Imperial County Inmate Population Overview
The Imperial County Sheriff's Office operates the local adult jail system through its Corrections Division. The current sheriff jail page describes three jail facilities with combined bed space of 876 beds: Herbert Hughes Correctional Center, Oren R. Fox Detention Facility, and the Regional Adult Detention Facility. Those buildings are on the same Sperber Road jail campus, but they do not serve the same role. RADF is the intake, classification, and medical hub, so a newly arrested person may pass through that building before the final housing decision is made.
The Imperial County inmate population is not one single list. County jail detainees may be waiting for arraignment, serving a local sentence, held on a warrant, or waiting for transfer. State prisoners at Calipatria State Prison and Centinela State Prison are in CDCR custody, not sheriff custody. Immigration detainees at Imperial Regional Detention Facility are in ICE civil detention. A useful Imperial County inmate search asks first which legal system holds the person.
Imperial County Inmate Population Statistics
The best local capacity figures come from the Imperial County Sheriff's Office Corrections-Jail page. The page lists the three county jail buildings, their functions, and the total current bed space. The research file did not include a verified average daily population from the BSCC dashboard, so no daily population number is stated here as fact. Capacity is a building measure. Daily population is a count of people actually held on a reporting date or during an average period.
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Herbert Hughes Correctional Center | 314 beds | Imperial County Sheriff's jail page |
| Oren R. Fox Detention Facility | 274 beds | Imperial County Sheriff's jail page |
| Regional Adult Detention Facility | 288 beds | Imperial County Sheriff's jail page |
| Combined sheriff-listed bed space | 876 beds | Imperial County Sheriff's jail page |
The BSCC Jail Profile Survey dashboard is the official state route for county jail population reporting. It should be used when a date-specific Imperial County inmate population count is needed. The dashboard data can differ from the sheriff's bed descriptions because one source counts people and the other describes facility capacity.
Imperial County Jail Population Flow
Arrest does not always mean a person remains in the first jail building where intake begins. The sheriff page says all incarcerated persons are first housed at RADF while awaiting medical screening and classification interview. After that review, a person can remain at RADF or be transferred to OFDF or HHCC. Classification means the jail evaluates custody level, health needs, charge type, housing safety, and program eligibility before assigning a bed.
The flow usually reads: arrest by sheriff, city police, CHP, or another agency; booking and intake; medical and mental-health screening; classification; housing assignment; court filing; then release, continued custody, sentence, hold, or transfer. Court records may lag behind the jail record. A person can be in sheriff custody before the Superior Court public portal shows a case.
- Booking
- Administrative intake after arrest, including identity checks, property inventory, fingerprints, and a booking photo.
- Classification
- Jail review that helps set housing, medical handling, security level, and work-program eligibility.
- Detainer
- A hold request or notice from another agency that can affect release or transfer.
How to Search Imperial County Inmates
No official public Imperial County online jail roster was located in the research pass. That makes the access chain more important than a search box. Start with the sheriff's jail page for official jail context, then call the jail main line if the person was recently arrested. Use the records division when a written booking or incident record is needed, and use the court portal only after a case has been filed.
- Call the Imperial County jail main line at (442) 265-2220 for current custody and housing questions.
- Ask whether intake and classification are complete, especially if the arrest was recent.
- Search the Imperial Superior Court public portal after filing for case number, charges, hearings, and disposition.
- Contact sheriff records through the Support Services page for booking records or report requests.
- Use VINELink, CDCR CIRIS, ICE ODLS, or the BOP locator when county custody is not the right system.
After a case is filed, the Imperial Superior Court public portal is the official place to check court case activity tied to an Imperial County jail arrest.
The portal image fits this search path because court records answer charge and hearing questions that the jail phone line cannot fully resolve.
Imperial County Roster Search Limits
Because the official sheriff site did not expose a public roster, Imperial County inmate lookup fields are not available as a local web form. A phone or records request may still produce releasable booking details. California law supports disclosure of specified contemporaneous arrest information, but law-enforcement exemptions can limit release when safety, investigations, privacy, or other protected interests apply.
| Access Channel | Best Use | Important Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Jail phone line | Current custody, housing, intake status | Staff may limit details by policy or law |
| Sheriff records | Booking, incident, report, local warrant records | Fees, ID, redactions, and processing time may apply |
| Court portal | Filed charges, case status, hearings | Not a live jail roster |
| VINELink | Custody status and notifications | Depends on agency data feed |
The screenshot below comes from the official sheriff jail page, which describes the jail facilities and custody programs but does not provide a public roster search. See the source at the Imperial County Sheriff's Corrections-Jail page.
That distinction matters for readers because the official jail page is still useful even when it is not a searchable inmate list.
