Pierce County Jail Mugshots
Pierce County jail mugshots are maintained by the Pierce County Sheriff's Office in Blackshear, Georgia. This rural southeast Georgia county processes all local arrests through a single jail facility. Booking photos are taken during intake and become part of the public record under state law. Whether you need to find a current inmate or look up a past arrest, there are a few ways to search for jail mugshots tied to Pierce County. This page covers each search option and the rules that apply to booking photo access in the county. You will also find info on open records requests and how state tools can help with your search.
Pierce County Quick Facts
Pierce County Sheriff's Office
The Pierce County Sheriff's Office is the main law enforcement agency for the county. It sits at 207 College Street, Blackshear, GA 31516. You can reach them by phone at 912-449-7141. The sheriff's office handles all bookings and jail operations in Pierce County. That includes arrests from the Blackshear Police Department and from county patrol deputies.
The Pierce County Jail holds pretrial detainees and inmates serving short sentences. When someone is arrested in the county, they are brought to the jail for processing. The intake process includes fingerprints, a mugshot, and recording of personal details. Inmates with sentences over 12 months typically get transferred to a state prison facility run by the Georgia Department of Corrections.
The sheriff's office can answer questions about current inmates, charges, and bond amounts. Call during business hours for the fastest response. Walk-in requests for jail records are also accepted at the Blackshear office.
How to Search Pierce County Mugshots
Pierce County is a smaller county and does not have a dedicated online inmate lookup tool on its own website. The most direct way to check on someone in the Pierce County Jail is to call the sheriff's office at 912-449-7141. Provide the person's full name and they can tell you if that individual is currently booked.
For state-level searches, the Georgia Department of Corrections offender search is a useful tool. It covers inmates serving time in the state prison system. If someone was convicted in Pierce County and sent to state prison, their record and mugshot may show up in this database. You can search by name or GDC ID number. Results include booking photos when available.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation runs the Georgia Crime Information Center, which holds criminal history records from all 159 counties. You can request a background check through the GBI website. This covers arrest data, court outcomes, and jail records for anyone processed in Pierce County or elsewhere in the state. A fee applies for this service.
Note: The GDC search only shows state prison inmates, not people currently held at the Pierce County Jail.
Georgia Mugshot Laws and Pierce County
Jail mugshots in Pierce County are subject to Georgia state law. O.C.G.A. § 35-1-19 restricts how law enforcement agencies can share booking photos. Under this law, agencies like the Pierce County Sheriff's Office cannot post mugshots on websites except in limited situations. Anyone requesting a booking photo must sign a written statement confirming it will not be uploaded to a site that charges for removal.
The Georgia Open Records Act, found at O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70, gives the public broad access to government documents. Booking records and arrest reports at the Pierce County Jail fall under this act. However, the specific rules about mugshot distribution in § 35-1-19 add extra protections that go beyond general open records law.
If charges were dropped or you were acquitted in Pierce County, you may be able to restrict your record under O.C.G.A. § 35-3-37. Restricted records are no longer available to the public. The Georgia Consumer Protection Division can also help if a mugshot website refuses to remove your Pierce County booking photo after a written request. Georgia law under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.5 makes it illegal for these sites to charge a fee for removal.
Pierce County Open Records Requests
You can file an open records request with the Pierce County Sheriff's Office to get jail-related documents. Under Georgia law, agencies have three business days to respond. Send your request to the office at 207 College Street, Blackshear, GA 31516. You can also call ahead at 912-449-7141 to ask about their process for handling requests.
Georgia law caps copy fees at 10 cents per page under O.C.G.A. § 50-18-71. The first 15 minutes of search time are free. Most simple requests for a single booking record from the Pierce County Jail cost very little. If your request covers a large volume of records, the agency may provide a cost estimate before processing the request.
Requests can include booking records, arrest reports, and incident reports. Be as specific as you can with names, dates, and case numbers to speed up the process.
Bail Process at Pierce County Jail
Bail in Pierce County is set by a judge or magistrate after booking. Some minor offenses have preset bail amounts that let the person bond out quickly. More serious charges may require a hearing before bail is set. Call the Pierce County Jail to find out the bail amount for a specific inmate.
Licensed bail bondsmen serve Pierce County and can post bond for inmates. The standard fee in Georgia runs between 10% and 15% of the total bail amount. Once bond is posted, the release process at the Pierce County Jail can take a few hours. The jail staff can point you to local bondsmen who are available to help.
Nearby Counties
These counties border Pierce County. Jail mugshots are stored by the county that handled the booking. If you are unsure where the arrest took place, check with both the local police and the county sheriff's office.