Lawrence County
83,911 people, served by 23 police agencies that report to the FBI.
How a case moves here
Lawrence County follows Pennsylvania law on arrests, release, and courts. These rules are the same in every county in the state; the full set covers prosecutors, defense, and jails too.
- Who decides release first
Outside Philadelphia, a magisterial district judge sets bail at the preliminary arraignment. In Philadelphia, an arraignment court magistrate appointed by the Municipal Court sets it; magistrates need not be lawyers if they complete a training program. Neither may set bail for murder or voluntary manslaughter; a Common Pleas judge does.
Pa.R.Crim.P. 51942 Pa.C.S. 1515(a)(4)42 Pa.C.S. 1123(a)(5)- Time to see a judge
A person arrested without a warrant must have a preliminary arraignment without unnecessary delay. The rule sets no hour limit. The U.S. Supreme Court's 48-hour rule for a probable cause finding applies as the federal floor.
Pa.R.Crim.P. 516(A)- Money bail
Money bail is allowed. The rules list five kinds of release, from release on recognizance to a money condition no larger than needed to ensure the person appears.
Pa.R.Crim.P. 524(C)- Courts
The Court of Common Pleas, organized in 60 judicial districts, tries felonies and misdemeanors. Magisterial district judges hear summary offenses, the lowest grade, and hold first arraignments and preliminary hearings. In Philadelphia, the Municipal Court tries crimes punishable by up to five years without a jury.
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, Courts of Common Pleas42 Pa.C.S. 151542 Pa.C.S. 1123- Judges and magistrates
Common Pleas judges win a contested election for a 10-year term, then run in yes-or-no retention elections without party labels. Magisterial district judges are elected in contested elections to six-year terms and need not be lawyers. All other judges must be members of the bar.
Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania, How Judges Are Elected
Read from the statutes and court rules cited, 2026-09-30. The prison board statute covers counties of the third to fifth class and those that opt in; Philadelphia and Allegheny run jails under other arrangements not read here.
What this county does differently
Nothing county-specific yet
Cities and towns
- New Castle21,579
- Neshannock township9,721
- Ellwood City borough7,532
- Shenango township7,062
- Union township4,926
- North Beaver township3,946
- Pulaski township3,059
- Slippery Rock township2,894
- Mahoning township2,670
- Wilmington township2,655
- Hickory township2,565
- New Wilmington borough2,395
- Wayne township2,308
- Scott township2,016
- Perry township1,686
- New Beaver borough1,343
- Ellport borough1,127
- Taylor township1,056
- Little Beaver township1,048
- Bessemer borough881
- Plain Grove township751
- South New Castle borough712
- Washington township654
- Wampum borough502
- Enon Valley borough458
- Volant borough89
- S.N.P.J. borough10
Every city, village, town, and township with any of its land in Lawrence County, largest first. Population, the whole place's: Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020 to 2024.
Police agencies
- New Castle Police DepartmentCity police department21,192 served
- State Police: Lawrence CountyState police agency15,355 served
- Neshannock Township Police DepartmentCity police department9,597 served
- Shenango Township Police Department, Lawrence CountyCity police department7,599 served
- Ellwood City Police DepartmentCity police department7,367 served
- Union Township Police Department, Lawrence CountyCity police department4,839 served
- North Beaver Police DepartmentCity police department3,942 served
- Pulaski Township Police Department, Lawrence CountyCity police department3,029 served
- Mahoning Township Police Department, Lawrence CountyCity police department2,618 served
- Wayne Township Police DepartmentCity police department2,400 served
- No name PA0371900City police department2,277 served
- New Wilmington Police DepartmentCity police department2,087 served
- No name PA0370900City police department1,805 served
- New Beaver Police DepartmentCity police department1,335 served
- Little Beaver Township Police DepartmentCity police department1,186 served
- Bessemer Police DepartmentCity police department1,036 served
- No name PA0371300City police department633 served
- Wampum Police DepartmentCity police department539 served
- Bureau of Forestry: Lawrence CountyOther state agency
- County Detective: Lawrence CountyOther agency
- Lawrence County Sheriff's OfficeSheriff or county police
- Office of Attorney General Region 3: Lawrence CountyOther state agency
- No name PA037239ECollege or university police
Agencies: FBI NIBRS master file 2025 batch headers; names from the FBI agency list, pulled 2026-09-29. An agency that serves several counties appears on each. Population served is the FBI's figure.
Crime
The crime index
| Offense | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Per 100k | Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 25 | 20 | 22 | 38 | 19 | 170 | 270 |
| Murder | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | Too few for a rate: the count is under 20. | 6.8 | |
| Rape | 9 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 56 | 31 |
| Robbery | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Too few for a rate: the count is under 20. | 61 | |
| Aggravated assault | 14 | 11 | 8 | 30 | 8 | 98 | 170 |
| Property crime | 84 | 104 | 97 | 75 | 71 | 592 | 1,445 |
| Burglary | 22 | 22 | 22 | 9 | 12 | 120 | 133 |
| Larceny | 52 | 75 | 62 | 58 | 51 | 410 | 1,108 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 10 | 7 | 13 | 8 | 8 | 63 | 204 |
| Arson | 1 | Too few for a rate: the count is under 20. | 12 |
Outside the crime index
| Offense | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Per 100k | Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All offenses outside the crime index | 506 | 508 | 481 | 384 | 312 | 3,011 | 2,703 |
| Simple assault and intimidation | 120 | 80 | 105 | 77 | 97 | 658 | 897 |
| Vandalism | 54 | 40 | 47 | 41 | 24 | 283 | 580 |
| Fraud | 133 | 100 | 36 | 43 | 42 | 487 | 415 |
| Drug abuse violations | 143 | 226 | 231 | 180 | 114 | 1,229 | 475 |
| Weapons: carrying, possessing, etc. | 10 | 14 | 31 | 21 | 7 | 114 | 158 |
| Stolen property: buying, receiving, possessing | 4 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 2 | Too few for a rate: the count is under 20. | 27 |
| Forgery and counterfeiting | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | Too few for a rate: the count is under 20. | 31 |
| Embezzlement | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 27 | 16 |
| Sex offenses (except rape and prostitution) | 18 | 29 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 99 | 51 |
| Other Group A offenses | 14 | 12 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 77 | 44 |
Offenses agencies in Lawrence County reported to the FBI in incident detail (NIBRS), each year, the second table by the arrest class each offense falls in. Per 100k: offenses per 100,000 people the reporting agencies police, 2021 to 2025 added together, beside Pennsylvania's rate over the same years. Agencies that reported part of a year are counted with their people, as the state's rates count them. – means too few for a rate: the count is under 20.
Source: FBI NIBRS national master files, each agency's offenses and the FBI's population for it. Pennsylvania: the crime index: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CrimeDB's chosen value per year (the state page's figures); outside it: FBI NIBRS, agencies that sent incident detail.