Elkhart County Jail Inmate Search & Roster

Find an Elkhart County Jail Inmate and Check Current Custody

If someone was arrested in Elkhart, Goshen, Bristol, Middlebury, Millersburg, Nappanee, Wakarusa or elsewhere in Elkhart County, start with the inmate lookup linked by the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff provides access to the public inmate-search system used to check available county-jail custody information.

Use the jail lookup to answer the immediate custody question first. If you need filed criminal charges, a hearing date or the eventual outcome of the case, use Indiana MyCase separately because a jail booking record and a court case are not the same record.

Elkhart County Jail quick information

How to search the Elkhart County jail roster

1. Open the official Elkhart County Sheriff’s inmate-services page.
2. Find the Inmate Lookup section.
3. Open the inmate-search system linked by the Sheriff’s Office.
4. Enter the person’s legal last name and first name as accurately as possible.
5. If filters are available, choose Elkhart County and add identifying information such as date of birth when necessary.
6. Run the search and open the most likely matching record.
7. Compare identifying information before assuming the result belongs to the person you want.
8. Review available booking, custody, charge and bond information.
9. Save the inmate or booking identifier if one is displayed. You may need it for mail, deposits or jail questions.

You do not need to pay a people-search website simply to begin an Elkhart County inmate lookup.

What information can an inmate result show?

The exact fields can vary, but an Elkhart County jail result may provide information such as the person’s name, booking information, current custody status, charges and bond information. A booking image or additional identifiers may also appear when that information is made public.

Do not read a charge description as a conviction. A booking shows that a person entered custody; the related criminal case can later be amended, dismissed or resolved differently.

If the inmate does not appear in the search

A blank result does not automatically mean the person was never arrested. Work through these checks in order:

• Check the spelling of the legal first and last name.
• Remove a middle name, nickname or suffix and search again.
• Make sure you are searching Elkhart County rather than another Indiana county.
• If the arrest was very recent, allow time for transport, identification and booking.
• The person may already have posted bond or otherwise been released.
• The inmate may have been transferred to another county or agency.
• After sentencing, the person may have entered Indiana Department of Correction custody.
• A juvenile, sealed or otherwise restricted record may not appear publicly.

If you still need to confirm present custody, call the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Office and Jail at 574-891-2100.

Jail booking, court case and state-prison records are different

Check charges, court dates and case status

For the judicial side of an arrest, search Indiana MyCase. It provides public, non-confidential case information from Indiana courts that participate in the state’s electronic case-management system.

1. Open Indiana MyCase.
2. Choose the name search if you do not already have a case number.
3. Enter the person’s legal name.
4. Narrow the search to the appropriate Elkhart County court when needed.
5. Confirm the case belongs to the same person shown in the jail result.
6. Review the public case summary, filings and hearing information.

If online information is not enough, the Elkhart County Courthouse is at 1905 Reliance Road, Goshen, IN 46526. The courthouse phone number is 574-538-3000. Published office hours are Monday 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.

View Elkhart County court locations and contacts.

Bond and release information

If the inmate is eligible for bond, the Sheriff’s Office states that the procedure is explained to the inmate. Bond is determined by the court; the jail processes release after applicable requirements are met.

Cash bonds can be handled at the jail lobby at 26861 C.R. 26, Elkhart, IN 46517. No appointment is required and processing is first come, first served. The Sheriff’s Office warns that cash bonds paid between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. may involve a longer wait.

Bond processing can also be unavailable during formal inmate counts, shift-change counts and feeding periods because inmate movement is restricted.

For surety bonds, the Sheriff’s Office publishes a bondsman list but states that corrections officers cannot recommend a bondsman or give bond advice.

Check current Elkhart County bond instructions before traveling or paying because court orders, fees and procedures can change.

Visiting an inmate

Elkhart County offers both on-site and remote video visitation. Visitors must register and receive approval before scheduling.

On-site visitation

• Register online through the approved visitation system or at the facility.
• Schedule the appointment at least 24 hours in advance.
• The Sheriff’s current page lists on-site appointment times from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on days the lobby is open.
• There is a limit of one on-site visit per inmate per day.
• Visitors under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
• Valid identification is required.
• Only one adult and one child may be at a visitation booth at a time.

Remote video visitation

The Sheriff’s current visitation page lists remote visiting hours as Monday through Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., with advance scheduling required.

The currently published remote-visit prices are $6.95 for 20 minutes and $13.90 for 40 minutes. Confirm the amount before paying because vendor rates can change.

Read the official Elkhart County visitation rules.

Visitor identification and conduct rules

The Sheriff accepts valid government identification issued by a state, the U.S. government or a foreign country. The published policy also recognizes passports, matricula consular identification and identification without a photograph when required for religious reasons.

