Sonoma County Detention Center

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The Sonoma County Detention Center is located at 2777 Ventura Avenue in Santa Rosa, CA and is a medium security county jail operated by the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Department.

This site tells you all the information about anything one might want to know about the Sonoma County Detention Center, such as how to locate an inmate, the jail’s address and phone number, intake procedures and booking, court information, and much much more.

Top 10 Searches for Sonoma County Detention Center

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

Introduction

This guide is meant to offer information and advice that you’ll need to make going to jail a little less stressful. If you have a question, feel free to ask it, and please leave any comments or tips that could be beneficial to other people in the same situation is appreciated.

Sonoma County Detention Center Inmate Search

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Who’s In Jail

The Sonoma County Detention Center Inmate Lookup is an online list of people currently in custody, including custody status, and times you can visit. Also, you can get the same information about anyone arrested and processed or released in the past 24 hours. Inmates are listed in alphabetical order by their last name. You will be able to locate the information more quickly if you enter their name, date of birth, or inmate ID.

Sonoma County Detention Center Policies and Procedures

Intake Procedures

The intake procedure at the Sonoma County Detention Center includes these steps:

You will be placed in a waiting area or cell. If the jail is really busy, you may not be processed immediately.

The first thing you will have to to is you must answer some questions, like what is your full name, home address, date of birth and an emergency contact, and also, you will also be asked about your mental and medical history. Next, You will be given an inmate ID and you will be fingerprinted. Then, any personal property you have will get taken away from you and stored until you get released.

You will then be allowed to make a telephone call to call a member of your family, friend, or somebody else who can help you get out.

If you are expected to be released shortly, you might get to wear your street clothes, but if you are not expected to make bail quickly you you will be given a jail uniform.

Discharge Procedures

When you pay your bail, you will be discharged from jail. Getting discharged will take anywhere between 15 minutes to hours or even all day long. Or, simply, the faster you post bail, the quicker you will get released. How quickly you get discharged can depend on whether you’ve been given a cash bond amount or if the magistrate must determine your bail amount. For a minor offense, you will be booked and released on your own recognizance. When you have served out your jail sentence and know the date of your release, plan to get discharged anywhere between the hours of 9am and 12pm.

Sonoma County Detention Center Visitation

In order to have visitors, inmates have to provide each visitor’s full name to the Sonoma County Detention Center before you can visit. Your visitor’s names will be put into a log of approved visitors for the inmate that requested the visitor. Each and every visitor has to provide proof of identification. Anyone that arrives for visitation late or that is not an approved visitor will be turned away.

The Sonoma County Detention Center visitation procedures are always changing, so you should call the jail at (707) 565-1400 before you go to the jail to visit.

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Visitation Rules

In order to visit an inmate at the Sonoma County Detention Center you have to first be added to their visitation list.

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

No mobile phones at Sonoma County Detention Center, and you will be searched before entering. No personal belongings. Anyone probation, parole, or other community corrections supervision must obtain the permission of both their individual supervising officer and the superintendent prior to a visit. This kind of visitation is not approved.

If the visitor is younger than 18 years of age and is a family member of 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 under the age of 18 and is not a family member of the inmate, this visitor must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

Sending Mail to Inmates

This is what you need to know in order to send letters, photos, postcards, greeting cards and magazines to an inmate at the Sonoma County Detention Center. Incoming and outgoing inmate mail at the Sonoma County Detention Center 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 Sonoma County Detention Center. 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 Sonoma County Detention Center 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 have a warrant out for your arrest, you can check arrest warrants online or you are able to call the court directly. 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 there is an arrest warrant out for you, they will take you into custody immediately.

Arrest Record Search

If you know a person’s name, as well as the date of their arrest, contact the jail, either by phone, go there in person, or you can check online. An arrest is in the public record and this information is freely available.

Court Records

Court Records are public, and are accessible by anyone. They include a case file that contains a docket sheet and all of the documents and filings filed in the case. You are able to access the court records via the internet service ‘Public Access to Court Electronic Records’, or at the Sonoma County Clerk of Court office in the county where the case was filed.

Criminal Records

Each state maintains a record of their state citizen’s criminal history. These online databases are all linked and you can track criminal histories from other states. You can go to the Sonoma County Courthouse and inquire, or check online. It is helpful to know the county, and in the event that it was in a completely different state, you might have to pay for a more comprehensive search.

When you look up a person’s crminal records you will get a report detailing any arrests, charges, or convictions that may be on a person’s record for the following crimes, drug crimes like possession or trafficking, kidnapping, rape or other sexual assault, violent crimes including assault, battery and murder, or theft, breaking and entering.

Money & Commissary

The procedure to send funds to Sonoma County Detention Center inmates might change, so be sure to review the Sonoma County Detention Center website before send funds to someone in jail there.

How To Send Money to an Inmate at Sonoma County Detention Center

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 Sonoma County Detention Center uses changes frequently, so it is best to call them at (707) 565-1400 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 Sonoma County Detention Center store. You can buy a number of things here, such as personal items, food, and things for writing. Bear in mind that you will probably want 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 the inmate can buy if they have money in their trust account. These products include clothes, shoes, small snacks and other food items, as well as personal 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

Phone calls that inmates are allowed to make from the Sonoma County Detention Center are with a pre-paid phone card or account, or are collect calls . Phone calls made in jail are generally pricier than regular phone calls. There is no limit to when you can make phone calls, how long you can talk, and how often you can make calls, but you should keep in mind that you are just one of many people who want to talk to their loved ones. If you break the rules and are disciplined, an inmate’s phone privileges might get cut back or eliminated altogether.

Phone Number: (707) 565-1400

How To Save Money on Inmate Calls

Correctional facility phone service providers have a monopoly at each facility that they have a contract with, which means that they get to set the prices. The profits these phone service providers make from all 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 Sonoma County Detention Center. The rates are posted and there are at least two different prices based on where the inmate is calling. The following three things will determine the cost of an inmate phone call: 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 learning how to decrease 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. There are some prisons or jails where we won’t be able to save you any money, and in these cases we will not offer you an inmate calling number. In cases like this, the jail or prison has set their phone rates so high that nobody will be able to save you money.

For more detailed information on how to save on inmate calls at Sonoma County Detention Center, click the link below.

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