Volusia County Police Blotter Search

Volusia County police blotter records are maintained by the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, headquartered at 123 W. Indiana Avenue in DeLand. Sheriff Mike Chitwood leads the department, which serves unincorporated areas and provides contract law enforcement to some municipalities across this large coastal county. The sheriff's office offers several online tools for searching police blotter information, including arrest searches, crime mapping, warrant searches, and inmate lookups. You can also request incident reports and crash reports by calling (386) 254-4689 or the non-emergency line at (386) 248-1777. Visit volusiasheriff.gov to access online databases and learn more about requesting public records in Volusia County.

Volusia County Sheriff's Office

The Volusia County Sheriff's Office operates from 123 W. Indiana Avenue in DeLand. Call (386) 254-4689 for general inquiries or (386) 248-1777 for non-emergency matters. Sheriff Mike Chitwood runs the department and oversees law enforcement across much of Volusia County. The sheriff's office serves unincorporated areas and contracts with some cities to provide police services.

Volusia County offers more online tools than most Florida counties. The sheriff's website at volusiasheriff.gov provides arrest searches, crime mapping, warrant searches, and inmate lookups. These databases let you search police blotter information without filing a formal records request. You can look up recent arrests, view crime patterns in your neighborhood, check for outstanding warrants, and find information about people in the county jail.

The crime mapping tool shows recent incidents across Volusia County. You can search by location, date range, and incident type. This interactive map updates regularly with new police reports, giving you a current view of law enforcement activity. It's a free resource for residents who want to stay informed about public safety in their area.

Search Police Blotter Online

Volusia County provides several ways to search police blotter records online. The arrest search tool shows booking information for people taken into custody by the sheriff's office. Enter a name to find arrest records, charges, booking dates, and bond amounts. This database covers recent arrests and may not include older records.

The warrant search lets you check for active warrants in Volusia County. Type in a name to see if there are outstanding warrants for arrest. This tool helps people verify their warrant status or search for information about others. Keep in mind that warrant databases may not update instantly, so recent warrants might not appear right away.

The inmate search shows who is currently held in the Volusia County jail. You can search by name or booking number to find inmates, view their charges, see their bond amounts, and check their housing location within the jail. This tool updates frequently as people are booked in and released.

For incident reports and crash reports not available through online searches, contact the sheriff's office at (386) 254-4689. Staff will help you request specific reports and explain the process for obtaining copies. Public records requests can be made by phone, in person, or through the sheriff's website.

City Police Departments

Some cities in Volusia County operate their own police departments separate from the sheriff's office. Daytona Beach has its own police department at 129 Valor Boulevard. Call (386) 671-5100 for Daytona Beach police records and information. Other cities may contract with the sheriff's office or run independent departments.

If you need records from within a city that has its own police force, contact that city's police department directly. They maintain their own records separate from the county sheriff. If you're not sure which agency to contact, call the sheriff's office and they can direct you to the right department.

Types of Police Blotter Records

Volusia County police blotter records include incident reports, arrest records, traffic crash reports, and criminal investigation files. Incident reports document calls for service answered by sheriff's deputies. These reports contain the date, time, location, people involved, what happened, witness statements, and the deputy's actions and observations.

Arrest records show booking information from the county jail. These records include the person's name, age, address, mugshot, charges, arresting deputy, booking date and time, and bond amount. All booking records become public once the arrest is processed. You can search recent arrests through the online arrest search tool on the sheriff's website.

Traffic crash reports filed by Volusia County deputies contain driver information, vehicle details, crash diagrams, road and weather conditions, and contributing factors. Under Florida Statute 316.066, crash reports with injuries remain confidential for 60 days. Only crash participants, their attorneys, insurers, and certain agencies can access them during this period. After the confidentiality period ends, anyone can purchase crash reports through the Florida Crash Portal at services.flhsmv.gov/CrashReportPurchasing for $10 plus a $2 convenience fee.

Criminal investigative files may have portions withheld while cases are active. Once investigations close, more information becomes available to the public. The sheriff's office reviews each request to determine what can be released without compromising active cases or violating privacy laws.

Note: Some records stay confidential under Florida law to protect ongoing investigations and personal privacy.

Public Records Fees

Volusia County charges fees based on the resources needed to fulfill records requests. The first 15 minutes of staff time is free. The first 20 pages of copies cost nothing. Requests beyond these limits are charged for additional staff time and materials.

Staff time is billed at the hourly rate of the employee processing your request. Copy fees are $0.15 per single-sided page and $0.20 per double-sided page. For large requests, the sheriff's office will estimate the total cost before starting work. You can choose to proceed, narrow your request, or cancel it.

Online searches through the sheriff's website are free. You can use the arrest search, crime map, warrant search, and inmate lookup without paying fees. These tools provide quick access to police blotter information at no cost.

Florida Public Records Law

Police blotter records in Volusia County are subject to Chapter 119 of Florida Statutes, which establishes broad public access to government records. This law gives every person the right to inspect and copy public records unless a specific exemption applies. Government agencies must respond to requests promptly and in good faith.

Certain records are exempt from disclosure. Florida Statutes Section 119.071 lists exempt categories. Active criminal intelligence and investigative information stays confidential until cases close. Personal information like Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, and home addresses of law enforcement officers gets redacted. Victim identities in sexual offense cases remain protected.

When records contain both public and exempt information, the sheriff's office must provide the public portions while redacting the exempt parts. You cannot be charged for redaction time. The agency should cite the specific legal exemption for anything withheld from your request.

Statewide Florida Resources

Several state agencies maintain databases that supplement county police blotter records. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement offers criminal background checks at fdle.state.fl.us. These statewide checks show arrests from all Florida counties. Full criminal history records require fingerprints and authorization.

The Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Department runs the official crash report system at flhsmv.gov/traffic-crash-reports. You can purchase crash reports from anywhere in Florida through this portal. The system accepts credit cards and provides electronic delivery.

Florida's Attorney General publishes the Government-in-the-Sunshine Manual at myfloridalegal.com/open-government. This guide explains public records rights and how to request documents from government agencies. It includes answers to common questions and contact information for assistance.

Major Cities in Volusia County

Volusia County includes Daytona Beach, which operates its own police department separate from the sheriff's office. Contact the Daytona Beach Police Department at (386) 671-5100 for police reports within city limits.

Nearby Counties

Volusia County borders several other Florida counties, each with their own sheriff's office and records systems: