Virginia gives voters a direct say over who runs the local sheriff's office. Under Article VII of the Virginia Constitution, the sheriff is one of five elected constitutional officers in each locality, alongside the clerk of the circuit court, the commissioner of the revenue, the treasurer and the Commonwealth's attorney. Sheriffs serve four-year terms and answer to local voters, not to a county administrator or city manager. That structure explains why two offices with the same title can differ so much in size, budget and daily duties.

This page covers sheriff's offices across Virginia's 95 counties and its independent cities, from Arlington County in the north to Lee County in the far southwest. Below you will find how the system fits together, what each office actually does, and how to reach the right one on the first try.

Who Oversees Sheriffs in the Commonwealth of Virginia

No single state agency commands Virginia's sheriffs. Each sheriff is independent, but several state bodies shape the work. The State Compensation Board reviews the budgets of local constitutional offices and pays a share of the salaries for sheriffs and deputies. The Department of Criminal Justice Services sets the training and certification standards that deputies must meet. The Department of Corrections, through the Board of Local and Regional Jails, sets minimum standards for jails. The duties themselves come from Title 15.2 of the Code of Virginia and from the sections on courts and civil procedure.

Because the office is elected, a sheriff's priorities show up on the ballot: jail conditions, drug enforcement, school safety, staffing. Elections take place in November, and the winner takes office at the start of the following year. To see who holds the office now, call the number in the listing or check your locality's official website.

The Virginia Sheriffs' Association offers training and policy resources to its members, but it is a professional group, not a regulator. If you have a complaint about an office, start with that office's own complaint process. Serious allegations of criminal conduct can go to the Commonwealth's attorney for the locality.

What a Virginia Sheriff's Office Handles Day to Day

Sheriff's duties fall into three broad areas: the courts, corrections and, in many counties, patrol. Which of the three takes up most of the staff depends on where you live. Most offices handle some mix of the following:

Concealed handgun permits are a common point of confusion. In Virginia you apply through the circuit court clerk of the county or city where you live, not at the sheriff's front desk. Ask the clerk of court for the application and the current fee.

Evictions follow a set path. A landlord wins a judgment in general district court, the clerk issues a writ of eviction, and the sheriff schedules and carries it out. A tenant who receives a notice from the sheriff should call the civil process section right away and keep the court case number handy. Sheriffs enforce court orders. They cannot stop or delay a valid eviction on their own.

Crime victims and family members can also ask about custody status through the Virginia VINE notification service, which many local jails take part in. The sheriff's office or jail records desk can confirm whether a particular jail participates.

Metro Sheriffs and Rural Sheriffs: How Virginia's Regions Differ

In urban localities, police departments handle patrol, so the sheriff concentrates on the jail, the courts and civil process. The Arlington County Sheriff's Office runs the detention facility at 1435 North Courthouse Road, while county police respond to emergencies. Henrico County works the same way: the sheriff's office and jail are at 4301 East Parham Road in the Richmond area, and a separate police division patrols. Hampton's sheriff operates the Hampton City Jail at 135 High Court Lane.

In rural counties, the sheriff is often the main law-enforcement agency. Culpeper County's office on Public Safety Court, Botetourt County's in Fincastle, Scott County's in Gate City, Dickenson County's in Clintwood and Lee County's in Jonesville each cover wide areas with comparatively small staffs. Office hours and response times vary, so call before driving to a courthouse. Virginia State Police patrol the interstates and assist local agencies, so a crash on a major highway may bring troopers instead of deputies.

Smaller localities often share jail costs. Regional jails let neighbouring counties and cities split construction and operating expenses. The Northampton County Sheriff's Office on the Eastern Shore is listed alongside the Eastern Shore Regional Jail at 5211 The Hornes in Eastville. If you need to visit or send money to an inmate, confirm which facility holds the person first. The sheriff's office and the jail may be at different addresses.

Finding Your Office When Virginia's Independent Cities Complicate the Map

Virginia has 38 independent cities that are legally separate from the counties around them. That causes confusion in any directory. We group listings under county-style pages, so a page named for a city may list the sheriff of the neighbouring county, whose courthouse is often inside or next to that city.

The Charlottesville County page, for example, lists the Albemarle County Sheriff's Office at 410 East High Street, phone 434-972-4001. The Emporia County page lists the Greensville County Sheriff's Office at 315 South Main Street, phone 804-348-4200. The City of Harrisonburg County page covers the Rockingham County Sheriff's Office and jail at 25 South Liberty Street, phone 540-564-3800. The Martinsville County page lists the Henry County Sheriff's Office at 3250 Kings Mountain Road, phone 276-656-4210. Hampton and Arlington follow the same pattern, with the addresses given above.

Always decide jurisdiction by the address of the person or property involved, not by the mailing address of the office. Papers are served by the sheriff of the locality where the person is found. Several listings, including Buena Vista, Chesapeake, Dinwiddie, Grayson and Northumberland, show a PO Box in our records. A PO Box is for mail, not for walk-in visits, so phone first to learn where the public counter is.

Before you go, bring a government photo ID, any court paperwork with the case number, and a payment method. Ask the office which forms of payment it accepts, because some accept only money orders or checks for civil process fees. A short call can save a second trip.

Sheriff offices in Virginia are independently elected county agencies responsible for law enforcement, jail operations, and civil process service. Each county in Virginia elects its own sheriff, who serves as the chief law enforcement officer for that county's unincorporated areas.

Sheriff locations are available in 121 cities across Virginia. They are spread across 121 counties.

Cities with the highest concentration of sheriff office listings include Emporia, Martinsville, Charlottesville, reflecting the population centers where multiple sub-offices or specialty divisions may be located.

Virginia residents should note that sheriff offices handle civil law enforcement functions — such as serving eviction notices and foreclosure papers — in addition to criminal law enforcement, so the sheriff office is often the correct point of contact for civil legal matters at the county level.

Sheriff by Counties

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If you are a Virginia resident looking to obtain a concealed carry permit, request a background check clearance letter, or serve legal documents through official channels, your county sheriff office is the starting point — contact them directly to confirm required documentation and current processing times.

Browse Sheriff by county across Virginia to find the nearest location.

Sheriff Offices from Southside to the New River Valley

The listings along Virginia's southern tier show how varied the work is. The Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office sits at 911 U.S. 58 Bus in Boydton, phone 434-738-6171, serving a Southside county on the North Carolina line. See the Mecklenburg County page for details. Nearby, the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office is at 222 Law Lane in Charlotte Court House, phone 434-542-5141. In the New River Valley, the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office is at 16 South Franklin Street in Christiansburg, phone 540-382-2951, listed on the Montgomery County page.

Farther north, Culpeper (14023 Public Safety Court, 540-727-7520), Fredericksburg (415 Wolfe Street, 540-372-1056), Warren County in Front Royal (200 Skyline Vista Drive, 540-635-7243) and Falls Church (300 Park Avenue, 703-248-5111) serve communities within reach of the Washington region. The phone numbers come from our database, so confirm hours before a visit.

Questions About Sheriff Services in Virginia

Call 911 for any emergency. Dispatchers send whichever agency covers your address. For non-emergencies, the right agency depends on where you live. In many rural counties, such as Lee, Scott and Dickenson, the sheriff's office is the primary law-enforcement agency. In places like Arlington County and Henrico County, a separate police department handles patrol, while the sheriff runs the jail and the courts. Independent cities follow the same split. If you are unsure, use the non-emergency number in the sheriff's listing or on your locality's website. State police also respond on interstates and highways, so a crash on I-81 may bring troopers rather than deputies.

Virginia sheriffs serve four-year terms and are elected by the voters of the county or independent city they serve. The Virginia Constitution lists the sheriff among five constitutional officers, so the office exists independently of the board of supervisors or city council. Local governments supply part of the budget and the state Compensation Board supplies another part, but neither one hires or fires the sheriff. Candidates appear on the November general election ballot, and the winner takes office at the start of the following year. To learn who currently holds the office, call the number in our listing or check the locality's official website.

Apply to the circuit court in the county or independent city where you live, through the clerk of court's office. The sheriff's office is not the issuing agency, so a trip to the sheriff's front desk will not start the process. The clerk can explain the required documents, the proof of training the court accepts and the current fee, because these details are set by state law and can change. Virginia State Police run the background check, and the court decides on the application. Call the clerk before you go and ask how that court accepts applications, since procedures differ from one courthouse to another.

The court clerk issues the paper, and the sheriff of the locality where the person lives or works delivers it. A service fee applies, and you usually pay it when you file. For evictions, a landlord first wins a judgment in general district court, then requests a writ of eviction. The sheriff schedules the date, notifies the tenant and supervises the removal. A tenant who receives notice should call the sheriff's civil process section and the court clerk right away, with the case number ready. Only the court can pause an eviction, and deputies must carry out a valid writ.

Start with the jail serving the county or city where the arrest happened. Our listings include numbers for offices that run their own jails, such as the Hampton City Jail at 757-727-6203 and the Arlington County detention facility at 703-228-4470. Regional facilities like the Eastern Shore Regional Jail in Eastville hold inmates for more than one locality. Ask the booking or records desk for custody status, bond information and visiting rules. The Virginia VINE service also offers custody notifications for participating jails. State prisons are different: the Virginia Department of Corrections runs them, and its inmate locator covers only inmates held in state facilities.

Virginia's 38 independent cities are not part of any county, yet county courthouses often sit inside or beside them. The Albemarle County Sheriff's Office, for instance, has its address at 410 East High Street in Charlottesville, and the Greensville County Sheriff's Office is on South Main Street in Emporia. Our directory groups listings by county-style pages, so a city's name may appear in a page title or address even when the office serves the surrounding county. Check the office name in the listing, then confirm by phone that it covers the address you care about. City sheriffs and county sheriffs have separate jurisdictions.