Shelby County Jail

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The Shelby County Jail is located at 100 Hurst Street in Center, TX and is a medium security county jail operated by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department.

This page tells you info about anything one might want to know about the Shelby County Jail, such as how to find an inmate at the Shelby County Jail, the jail’s address and phone number, booking and intake procedures, how to find your court records, and lots more.

Top 10 Searches for Shelby County Jail

1. Shelby County Jail Information
2. Shelby County Jail Inmate Search
3. Shelby County Inmate Search in Center, TX
4. Shelby County Jail Visitation Rules
5. Shelby County Jail Visitation Hours
6. How To Save Money on Inmate Calls at Shelby County Jail
7. How to Send Inmate Care Packages to Shelby County Jail
8. What is Inmate Commissary?
9. How to Send Money to an Inmate at Shelby County Jail
10. How to Search Shelby County Arrest Records

Introduction

The purpose of this guide is to offer info that you’ll need to make the process a lot easier. If you have a question, just ask it, and also any tips or comments that would be a benefit to others is much appreciated.

Shelby County Jail Inmate Search

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Who’s In Jail

The Shelby County Jail Inmate List is an online list of people who have been arrested and are in custody, including current status, and visiting hours. Also, you can find info on anyone arrested and processed or released within the past 24 hours. Jail inmates are listed alphabetically by last name. You can find the information quicker if you have your friend or family member’s first and last name, date of birth, or inmate ID.

Shelby County Jail Policies and Procedures

Intake Procedures

The jail intake procedure at the Shelby County Jail takes you through the following steps:

You will get put in a holding cell. If there are a lot of arrests, you will have to wait a while to get processed.

You will have to answer some basic questions, like what is your legal name, street address, birthdate and contact person, and they’ll also ask you about your medical and mental history. Next, you’ll be given an inmate ID number and you will be fingerprinted. Then, any personal property you have will be taken away from you and stored until you get discharged from jail.

You will be allowed to make a telephone call in order to call a member of your family, friend, or loved one.

If they expect that you will make bail and be released quickly, you might get to wear your street clothes, if not you will be issued a jumpsuit.

Discharge Procedures

Once bail has been posted, you will get released from jail. The discharge process takes between 10 minutes to hours or even all day long. So, the faster you can post bail, the sooner you will be freed. Also, how fast you get released can depend on whether or not you’ve been given a cash bond or if a magistrate must decide on your bail amount. For lesser charges, you will be booked and then released on your recognizance without having to pay bail. When you have served out your jail sentence and know the date of your release, you should plan to get released that morning.

Shelby County Jail Visitation

In order to have visitors, inmates must provide each visitor’s name to the Shelby County Jail in advance. This information will be put in the visitation log for the inmate. Each and every visitor will have to provide acceptable photo identification. Visitors that arrives for visitation late or any visitors that are not approved to visit will be turned away.

Visitation procedures frequently change, so make sure that you call the jail at (936) 598-5600 before go to the jail to visit an inmate.

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Visitation Rules

Before you can visit someone at the Shelby County Jail you must first be added to the inmate’s visitation list.

Be sure to bring your valid driver’s license or government issued ID when you go to visitation because you will not be allowed to enter without it.

No cellphones at Shelby County Jail, and you will be searched before visiting. Personal belongings are not allowed. Anyone on must get the permission of both the superintendent and their individual supervising officer before they can visit. Usually is not normally approved.

If a visitor is younger than 18 years of age is related to the inmate, they must be accompanied by an adult family member or guardian to include a member of the inmate’s extended family. If the visitor is younger than 18 years old and is not a family member of the inmate, the minor visitor must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Sending Mail to Inmates

This is what you need to know about sending letters, photos, postcards, greeting cards and even magazines to an inmate at the Shelby County Jail. Incoming and outgoing inmate mail at the Shelby County Jail is always searched and inspected for contraband that might threaten the security, safety or well-being of the facility, its staff, and inmates. Inmates can only receive metered, unstamped, plain white postcards no larger than 4″ x 6″ as mail. The writing on the postcard has to be in pencil or blue or black ink. If it has a stamp on it, it will get returned. If you write in green ink, then it will get returned. If you send any other kind of mail will be returned to the sender. If there is no return address on it, then the unauthorized mail will be stored in the inmate’s locker until the inmate gets release.

Do not include any of these things in the mail that you send to an inmate: any kind of threat to jail order, any description of the manufacture of weapons, bombs, incendiary devices, or tools for escape; do not encourage or advocate any kind of violence, hate speech, or racial or ethnic supremacy. Inmates are not allowed to write to other inmates.

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Sending Other Things to an Inmate

There are strict procedures that you must follow to send anything to an inmate at the Shelby County Jail. This includes sending money for to spend in the commissary, sending regular mail or photos, sending money for phone calls, and even postcards.

This page covers everthing you need to know about the Shelby County Jail to help you follow these procedures and guidelines. If you have questions, or there is something that you were looking for, but did not find, please contact us using the contact link in the site menu.

Public Records

Warrant Inquiry

If you think you might have an outstanding warrant, you can check court records on the Shelby County court website or you are able to call the jail. You have to have their first and last name. You can also go to the local jail and ask them. You should be clear that if you do have an outstanding warrant, you will be taken into custody immediately.

