The Washington County Inmate Population
Washington County's official detention map is compact. The Washington County Sheriff's Office jail page identifies Washington County Jail as the local detention facility for the county and for Chatom, Millry, and McIntosh. No separate municipal jail, state prison, federal prison, ICE detention center, or regional jail in Washington County was confirmed in the official sources reviewed on May 27, 2026.
That means most local arrests first point to the county jail roster, while sentenced state prisoners move to the Alabama Department of Corrections inmate search. Federal defendants and immigration detainees follow still different paths through the U.S. Marshals Service, BOP, or ICE. The Washington County inmate population count therefore depends on whether the reader is measuring the jail, state prison transfers, or a live public roster snapshot.
Washington County Inmate Population Statistics
The main local figures come from the sheriff's jail page and the 2024 Alabama Law Enforcement Directory. WCSO says the jail houses an average of 80 inmates per day, while the directory lists Washington County Jail capacity as 65 beds. The public roster visible during research on May 27, 2026 showed about 29 name rows, but that was only a point-in-time public roster view.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Date |
|---|---|---|
| Average daily population | 80 inmates per day | Washington County Sheriff's Office jail page, reviewed May 27, 2026 |
| Rated / bed capacity | 65 beds | 2024 Alabama Law Enforcement Directory |
| Current public roster visible count | About 29 rows | WCSO current inmates table, point-in-time inspection May 27, 2026 |
| Washington County 2020 population | 15,388 | U.S. Census QuickFacts baseline cited in research |
Washington County Inmate Population Trends
Historical county jail trend data in the Vera Institute dataset shows Washington County's jail population moving between about 39 and 55 people in the years captured below. Those figures are not the same as WCSO's stated current average or the live roster count, but they help show that the local jail population can shift meaningfully from year to year.
| Year | Jail Population | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 51 | Vera county trend dataset; pretrial/sentenced split blank in research extract |
| 2020 | 38.7 | Vera county trend dataset |
| 2019 | 55 | Vera dataset reported 30 pretrial and 25 sentenced |
| 2018 | 40 | Vera dataset reported 33 pretrial and 7 sentenced |
| 2017 | 50 | Vera dataset reported 36 pretrial and 14 sentenced |
Who Makes Up the Washington County Inmate Population
Official Washington County sources reviewed did not publish a current demographic breakdown by sex, race, age, felony level, misdemeanor level, housing unit, or pretrial status. The WCSO jail page does identify the population functionally: people arrested or held for Washington County and the towns of Chatom, Millry, and McIntosh. The roster also shows that some entries can include failure-to-appear, probation revocation, and "Hold - Other Agencies" language.
- Pretrial and local jail custody - Use the WCSO current-inmate roster for people currently held in the county jail.
- Sentenced state prisoners - Use ADOC after a person is transferred from Washington County jail custody to state prison.
- Other-agency holds - The public charge column may show a hold, but it does not always identify the agency.
- Federal or immigration custody - Use BOP or ICE tools when the case is no longer local jail custody.
Washington County Jail Capacity and Overcrowding
The capacity and population figures should be read together. The 2024 directory lists a 65-bed capacity, while WCSO says the jail averages 80 inmates per day. If both figures reflect the same operating period, the average would exceed the listed capacity. The research did not locate a recent official county jail construction plan, consent decree, inspection report, or local litigation page that explains the difference.
Laws Governing the Washington County Inmate Population
Alabama law supports public access to many jail and court records, but it does not make every custody detail public. Booking records, jail books, and court filings have different rules from investigative reports, juvenile records, medical information, and jail-security material. For Washington County jail records, the public should start with the roster, then request specific records from WCSO or court records from the Washington County Circuit Clerk.
Key Statutes:
Alabama Code § 36-12-40 - gives residents a right to inspect and copy public writings unless an exception applies.
Alabama Code § 36-22-8 - requires sheriffs to keep a jail book or inmate record open for inspection during office hours.
Alabama Code § 12-21-3.1 - protects law-enforcement investigative reports and related materials in criminal investigation and prosecution contexts.
Alabama Code § 12-15-133 - restricts juvenile court records, so juvenile custody information should not be treated like adult jail records.
Washington County and the State Prison Population
No ADOC prison is listed in Washington County on the official ADOC facility-address page. When a person is sentenced from a Washington County case and transferred to state prison, the lookup path changes from the WCSO roster to the ADOC inmate search. ADOC's locator covers current state inmates, excludes Youthful Offender Act inmates from the search, and displays a maximum of 50 matching records at one time.
The ADOC inmate search page inspected in May 2026 listed statewide population totals of 27,694 total inmates, including 25,098 males and 2,594 females. Those live statewide counts are not Washington County jail counts, and ADOC totals can change as people enter, transfer, or release from state custody.
