The jail roster of San Bernardino County, California, is a public tool that allows you to find out who is currently in custody in county detention facilities. On the website SanBernardinoCourt.us, you can find publicly available information about current and recently released inmates. Additionally, data is available through the official inmate search tool of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, in person at the correctional facility's reception, or by phone. The roster is maintained by the Sheriff's Department through the Corrections Division; it is regularly updated and posted on the sheriff's official website. The search allows you to check a person's custody status, booking date, and charges.
Search Current Inmates in San Bernardino Jail
There are several ways to find information about current inmates in county correctional facilities.
Online Search
- Go to the Inmate Locator page on the Sheriff's Department website.
- Enter the person's full legal last name. Optionally, add the first name.
- If you know the booking number, use it — it is the most accurate way to search.
- Click the search button and review the results.
You can also use SanBernardinoCourt.us to search for publicly available court and penitentiary information.
By Phone
Call the main line of the county correctional facilities and provide the person's full name or booking number. The operator will be able to check if the person is in custody.
In Person
You can contact the public information window in the lobby of one of the county's main detention centers. Below are the contact details of the main facility:
West Valley Detention Center
Central Detention Center
The lobby schedule may change — check the visiting hours directly with the facility before your visit.
Important: Juvenile offenders are not displayed in the public inmate roster. Their records are confidential under California law.
Find San Bernardino Jail Booking Records Online
A booking record is created at the moment a detained person is officially admitted to a correctional facility. It is the first document that records a person's custody.
During the booking procedure, the following information is generated:
- Unique booking number
- Date and time of admission
- Charges
- Agency that made the arrest (e.g., sheriff, city police, or CHP)
- Basic personal information of the detainee
To access booking records online, use the Inmate Locator tool on the sheriff's website. Search results typically include the booking number, charges, and place of detention.
If you need documents not available in the online roster — such as arrest reports or old records — submit a public records request through the Public Records page of the Sheriff's Department. Some records may be restricted under the California Public Records Act. Separately, San Bernardino city police arrest logs are available on the city police department's website.
Search the San Bernardino Jail Roster by Last Name or Booking Number
The roster supports two main search methods.
Search by Last Name
Enter the last name in Latin letters in the appropriate field. If the last name is common, add the first name to narrow the results. Some practical tips:
- Check the spelling — even one incorrect letter can yield zero results.
- Try spelling variations if the last name has alternative forms (e.g., with or without a hyphen).
- If the system allows, enter only the first few letters of the last name for a partial search.
Search by Booking Number
The booking number is the quickest way to a specific record. It is usually provided during the admission procedure or indicated in documents related to the detention.
What to Do If the Search Yields No Results
A lack of results does not necessarily mean the person was not detained. Possible reasons:
- The person has already been released, and the record has been removed from the active roster.
- The booking procedure is not yet complete, and the data has not been entered into the system.
- The name was entered incorrectly or in a different format.
- The person is held in another facility or jurisdiction.
In such cases, contact the correctional facility directly by phone or submit a request through the public records request page. To check a court case, use the resources of the Superior Court of San Bernardino County.
Jail Roster Updates and Search Limitations in San Bernardino
The Sheriff's Department inmate roster is updated regularly throughout the day, but this does not happen instantly. There may be a delay of several minutes to several hours between the actual admission of a person to the facility and the appearance of the record in the online system, depending on the facility's workload and data processing speed.
Main limitations to consider:
- Delay after booking. During periods of high workload (weekends, holidays), records appear with a noticeable delay.
- Removal after release. When a person is released — on bail, by court order, or after serving their term — their record disappears from the active roster. The online tool only displays the current inmate population.
- Not an archive. The roster does not store the history of all past bookings. To obtain old records, an official request must be submitted to the Sheriff's Department.
- Data entry errors. Sometimes, last names or other data are entered incorrectly, complicating the search.
The roster is a snapshot of the current situation, not a complete database. To obtain official documents or certified copies of arrest records, contact the sheriff's public records division or use the resources of the California Public Records Act at the state level.