Access Giles County Background Check Records

Giles County background check records are maintained at the Circuit Court Clerk's office at 501 Wenonah Avenue, Suite 1, Pearisburg, and through the Sheriff's Office just down the street at 503 Wenonah Avenue. The county sits in Virginia's 27th Judicial Circuit, sharing circuit resources with neighboring Floyd and Grayson counties. The Pearisburg courthouse, built in 1836, is a Virginia Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This guide covers both the sheriff and clerk offices, plus the statewide Virginia systems for full criminal history searches.

Giles County Sheriff's Office

The Giles County Sheriff's Office is at 503 Wenonah Avenue, Pearisburg, VA 24134. The main phone is (540) 921-0031 and the non-emergency line is (540) 921-3842. The Sheriff's website is at virginiasmtnplayground.com/sheriff. The office provides 24-hour patrol across the county, handles criminal investigation, manages court security, and runs the E-911 Communications Center that serves as the public safety dispatch hub for Giles County.

Giles County is a small, rural county in southwestern Virginia. The Sheriff's Office serves as the primary law enforcement agency for the entire county, with no separate municipal police force for most of the county's communities. Arrest records, incident reports, and jail bookings are all processed through this office. The E-911 Communications Center provides an additional layer of documentation for public safety calls.

For records not available through the Sheriff's website, Virginia's Freedom of Information Act governs how you can request them. The FOIA Council at foiacouncil.dls.virginia.gov provides guidance on submitting requests. Public agencies must respond within five working days. Most arrest records and incident reports are public. Active investigation files, juvenile records, and information that could compromise ongoing cases are typically withheld. The agency must tell you which exemption applies when they decline to release a record.

The Virginia Sex Offender Registry at sex-offender.vsp.virginia.gov covers Giles County and is free to search. Look up registered offenders by name or by the Pearisburg ZIP code to find registrants in the county. The registry is updated when offenders report address or status changes to the State Police.

Giles County Circuit Court Clerk

The Circuit Court Clerk for Giles County is Master Clerk Sherry E. Gautier. The office is located at 501 Wenonah Avenue, Suite 1, Pearisburg, VA 24134 (mailing address: P.O. Box 502, Pearisburg, VA 24134). The phone is (540) 921-1722 and the fax is (540) 921-1724. The clerk's page on the county website is at virginiasmtnplayground.com/circuit.

The Giles County Courthouse sits at the corner of Wenonah Avenue and Main Street in Pearisburg. It was built in 1836, designated a Virginia Landmark on July 20, 1982, and added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 9, 1982. The clerk's office occupies part of this historic building and maintains records going back to the county's founding in 1806. While older records may exist in paper form, staff can assist with locating specific historical filings.

The clerk's office handles the full range of circuit court functions. On the criminal side, the clerk files charging documents, maintains case files for all felony prosecutions, and records dispositions. On the civil side, the clerk processes divorce cases, adoptions, name changes, appeals, and civil judgments. Land records including deeds, deeds of trust, plats, and liens are recorded and maintained here. Marriage licenses are issued through the clerk's office. Probate and estate matters also go through this office.

Marriage licenses issued by the Giles County Circuit Court Clerk are valid for 60 days anywhere in Virginia. You must appear in person between 8:30 AM and 4:00 PM to apply. Applicants must be 18 or older and bring a valid photo ID. Copies of marriage licenses can also be obtained by mail by sending a written request with a self-addressed stamped envelope and a fee of $3 per copy.

Concealed handgun permit applications for Giles County residents are submitted online through the county's dedicated portal at gilesva.permitium.com. The clerk's office can assist with questions about the application process.

Online Records Access for Giles County

The free Virginia Courts Case Information portal is the starting point for online searches of Giles County court records. You can search by name or case number to find circuit court and general district court cases. Results include case type, filing date, charges, and disposition. This system covers both felony cases heard in circuit court and misdemeanor and traffic matters from the district court level.

For a complete statewide criminal history report, use the Virginia State Police CCRE request process. Forms SP-167 (personal record) and SP-230 (third-party request) are available at vsp.virginia.gov/services/forms. The $15 fee and completed form go by mail to the CARE unit at 7700 Midlothian Turnpike, North Chesterfield, VA 23235. Fingerprint-based searches cost more and take longer but give a more reliable result, tying the record to a specific individual rather than relying on a name match alone.

Giles County uses the 27th Judicial Circuit, the same circuit that covers Floyd and Grayson counties. If you are researching someone who may have cases in multiple counties in this circuit, run separate searches for each county using the state's online case information system. Cases are filed at the county level, not the circuit level, so they do not automatically appear in a search of another county's records.

Virginia Records Laws and Giles County

Virginia Code Title 19.2, Chapter 23 creates the Central Criminal Records Exchange as the state's official criminal history repository. Courts across Virginia, including the Giles County Circuit Court, report dispositions to the CCRE. This means that a criminal conviction in Giles County will show up both in the local court records and in any CCRE-based background check. County court records and the CCRE each serve different purposes and may not always contain identical information.

Virginia's Freedom of Information Act, codified at Title 2.2, Chapter 37, gives citizens the right to request public records from Giles County government agencies. Both the Sheriff's Office and the Circuit Court Clerk are subject to this law. Requests must be acknowledged within five working days. Agencies can charge reasonable search and copying fees. The FOIA Council at foiacouncil.dls.virginia.gov handles disputes and provides model request language if you need it.

Under Virginia Code § 19.2-392.12, eligible individuals may petition to have qualifying criminal records sealed. Sealed records are removed from the public court system and from CCRE background checks. Juvenile records in Virginia are sealed automatically and are not available to the public. Adults with qualifying Giles County convictions can consult a Virginia attorney to determine whether a specific record is eligible for sealing under the current law.

Giles County Records Resources

The Virginia Courts Case Information system covers Giles County and provides free online access to circuit and district court case records statewide.

Use the case information portal to search for Giles County cases by name or case number before visiting the courthouse in Pearisburg.

Nearby Counties

These Virginia counties sit near Giles County in southwestern Virginia and each has its own court and records offices.