Visitors are subject to search and must follow dress and conduct requirements. Clothing associated with drugs, alcohol, weapons or gangs may be rejected. A visit may also be ended for prohibited conduct or misuse of another person’s visitation account.

How to send personal mail

Mail procedures can change because correctional facilities may use outside scanning or electronic-delivery systems. Before sending personal correspondence, use the Sheriff’s current inmate-services page to confirm the mailing address, inmate-ID requirement and prohibited items.

Always include the inmate’s full name and identification number exactly as shown by the jail when the current policy requires it. The sender should also use a complete name and return address.

Legal mail is handled differently

Attorney-client and other qualifying legal correspondence may follow different rules from ordinary personal mail. Do not assume that the personal-mail address is appropriate for privileged legal mail.

Attorneys and senders of privileged correspondence should verify the current legal-mail instructions with the facility before mailing time-sensitive documents.

Books, newspapers and magazines

Do not send books or publications until you check the current vendor and publisher rules on the Sheriff’s inmate-services page. Correctional facilities may restrict packages, require direct shipment from approved publishers or sellers, limit quantities and reject prohibited content.

Check current inmate mail and service rules.

Send money to an Elkhart County inmate

Before depositing money, search the inmate roster and confirm the correct inmate name and identifying number.

The Sheriff’s inmate-services page identifies JailATM among the services used for Elkhart County inmates. Start from the Sheriff’s page so you are using the provider currently approved by the facility rather than a look-alike payment site.

1. Confirm that the person is still in Elkhart County custody.
2. Open the Sheriff’s inmate-services page.
3. Follow its current money-deposit link.
4. Select the correct facility.
5. Search for the inmate using the requested identifying information.
6. Check the inmate name carefully before paying.
7. Review the transaction amount and service fee before submitting payment.
8. Keep the confirmation or receipt.

Open official inmate services.

Phone calls and communication

Inmates have access to outgoing phone calls while incarcerated. The Sheriff’s Office states that when an inmate calls, the recipient hears a recorded message identifying the call as coming from the jail and can accept or refuse it.

The Sheriff’s inmate-services page identifies Securus Technologies among the communication providers used for inmates. Use the Sheriff page to reach the current approved service.

Standard jail calls may be monitored or recorded. Sensitive legal communication should use an attorney-approved confidential method rather than an ordinary inmate phone call.

Track custody changes

If you need notifications rather than manually repeating an inmate search, use the victim-notification resources linked by the Sheriff’s Office or Indiana Department of Correction. Availability and notification types depend on the case and custody system.

If the person was transferred to an Indiana prison

The county jail roster is not a state-prison locator. If a person has been sentenced or transferred to Indiana Department of Correction custody, search the Indiana DOC Incarcerated Locator.

IDOC allows searches for people in its custody. A person disappearing from the Elkhart County jail search does not by itself tell you whether they were released, transferred or moved into state custody, so compare the jail result with the court case and IDOC records.

Request jail or Sheriff’s records

For records not available through the inmate lookup, the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Records Division handles available law-enforcement records and limited criminal-history requests.

The Sheriff’s Office lists Records Division hours as 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Its current published counter charges include:

Records-counter charges are separate from a basic inmate search. Check the current request page before paying or visiting.

View Elkhart County Sheriff’s records information.

Local arrest and booking context

Someone arrested in Elkhart County may initially encounter a city police department, the Sheriff’s Office, Indiana State Police or another law-enforcement agency. The arresting agency and the jail holding the person do not have to be the same organization.

This matters when someone was arrested in places such as Elkhart, Goshen, Bristol, Middlebury, Millersburg, Nappanee or Wakarusa but does not immediately appear in the county inmate search. Allow reasonable time for transport and booking, then check the county system again.

About the Elkhart County Corrections Complex

The Elkhart County Sheriff’s 2024 Annual Report states that the Corrections Complex has a capacity of 950 beds and averaged 906 inmates per month during 2024. These are 2024 operational statistics and should not be interpreted as today’s live jail population.

The Sheriff’s Corrections Division is responsible for functions including custody, inmate medical care, food service, programming, transportation, classification, training and commissary operations.

Use jail records carefully

An inmate search is useful for locating someone and checking custody information, but a booking or criminal charge does not establish guilt. Multiple people can also share the same or similar names.

Before making an important decision, compare the inmate’s identifying information and verify the related court case. For employment, housing, credit or another regulated background-screening decision, a jail roster should not be treated as a substitute for a legally compliant background check.

Related inmate-search guides

• Marion County, IN Jail Inmate Search & Roster
• Lake County Jail Inmate Search & Roster – Indiana
• Cook County Jail Inmate Search & Roster

Elkhart County Jail Inmate Search FAQs

Custody status, bond rules, visitation schedules, vendor fees and jail procedures can change. Verify time-sensitive information with the Elkhart County Sheriff’s Office or the court responsible for the case before making travel, payment or legal decisions.