How do I find out where someone is being held?

Each county sheriff's office publishes a searchable inmate roster. Search by last name; spelling variations are worth trying, since booking records sometimes contain errors.

What you'll see: booking date and time, charges, bond amount or status, and whether any holds exist.

If the person isn't appearing, the usual explanations are that booking hasn't finished — which can take several hours — that the name was entered differently, or that they're being held by a different agency than you expect. Someone arrested by a city police department or by the Highway Patrol is generally transported to the county jail, but timing varies.

If they were arrested in one county and live in another, check the county where the arrest occurred rather than where they live.

The roster is the starting point, not the whole picture. It won't explain a hold, and the listed charges can change once the State reviews the case.