West Des Moines Police Jail

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The West Des Moines Police Jail is located at 250 George M Mills Civic Parkway in West Des Moines, IA and is a medium security police department jail operated by the West Des Moines Police Department.

This guide tells you information about anything you might want to know about the West Des Moines Police Jail, such as how to find an inmate at the West Des Moines Police Jail, the jail’s phone number and address, booking and intake procedures, how to find Polk County court records, and everything else.

Top 10 Searches for West Des Moines Police Jail

1. West Des Moines Police Jail Information
2. West Des Moines Police Jail Inmate Search
3. Polk County Inmate Search in West Des Moines, IA
4. West Des Moines Police Jail Visitation Rules
5. West Des Moines Police Jail Visitation Hours
6. Discount West Des Moines Police Jail Inmate Calls
7. How to Send Inmate Care Packages to West Des Moines Police Jail
8. What is Inmate Commissary?
9. How to Send Money to an Inmate at West Des Moines Police Jail
10. How to Search Polk County Arrest Records

Introduction

The purpose of this guide is to give info you need to make getting locked up a little less stressful. If you have a question, please feel free to ask it, and please leave any tips or comments that could be a benefit to other people in the same situation will be appreciated.

West Des Moines Police Jail Inmate Search

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Who’s In Jail

The West Des Moines Police Jail Inmate List is an online list of people who are in jail, which includes current status, and times the inmate can have visitors. Also, you can get the same information about anyone processed or released within the past 24 hours. Inmates are listed alphabetically by last name. You can find their arrest information fast if you have the arrestee’s full name, birth date, or arrest number.

West Des Moines Police Jail Policies and Procedures

Intake Procedures

The intake procedure at the West Des Moines Police Jail includes the following steps:

You will be placed in a holding cell. If the jail is really busy, you will have to wait, sometimes for many hours, before you get processed.

First you will answer a number of questions, like your full name, address, birth date and an emergency contact, and they’ll also ask about your psychological and medical history. Next, You will be given an inmate ID number and your fingerprints will be taken. Then, Any property you have will be taken from you and will be stored until you are released.

You will then be allowed to use the telephone in order to talk to a member of your family, friend, or loved one.

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

Discharge Procedures

When you pay your bail, you will get discharged from jail. The discharge process takes from 10 minutes to all day. So, the faster you can pay your bail, the quicker you will get discharged from jail. Also, it depends on if you have a cash bond amount or if the magistrate has to figure out how much to set your bail at. For lesser charges, you will be booked and released on your own recognizance. If you have served a sentence in jail and know the date of your release, expect to get discharged in the morning.

West Des Moines Police Jail Visitation

Inmates must provide each visitor’s name to the West Des Moines Police Jail before anyone can visit them. This information will be entered into a log of visitors for the inmate that requested the visitor. Every visitor has to provide acceptable photo identification when visiting an inmate. Any visitors showing up late or that does not have a visting order will not be able to attend visitation.

Jail visitation policies are always changing, so it would be wise to call the jail at 515-222-3320 before you try to visit an inmate.

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Visitation Rules

Before you can visit someone at the West Des Moines Police Jail you have to first have your name on their approved visitation list.

Make 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 are allowed at West Des Moines Police Jail, and you will be searched before you can visit. Personal belongings are not allowed. Anybody probation, parole, or other community corrections supervision must obtain the permission of both their individual supervising officer and the superintendent prior to a visit. Such visitation is not approved.

If a visitor is younger than 18 years of age and is a family member of the inmate, they will have to be accompanied by an adult family member or guardian to include a member of the inmate’s extended family. If a visitor is younger than 18 years old and is not related to 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 West Des Moines Police Jail. Incoming and outgoing inmate mail at the West Des Moines Police 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 West Des Moines Police 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 West Des Moines Police 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 believe you have a warrant out for your arrest, you can check arrest warrants online or you can call the court. You have to have their first and last name. You can also go to the local jail and ask one of the officers. You should know that if there is a warrant for your arrest, you should be prepared to get taken into custody immediately.

Arrest Record Search

If you have a first and last name, and possibly an arrest date, contact the Polk County jail, either by phone, go there in person, or look online. Records of arrests are a matter of public record and the information is accessible by the public.

Court Records

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

Criminal Records

Each and every state maintains records of someone’s criminal background. These state databases are all linked so you are able to track criminal backgrounds from another state. Go to courthouse and inquire, or check online. You must know which county the crime occured in, and in the event that the crime was in a totally different state, you might have to pay a fee for a more comprehensive search.

When you look up someone’s criminal record you are able to find out if a person has ever been arrested, charged or convicted for any crimes, which can include, drug offenses, kidnapping, sexual offenses including rape, assault, violent crimes like assault or murder, or theft.

Money & Commissary

The rules for sending money to inmates at the West Des Moines Police Jail are always changing, so you should review the West Des Moines Police Jail site before send money to someone in jail there.

How To Send Money to an Inmate at West Des Moines Police 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 West Des Moines Police Jail uses changes frequently, so it is best to call them at 515-222-3320 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 West Des Moines Police Jail store. Inmates can buy a number of things here, like toiletries, snacks and writing supplies. Bear in mind that you will most likely need to use the commissary on a daily basis, and any infractions will get that privilege taken away from you.

The Commissary will sell a selection of different products that inmates can purchase if they have sufficient funds in their commissary account. These items include clothes, shoes, small snacks and other food items, as well as personal hygiene products including 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 West Des Moines Police Jail inmates are allowed to make are made through a jail approved pre-paid phone account or phone card . Phone calls made in jail are a lot more expensive than phone calls made at home. There are certain restrictions about when you can make phone calls, how long you can talk, and how often you can make calls, but inmates should keep in mind that every inmate wants to use the phone too, so they can call their family. If you break the jail rules, an inmate’s phone privileges might get cut back or totally denied.

The West Des Moines Police Jail phone number is: 515-222-3320

How To Save Money on Inmate Calls

Correctional facility phone service companies have a monopoly at each facility that they operate, which means that they get to set the prices. The profits from all phone calls that inmates make 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 West Des Moines Police Jail. The rates are posted and there are at least two pricing tiers based on where the inmate is calling. The following three factors 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 finding out how to lower your inmates phone charges is 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 significantly on calling your inmate. There are some prisons or jails where we won’t be able to save you money on your inmate calls, and therefore we will not offer you an inmate calling number. In cases like this, 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 West Des Moines Police Jail, click the link below.

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