Myrtle Beach Criminal History Checks
A Myrtle Beach criminal record check works best as a sequence. Begin with the office that made the first record, then follow the matter only as far as it traveled. Myrtle Beach Police Department, or MBPD, keeps city incident and arrest narratives. Ted C. Collins Municipal Court keeps eligible city citations and misdemeanor matters. The county jail, county Clerk, and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division each answer a different later question.
Use a report or citation number when one is available. Names alone can match more than one person, and a recent police event may not yet have a court number. The following order preserves those distinctions:
- Check the MBPD Police-to-Citizen portal for a city incident, arrest, or inmate entry.
- Ask MBPD Records for the report by number, date, exact place, and party name; use the city FOIA channel for video or broader material.
- Contact Ted C. Collins Municipal Court for an eligible city citation or municipal case.
- Search J. Reuben Long Detention Center and Horry Public Index if the person entered county custody or the charge moved to General Sessions.
- Use SLED CATCH for a separate name-based, statewide South Carolina history.
None of those products is a substitute for the rest. A city report describes the event, a booking entry describes custody, and a docket states what was filed and how a charge ended.
MBPD or HCPD Records?
The word “Myrtle Beach” in an address does not settle jurisdiction. The tourism area and nearby unincorporated communities use Myrtle Beach postal names, but Horry County Police Department serves many sites beyond the city limits. MBPD keeps a report only when its officers handled the event. HCPD keeps reports made by county officers.
Check the agency name on a report number, citation, booking entry, or other paper. If all you know is the location, give the exact street address to the city or county records desk and ask which agency served it. This small check prevents a common loop in which MBPD searches for a file that belongs to HCPD. It is especially useful along busy corridors where city and county jurisdiction can change over a short distance.
Myth: every incident at a Myrtle Beach mailing address creates an MBPD record. Fact: the occurrence site and responding agency control the custodian.
Records at the Myrtle Beach Police Department
MBPD Records is at 1101 North Oak Street, Myrtle Beach, SC 29577. The records line is 843-918-1382, and the counter is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Incident reports are available without charge online or at the counter. A person asking for a specific Myrtle Beach police record should bring the incident or report number if known, plus the date, time, exact location, names tied to the event, and identity documents when required.
The official MBPD Records page is the source for the city counter and request channel shown here.
That city page is the right first stop for a Myrtle Beach incident narrative, not the county Sheriff merely because a later jail record exists.
Ask for the record type you need. An incident report, arrest report, citation, and video are not interchangeable. Victim, juvenile, personal-identifier, and active-investigation details may be withheld or redacted under South Carolina law. A routine report request can therefore produce a narrower release than the complete internal police file.
Myrtle Beach P2C Record Searches
Police-to-Citizen, often called P2C, is MBPD’s named web portal. It offers incident, arrest, and inmate search paths tied to city police data. Use the most exact identifiers available. A report number is more useful than a broad name query, while a narrow date and location can help when the number is missing.
The official Myrtle Beach P2C entry shows the city’s online search route.
P2C is useful for finding a city record, but its screen is not a certified court disposition or a complete South Carolina rap sheet.
If no result appears, check spelling and dates, then call MBPD Records. The event may belong to HCPD, be too new for the portal, be held under a restricted category, or require a formal request. Do not treat an empty result as proof that no event occurred.
Booking and Arrest Records in Myrtle Beach
An MBPD arrest can create several records within hours. The officer creates the city narrative and arrest entry. A judge or court creates a warrant, bond, or citation record. The city also operates an adult and juvenile detention function for up to 48 hours. That local detention role means a fresh Myrtle Beach arrest does not always appear at the county jail at once.
When the person is transported to J. Reuben Long Detention Center, the county creates a separate booking record with booking dates, agency, charges, bond, custody status, and related fields. Search the official Horry booking interface or call Booking at 843-915-6911. The county result may show a charge that later changes. It is not proof of guilt.
For the full path, compare the MBPD report number, the county booking number, and the later court case or citation identifier. Similar names are not enough to join those files safely.
Note: A recent Myrtle Beach arrest may remain in city detention before a county booking becomes visible, so call both custodians when timing matters.
Myrtle Beach Booking Records Split
The key question is not simply “Was there an arrest?” Ask where the person was held and where the charge was filed. A short city hold can leave the report and detention information with Myrtle Beach. A transfer to JRLDC creates county custody data. A city-level charge may remain in Municipal Court, while a felony prosecution moves to the Horry County Court of General Sessions.
| Record | Likely custodian | What it answers |
|---|---|---|
| Incident or arrest narrative | MBPD Records | What city officers reported |
| Short city detention | Myrtle Beach police/court channel | Early local custody status |
| JRLDC booking | Horry County Sheriff | County intake, bond, and release |
| Filed charge and outcome | Municipal Court or county Clerk | Docket events and disposition |
That split explains why a P2C result, jail page, and court docket may display different charge words. Each was made at a different stage. Confirm the final result with the court that handled the case.
The Myrtle Beach Municipal Court File
Ted C. Collins Municipal Court shares 1101 North Oak Street with the police records operation. The court phone is 843-918-1356. Posted hours are weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and weekends from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., except holidays. The city lists Chief Judge Glenn Ohanesian and Clerk Amy Sutter.
