry a photo ID along; you will also need identifier information about the subject of your inquiry, such as his/her name, birthdates, address, gender, race, etc. Once you have these details ready, head over to the sheriff’s department
Seek out the record clerk and fill in a formal application for a warrant search. You will generally receive a response to your query within 24 hours. In some instances, you may even be offered the details you are looking for promptly. The sheriff’s office is located at 2003 Mill Road, Alexandria, VA 22314.
You can also get in touch with the magistrate’s office or the county clerk’s department that works out of 1300 Courthouse Rd, Stafford, Virginia 22554.
What information on Stafford County arrests and warrants can you get over the phone? (2021-update)
- Contact the Sheriff’s Office to learn how to initiate an arrest records inquiry and a local criminal background check. Use the phone number of the Administrative Service’s Records Section- 540-658-4420.
- Get in touch with the Warrants Section to inquire about active warrants as well as bench warrants. To contact them, dial 540-658-4421/22.
- Connect with the Sheriff’s Office at 540-658-4450 for general information and questions.
- Call the agency at 540-658-4400 to file a non-emergency complaint
- Dial the phone number of Criminal Investigations (540-658-4480) to know more about a criminal case (only for victims).
- Use the tip line to provide an anonymous tip about a crime or a suspect- 540-659-2020.
- Call the Rappahannock Jail at 540-288-5245, ext-201 for details on inmate intake.
- Get in touch with the judiciary at 540-658-8750 to reach the Circuit Court Clerk, 540-658-8935 to reach the District Court Clerk (Criminal and Traffic), and 540/658-8775 to contact the District Court Clerk (JDR).
Crime statistics for Stafford County, Virginia
Although the total crime rate of Stafford County decreased by 5%, the small improvement was overshadowed by the rise in the rate of violent crimes. This crime category witnessed an upswing of 10%, to go from around 300 incidents to nearly 340 complaints in 2019. As far as property crimes went, there was a drop in the annual average of this crime category, with incident rates plunging from 1560 to around 1420 cases in 2019.
Almost 1800 crimes transpire in Stafford County each year; of these, over 90% are instances of property crimes. A look at the area’s crime statistics between 2004 and 2008 reveals that violent crime has increased by almost 40% while property crimes have increased by an estimated 10%.