Texas inmate search

At the county level, sheriffs usually take care of custody and handle bail procedures. That’s where local detention happens. County and municipal jails fall under the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, which covers recreation, education, and rehabilitation programs.

A local search puts you in touch with the sheriff's office, which operates the county's facilities:

• The Harris County Sheriff's Office manages Harris County Jail, with buildings on San Jacinto Street plus contract jails in Beaumont, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
• The Tarrant County Sheriff's Office operates Tarrant County Jail, which has about 5,000 beds spread over 5 facilities.
• The Travis County Sheriff's Office runs Travis County Jail, including the Travis County Correctional Complex.
• The El Paso County Sheriff's Office Detention Bureau runs the Downtown Detention Facility along with a Jail Annex.

Search rules you'll see differ by county, because every county operates an online lookup of its own. Your name search on the Dallas County Jail lookup calls for a last name, first name, sex, and race. You don't have to give a date of birth, and booking or case numbers also work for a search.

The Lubbock County Detention Center roster lets you look someone up by booking number, name, or Sheriff's Office number. After the person sees a magistrate, bond amounts appear; this judge holds initial hearings at least 2 times daily. Bexar County has the Adult Detention Center magistrate search, which you can check; it only lists people and charges for Class B offenses or higher processed in the last 24 hours.

For an arrest that just happened, phone the jail directly, since new bookings need hours before they're posted.

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice, shortened to TDCJ, runs state prisons in Texas. State prison custody can be checked through the online inmate search from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

That search only shows people currently incarcerated in a TDCJ facility. Someone arrested last night won't show up on it, and neither will a person held in a county cell awaiting court.

After an arrest, people are held in county jails, while those serving a state sentence are in state prisons. A county sheriff's roster is the right place to look if your family member hasn't been moved to a state unit.

Appriss runs VINELink, a service where you can view custody status and register for free alerts. You can find an offender on it and register for alerts when custody status changes.

If you'd rather call, the Appriss Customer First Center offers toll-free help at 1-866-277-7477. You can reach that line 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

The Integrated Victim Services System is another tool you can use for victim notifications. On September 1, 2026, that county program shifts from the Office of the Attorney General over to the Office of the Governor.

Once bail is set in Texas, 3 release options are open to you: a bail bond, a personal bond, or a cash deposit. With a personal bond, you're released on a promise and don't pay cash up front. A bonding company posts a bail bond as a financial guarantee. Using a bonding company means paying a premium, which is the fee the bail agent charges. There's more detail on how bail works if you want it.

Bail bond forms, rules, and rates aren't regulated by the Texas Department of Insurance. No premium percentage is stated. Bonding is governed by Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 17, Occupations Code Chapter 1704, and Insurance Code Chapter 2301, Subchapter A. Once a county reaches 110,000 people, County Bail Bond Boards are required and handle licensing for sureties and agents. An agent you hire needs a state license for general lines property and casualty where no board exists.