What Imperial County Inmate Records Show
An Imperial County jail record may include name, booking number, booking date, arresting agency, arrest basis, bail status, housing facility, release status, and court date if the information is releasable. The court record may show filed charges, case number, hearing dates, bail minutes, warrants, amendments, dismissals, and disposition. These are related records, but they are not the same record.
| Field | Where It Usually Comes From |
|---|---|
| Name and custody status | Jail phone, VINELink, or records channel |
| Booking number and date | Sheriff booking record if releasable |
| Charges | Booking allegation at jail, filed counts in court portal |
| Bail or hold status | Jail and court, depending on stage |
| Housing facility | Jail main line after classification |
| Disposition | Imperial Superior Court record |
Imperial County State and Federal Search
Imperial County has two CDCR prisons inside the county: Calipatria State Prison and Centinela State Prison. They hold sentenced California state prisoners. A person in either prison is searched through CDCR CIRIS, not the sheriff jail line. CDCR records can show a prison number, current location, admission or reception date, offense or commitment information, and release or parole data when public.
Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico is an ICE detention facility. ICE ODLS is the correct route for immigration detainees, using an A-number and country of birth or biographical search fields. For federal sentenced custody, use the BOP locator. No BOP prison was identified in Imperial County, and BOP may not show federal pretrial detainees held under U.S. Marshals authority.
For custody-status alerts rather than a one-time record lookup, VINELink is the notification channel documented in the research for Imperial County and California custody searches.
VINELink is useful when a reader needs release or transfer alerts, while CDCR, ICE, BOP, and the jail line remain the better routes for system-specific records.
| System | Who It Covers | Lookup |
|---|---|---|
| Imperial County jail | Recent arrestees, pretrial detainees, local sentenced inmates | Jail phone, sheriff records, court portal, VINELink |
| CDCR | Sentenced state prisoners | CDCR CIRIS |
| ICE | Civil immigration detainees | ICE ODLS |
| BOP | Federal sentenced prisoners | BOP Inmate Locator |
Laws for Imperial County Jail Records
California public-records law helps explain why some jail facts may be available while other details are withheld. The California Public Records Act is the broad public-records framework. Government Code section 7923.610 requires disclosure of specified arrest information, including name, arrest and booking times, charges, bail, release facts, and warrants. Government Code section 7923.615 permits limits when disclosure would endanger safety or interfere with an investigation.
Important: A public arrest-information rule is not the same thing as an unrestricted mugshot gallery or full criminal-history database.
Jail operations are also shaped by Penal Code section 6030, which directs BSCC to establish minimum standards for local detention facilities, and Title 15 local detention standards. Death-in-custody review and reporting are addressed through Penal Code section 6031.1 and related BSCC processes.
Imperial County Detention Facilities
The facility map includes three sheriff jail buildings, two state prisons, and one ICE detention facility. The names matter because each system answers a different kind of inmate population question.
- Imperial County Regional Adult Detention Facility - county intake, classification, medical, and detention housing.
- Herbert Hughes Correctional Center - county jail housing and programs at the El Centro jail campus.
- Oren R. Fox Detention Facility - county adult detention building at the sheriff jail campus.
- Calipatria State Prison - CDCR state prison for sentenced prisoners.
- Centinela State Prison - CDCR state prison in Imperial County.
- Imperial Regional Detention Facility - ICE civil immigration detention facility in Calexico.
Imperial County Jail Programs
The sheriff jail page gives more local program detail than many counties publish. Education and reentry programs include GED, ESL, Volunteers of America, 24/7 Dad, Second Chance, Anger Management, Inside Out, 24/7 Mom, AA/NA, and family literacy events. Worker assignments include grounds clean-up, roadside clean-up, culinary work, commissary, housekeeping, laundry services, and car wash work.
Outside work crew eligibility is limited. The sheriff states that outside crews must be sentenced, free from violent and sexual crimes, and not on disciplinary sanctions. Workers are screened by charges, medical clearance, classification review, and placement needs. Medication and mental-health concerns should go through jail staff and the official medication information forms on the sheriff forms page.
Imperial County Inmate Population FAQ
How big is the Imperial County inmate population?
The verified current capacity figure from the sheriff jail page is 876 combined county jail beds. A date-specific daily population count should be checked through BSCC Jail Profile Survey data because the research file did not provide a verified current ADP.
Is there an online Imperial County jail roster?
No official public sheriff roster was located in the research pass. For current jail custody, call the jail main line, then use sheriff records, the court portal, VINELink, CDCR, ICE, or BOP if the person is outside county jail custody.
Are CDCR prisoners part of the county jail population?
No. Calipatria and Centinela are physically in Imperial County, but their prisoners are in CDCR custody. Use CDCR CIRIS for state prison lookup.