Official WCSO Roster Source
The sheriff's public page for current jail custody is the WCSO "Who's in Jail" page, which embeds the MobileSO current-inmates table.
This page matters because users may see MobileSO branding or iframe behavior even though the custody list is the Washington County Sheriff's Office path for local jail inmates.
How to Search the Washington County Inmate Population
The WCSO current roster at all.mobileso.com/OthReports/WCSOCurrentInmates.aspx is a free table. It does not present a public name-search box, booking-number field, filter, pagination control, or clickable inmate profile in the inspected view. Use the browser's find function or scan the table for the last name.
- Open the WCSO "Who's in Jail" page or the direct current-inmates iframe.
- Look for the table columns labeled NAME, DATE, BOND AMT, and CHARGES.
- Use browser find, usually Ctrl+F, and search the last name as it would appear before the comma.
- Read across the same row for the date, bond amounts, and charge labels.
- If the person is not listed, call WCSO, check the weekly booking page, search AlaCourt, or move to ADOC, BOP, ICE, or notification tools depending on custody stage.
Current Inmate Lookup in Washington County
The current roster is narrow but useful. It shows current custody information in a table rather than a full inmate profile. The research did not find a released-inmate retention period, refresh-frequency notice, DOB field, arresting-agency field, mugshot, court date, booking number, or housing location in the public roster table.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | Table column | Not user input | All-caps, surname first, often with given name or initials. |
| DATE | Table column | Not user input | M/D/YYYY format; the page does not define the date beyond the column label. |
| BOND AMT | Table column | Not user input | May show multiple dollar amounts, blank entries, or .00 lines. |
| CHARGES | Table column | Not user input | Multiple charges or holds can appear as line-broken text. |
Past and Released Inmate Records
The WCSO current-inmate roster should not be treated as an archive. If a person is no longer listed, they may have bonded out, transferred, been released, moved to ADOC after sentencing, or been held under another system. For an older booking record, contact WCSO at washcoso.com, by phone at (251) 847-2202, or in person at 45 Court Street in Chatom with the person's name, approximate booking date, and record requested.
What a Washington County Inmate Record Shows
The public roster is a limited custody list rather than a full booking packet. It gives enough information to confirm a possible current match, but it omits many fields families often expect from larger jail portals.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Name | Current inmate name in last-name-first format. |
| Date | A custody or booking-related date in M/D/YYYY format; exact meaning is not defined on the page. |
| Charges | Plain-English booking or hold descriptions, sometimes split across multiple lines. |
| Bond Amount | One or more listed dollar amounts when published for the row. |
| Not shown | No mugshot, DOB, booking number, arresting agency, court date, housing unit, or release status was visible in the public table. |
County Jail vs. State Prison: Where to Look
Washington County Jail and ADOC answer different custody questions. The sheriff's roster is for local jail custody. ADOC's locator is for people currently incarcerated in Alabama state prison after transfer, not for every person recently arrested in Washington County.
| County Jail | State Prison | |
|---|---|---|
| Who Is Held | Pretrial detainees, short local jail custody, local holds | Sentenced state prisoners after DOC transfer |
| Run By | Washington County Sheriff's Office | Alabama Department of Corrections |
| Where to Look | WCSO current-inmate roster | ADOC inmate search |
| Stays Listed | Released-retention period not published | ADOC says the online database contains currently incarcerated inmates only |
State and Federal Inmate Search
Use ADOC for sentenced Alabama prisoners, BOP for sentenced federal inmates from 1982 to present, and the ICE Online Detainee Locator System for immigration custody. Victims and registered users can also start at VINELink or the Alabama Victim Notification System for custody-notification registration.
Washington County Detention Facilities
Only one local detention facility was confirmed inside Washington County from the official source set. Other custody systems may matter after transfer, but they are not separate Washington County facility pages.
- Washington County Jail - county jail in Chatom operated by the Washington County Sheriff's Office for Washington County, Chatom, Millry, and McIntosh custody.
Washington County Inmate Population FAQ
How big is the Washington County inmate population?
WCSO states that the jail houses an average of 80 inmates per day, while the 2024 Alabama Law Enforcement Directory lists 65 beds. A live public roster count can be lower or higher at a given moment and should not be treated as the official average.
How do I search the Washington County inmate population?
Start with the WCSO current-inmate roster. It is a free table with no public search box, so use browser find or scan by last name. If the person is not listed, call WCSO, check the weekly booking page, search court records, or use ADOC/BOP/ICE depending on the case.
Can I look up a released or past inmate?
The current roster is not a complete release archive. For older jail records, contact WCSO directly. For filed charges, use Washington County Circuit Clerk or AlaCourt. For a sentenced state prisoner, use the ADOC locator.