Arrest Record Search

If you know the person’s first and last name, and the date of their arrest, contact the Shelby County jail, on the phone, in person, or find out online. An arrest is public record and the information is available to anyone.

Court Records

Court Records are considered public records, so they are accessible to anyone who requests them. These records include a court case file containing a docket and all of the filings and documents filed in your case. You are able to access the court records via the internet, or at Clerk of Court where the case was filed.

Criminal Records

Each and every state keeps a record of a person’s criminal background. These online databases are all connected and you can track criminal backgrounds from another state. Go to courthouse and check in person, or you can check online. It helps to know which county the crime occurred in, and in the event that the crime was in a totally different state, you might have to pay for a more intensive search.

When you look up a person’s crminal records you will be able to find out if someone has been arrested, charged, or convicted for crimes, which include, drug offenses, kidnapping, rape or other sexual assault, violent crimes, or breaking and entering, theft, larceny.

Money & Commissary

The rules for sending funds to someone in jail is likely to change, so it would be best to double check the Shelby County Jail site when you send money to an inmate.

How To Send Money to an Inmate at Shelby County Jail

You will have your own ‘bank account’ while in jail. This money is used to purchase items from the Commissary. Family and friends can deposit money into this account for you, and any money you earn while in prison will also be deposited into your account. Outside money can be paid in to your account via a money order, cash or check. If someone sends a check or money order, make sure that they write your inmate ID on it. The maximum amount you are allowed in your account is $290 per month.

Guidelines For Sending Money To An Inmate

Before you send any money you should find out what online money transfer companies the jail your inmate is incarcerated in uses. The exact method that the Shelby County Jail uses changes frequently, so it is best to call them at (936) 598-5600 to get the current payment method.

You may be required to be on the inmate’s visitation list in order to send them money, and be aware that they may have a limit on how much you deposit at one time, like $200-300 at a time, or a limit on how much money may be in the inmate’s account at one time.

Some of the money transfer firms being used by various facilities include JPay, MoneyGram, AccessCorrections, OffenderConnect, Touchpayonline, JailATM, WU, smartdeposit, and tigercommissary.

If an inmate has fines or are required to pay restitution then they will be subject to garnishment of their commissary/trust account. If the inmate has a garnishment, then money to pay them will be taken from the inmate’s bank account. In some cases it may be a percentage or the entire amount of the obligation, but the actual percentage depends on the circumstances. We recommend that inmates talk to the counselor at their facility and try to find out. You can also try to make an arrangement so that only a percentage of your commissary funds are taken, instead of all your funds take at one time.

Commissary

The commissary is the Shelby County Jail store. An inmate can purchase different things here, like toiletries, snacks and writing supplies. Bear in mind that you will probably need to buy things from the commissary every day, and any infractions will cause you to lose commissary privileges.

The Commissary will sell an assortment of different items that inmates can buy if they have enough money in their account. These items include clothes, shoes, small snacks and other food items, as well as hygiene products like soap, shampoo, and disposable razors for shaving. The commissary also sells other things like books and magazines, televisions and radios, playing cards, headphones, MP3 players, and electronic tablets. They also sell everything need to write home to family, friends, and loved ones: paper, envelopes, and stamps. If an inmate is indigent and cannot afford paper and stamps, the jail will provide these things to an inmate who has not had any money in their commissary account for at least 30 days.

Phone Calls & Phone Usage Policy

The only phone calls that Shelby County Jail inmates are allowed to make are collect calls or through a pre-paid phone account . These phone calls are generally more costly than phone calls made at home. There is no limit to when you can make phone calls, how long you can talk, and how often you can make calls, but bear in mind lots of people want to use the phone – so you have to share. If you break the jail rules, an inmate’s ability to use the phone could be reduced or totally denied.

The Shelby County Jail phone number is: (936) 598-5600

How To Save Money on Inmate Calls

Correctional facility phone service companies have a monopoly at each facility that they operate the phone services for, which means that they get to set the prices. The money these phone service providers make off of all of the inmate phone calls are split with the facility, so there is no incentive for the jail or the counselors at the facility to show inmates or their family how to save money on inmate phone calls at the Shelby County Jail. The prices are posted and there are at least two different prices based on where the inmate is calling. The following three factors will determine how much an inmate phone call will cost: Where you are located; Where your inmate is located, What type of phone number you have.

For example, if your inmate is in federal prison, if you get a new local number then this will decrease your inmate’s phone call rate from $.21 per minute to only $.06 per minute.

For the other correctional facilities like state prisons, and local and county jails finding out how to lower your inmates phone charges can be more difficult. ArrestedResources.com keeps up to date with all of the changes that affect your inmate’s calling rate and in most cases is able to offer you an inmate calling number that will save you a lot of money on how much it costs you to call your inmate. In some cases, we will not be able to save you money on your inmate calls, and therefore we will not offer you an inmate calling number. In these cases, the jail or prison has set their inmate calling prices so high that nobody can save you money.

For more detailed information on how to save on inmate calls at Shelby County Jail, click the link below.

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