Adults booked anywhere in the county go to the Cherokee County Detention Center at 110 Cedar Bluff Road, Centre, AL 35960. The building has 114 beds and holds both men and women.

The sheriff's non-emergency number is 256-927-3365, and sheriff's dispatch answers at 256-927-3939. Use the jail number, 256-927-6435, for questions about a specific inmate.

Cedar Bluff, Leesburg, Gaylesville and Sand Rock are small towns, and much of the county is lake shore and farmland patrolled by sheriff's deputies. Game wardens and troopers also make arrests on the water and along U.S. 411.

A Centre officer may keep someone at the station for paperwork, but adults are booked at the county detention center down the road. When in doubt, call the jail at 256-927-6435 or sheriff's dispatch at 256-927-3939. They can connect you with whoever handled the arrest.

Cherokee roster shows charges, bond and visiting eligibility. Write down the booking number. Searching in Cherokee?

Brand-new arrests post after booking finishes, which can take a few hours. If the name never appears, the person may have been released, ticketed, or taken by another agency, so call the jail to ask. VINELink offers free alerts.

Then they likely went home already. Officers may cite rather than arrest on small charges, and the ticket shows the court date and which court to report to. Keep that date. Skipping court in Centre leads to a warrant.

Alabama sets 48 hours for a probable-cause review after a warrantless arrest, with release on minimum bond if it doesn't happen. Warrant arrests get a judge within 72 hours when bond isn't posted. At that hearing the judge reads the charges, reviews the bond and asks about a lawyer. Domestic violence bonds wait for a judge, up to a day.

Bonds can be posted at the jail seven days a week, except during three shift-change blocks: 5:00 to 7:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. To 1:00 p.m., and 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. Under Aniah's Law, a Centre judge can deny bail for certain violent crimes, but only after a hearing. Amendment 1, in force since May 19, 2026, also lets courts withhold bail for attempted murder or firing into a lived-in car or home.

Cash bonds are paid in full at the circuit clerk's office, 373 East Main Street, Suite 102, Centre, 256-927-3637, or online by card. Property bonds need two signers. Bonding companies must be licensed in Cherokee County.

Schedule examples include $300 to $6,000 for a Class A misdemeanor and $2,500 to $15,000 for a Class C felony. The state adds a 3.5% fee and $35. Judges can deny bail for certain violent charges after a hearing. See the Cherokee bail page.

District Court in Centre handles misdemeanors and early felony stages. Circuit Court tries indicted felonies. City charges from Centre officers may be heard in the city's municipal court. The Cherokee court process page explains each step.

Someone who can't pay for counsel should ask the judge at the first appearance. The judge checks income and, if it qualifies, appoints a lawyer. Families can hire private counsel at any time.

Felony means possible prison over a year. Misdemeanor means a year or less in jail. View filings at the clerk's counter at no cost, or pay for Alacourt online. Remember that the first charge listed may change once the district attorney files.

Phone 256-927-6435, ask for the supervisor, and list medicines and conditions. Say clearly if the person is pregnant, has seizures, or needs insulin. Document arrest injuries for counsel with photos and dates.

Cherokee uses screens for visiting, in 20-minute blocks. Logging in from your own device runs $0.20 a minute, and an inmate can have unlimited visits per day. Visitors under 17 come with an adult. Ask the jail whether on-site screens are available. Our remote visit page and visitation guide explain setup.

Money can go on online or by phone. Ask the jail about a lobby kiosk. The balance pays for commissary snacks, hygiene items and calls. Our guide on deposits covers fees.

Yes, by calling out on a prepaid account. Ask the jail how calls get set up for your number. Calls are recorded, so the case should stay off the phone. See calling.

Include the legal name and booking number on letters. Cherokee jail mail: our Cherokee County guide. Belongings taken at booking come back at release.

After bond posts, allow time for paperwork, and call ahead. Avoid arriving during the shift-change blocks listed above, when bonds aren't processed.

Longer sentences fall to ADOC, not the county. They wait in the Centre jail until ADOC picks them up. The first ADOC stop is an intake prison. Workers there screen them for gang connections, medical and mental health care, and security level. The last step is the prison that fits them.

To follow the move, open the ADOC inmate search. Our Alabama prison page lists every state prison.

Contact sheriff's dispatch at 256-927-3939 or the clerk at 256-927-3637. A lawyer can help arrange a surrender, often with bond lined up ahead of time.

Children go through juvenile court and are kept apart from adults. A detention hearing must occur inside 72 hours. The clerk can connect you with juvenile intake. Some 16- and 17-year-olds may be charged as adults for serious felonies.

Federal agents from groups such as IRS Criminal Investigation or the U.S. Marshals Service handle most federal arrests, often alongside Centre police. Court in Anniston handles Cherokee County cases for the Northern District, Eastern Division: 1100 Gurnee Avenue, Anniston, AL 36201, 256-741-1533. The Anniston courthouse isn't staffed daily; call the clerk in Birmingham, 205-278-1700. Before December 2024 these cases went to Gadsden, but they now go to Anniston. Within a day or so, the defendant appears before a magistrate judge. Pretrial services first meets the defendant and reports to the judge. There is no bail schedule in federal court. A short hearing decides detention or release, under the federal Bail Reform Act.

Look them up on Cherokee County Inmate Search. The district's Marshals office in Birmingham knows where the person is: 205-829-6611, 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203. Until sentencing, U.S. Marshals can keep federal prisoners in local jails. After a federal sentence, a prisoner is sent into the federal prison system (BOP), often weeks later. Find the person through the BOP locator by name.

• ICE hears about an arrest from fingerprints staff share. ICE sometimes issues a detainer (Form I-247A).
• A posted bond doesn't clear an ICE hold — the clock starts then.
• That form requests jail staff to hold them a maximum of 48 hours beyond their release time. After the 48 hours pass, the detainer expires.
• During that window, ICE often arrives to pick them up. If ICE doesn't show up, that means release when the hold ends.
• Their next facility depends on ICE.
• To learn their location, phone the New Orleans field office at 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360.
• Search the ICE locator using the A-number plus home country. Anyone without the A-number can enter the person's full name, birth country, and date of birth.

Yes. You can view Cherokee County mugshots by name in the Cherokee booking roster. If the photo is missing, ask the Cherokee jail.

When a mugshot isn't online, news outlets can call the sheriff's office, 256-927-3365, and ask. A federal booking photo is not public, even to reporters. U.S. Marshals shoot those photos and release one only to find an escapee or fugitive, to aid the search or alert the public or if it's required immediately to keep people safe. Any ICE mugshot is released through ICE's FOIA form and ICE's approval.

Demands for gift cards or payment apps are fraud. Hang up and call the jail directly at 256-927-6435.

Call the Cherokee County Detention Center at 256-927-6435, or the clerk at 256-927-3637.