The court hears misdemeanors and traffic matters charged by city officers, including property crimes involving $2,000 or less. Felony prosecutions do not end there. They move to General Sessions, whose file is kept by the Horry County Clerk of Court.
| Court Name | Ted C. Collins Municipal Court |
|---|---|
| Case Types Heard | Eligible city-officer misdemeanors, traffic matters, and qualifying property crimes |
| Case Lookup Channel | Municipal Court contact using defendant, citation, or case identifiers |
| What the Docket Shows | City charge, events, court action, and disposition as posted |
| Copies & Fees | Ask the court about copy certification and any current charge before ordering |
Online payment eligibility does not prove that the screen contains the whole case file. Ask the clerk for the record and certification needed.
Myrtle Beach Court Records Compared
A municipal citation and a General Sessions case answer different questions. Start with the charge level and the court named on the ticket or bond paper. The city clerk is the best source for an eligible Myrtle Beach court file. Horry Public Index and the General Sessions counter become relevant when a felony or higher criminal charge is filed at county level.
The South Carolina Judicial Branch Public Index lets a user select Horry County and search court entries. Use an exact case number when possible. A name match should be checked against filing date, charge, and other identifiers. For an older or uncertified General Sessions entry, call 843-915-5084. Coastal residents can also call the Clerk's South Strand counter at 843-915-5082 before seeking a file at 9630 Scipio Lane. A fuller county case discussion is available through the Horry County Court Case Lookup.
City file: city citation, hearings, court action, and municipal disposition. County file: filed General Sessions charge, indictment or warrant references, motions, plea or trial, sentence, and final disposition.
How Myrtle Beach Records Reach the County
A city event can move across systems without becoming one merged file. MBPD starts the incident or arrest record. If county booking occurs, JRLDC adds custody data. The appropriate court then records the filed charge and outcome. Fingerprint and disposition data may later reach the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Record flow: Myrtle Beach PD › Myrtle Beach Municipal Court or Horry County Courts › South Carolina Law Enforcement Division
For a very recent event, begin with MBPD and any city detention information. Add the county jail only when a JRLDC booking is expected. Use the city court for eligible municipal matters and Horry Public Index for a General Sessions case. CATCH is a later statewide layer, not a substitute for the police narrative or court documents. People who cannot use the online search may mail SLED's official form, payment, and a stamped return envelope to the SLED Records Department, PO Box 21398, Columbia, SC 29221-1398.
A delay or wording difference does not by itself show an error. Arrest charges can be amended, declined, or replaced when prosecutors file the court case.
Myrtle Beach Record Jurisdiction Traps
Visitor season increases the number of people who know a hotel, business, or road name but not the agency. Ocean Boulevard and dense business districts generate true MBPD records, yet the broader Grand Strand also contains unincorporated areas with Myrtle Beach mailing labels. Searching only the city portal can miss an HCPD report.
If a record is missing, take three steps. First, pin down the exact event address, not just the ZIP code or postal city. Second, check any citation, receipt, or booking entry for the agency name. Third, call the likely city or county desk and ask it to confirm jurisdiction before filing a paid or broad request. HCPD Records is 843-915-8344 and keeps reports made by county officers.
This boundary check also helps with video. A city camera or MBPD body-camera request belongs in Myrtle Beach’s records channel. HCPD-held footage uses the county custodian instead.
Myrtle Beach Record Access Rules
The South Carolina Freedom of Information Act gives a route to inspect or copy public city records, subject to exemptions, redaction, and fees. Routine incident reports may be available through MBPD Records or P2C without a broad FOIA request. Use formal FOIA for material outside those routine paths, such as a defined set of video or a larger collection.
Police may withhold active-investigation detail and redact victim, juvenile, sensitive personal, or otherwise protected information. Court access also excludes sealed, expunged, and confidential matters. Ask for a defined record rather than “everything” tied to a name, since the city may need the event, date, place, and format to locate the right file.
Key Statutes:
S.C. Code §30-4-30 establishes public inspection and copy procedures under South Carolina FOIA.
S.C. Code §30-4-40 lists exemptions that include protected law-enforcement and privacy material.
S.C. Code §23-3-115 governs dissemination of state criminal-history information through SLED.
Public access does not turn an arrest into proof of guilt. Confirm the final disposition with the court.
Myrtle Beach Video Record Requests
The city’s formal request portal is the documented channel for records that P2C does not supply. A useful request gives the requester’s identity and contact information, the incident or report number, date, time, exact location, party names, the type of report or video, and the requested delivery format. Include identity documentation when the city requires it.
The Myrtle Beach public-records portal is the source for submitting that city request; email requests may also go to FOIA@cityofmyrtlebeach.com.
The city generally has ten working days to decide whether material is available, and it may quote actual costs or seek a deposit for a large request.
Describe the sought segment of video instead of requesting all footage tied to a broad span. A precise location, event window, and report number reduce search work. If the event occurred outside city limits, redirect the request to Horry County rather than submitting duplicate Myrtle Beach requests.