Choctaw County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

Not yet. The Butler jail has been closed since 2019, and its replacement should be ready in spring 2027. Most Choctaw prisoners are held at the Washington County Jail in Chatom, which sets its own visiting rules; its line is 251-847-2202. To confirm where your person is, call 205-459-2166 and ask which jail holds your person, since each county's visiting rules are its own.

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Try Choctaw County Inmate Search first. No luck there? The Sheriff's Office keeps track of placements. The sheriff has said deputies sometimes call around to find an open bed, so the place can change from one week to the next. Share the legal name and date of birth, and note the jail and its number while you're still on the line.

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A judge or magistrate sets it, not the deputies. The Sheriff's Office can read you what was entered at booking. The circuit clerk, at 205-459-2155, can tell you what is in the court file. When the figures don't match, the signed court order controls; request a copy from the clerk.

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Go to the Choctaw County Courthouse, 117 South Mulberry Avenue. The circuit clerk is in Suite 10 and the sheriff is in Suite 11. The court's website shows the clerk open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Before you leave home, ask which of the two offices will take your payment for this person, since the jail holding them may be far away.

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Call the clerk at 205-459-2155 and ask the exact list. Offices around Alabama often take only cash, money orders or cashier's checks, never personal checks. Ask too whether a filing fee is due with the bond. Note what you're told and who said it.

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Yes, provided the order allows a surety bond. The agent should hold a current Alabama license. Ask the sheriff which agents work with the jail that has your person, because that jail may have its own list. Before signing, have the agent put the premium, security and no-show rules on paper.

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Maybe. Judges can accept real estate, but the rules on where it must sit differ from county to county. Ask the circuit clerk whether the land must be in Choctaw County, anywhere in Alabama, or can be elsewhere. Expect to bring a deed and a current tax value, and expect every owner on the deed to sign. Start early because this route is slow.

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Any adult with a government photo ID may normally pay a cash bond for someone else, but the clerk can tell you what it needs. For a surety bond, the agent decides who must co-sign. Have the defendant's legal name, birth date and case number handy so the file turns up fast.

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Butler has its own police department, reached at 205-459-3794 on weekdays. A town officer may book the person, then turn them over to the county. Ask the officer or the department which agency set the bond and where the person was sent. Town charges can be handled in municipal court, apart from the circuit clerk's cases.

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A handful of grave charges allow bail to be refused, and after a hearing Aniah's Law lets judges keep certain violent-crime defendants locked up. Holds from probation, federal agencies or other counties block release as well. Ask the clerk for the order that explains it.

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There is a short wait while the court accepts the bond and the holding jail finishes its paperwork. Because your person is usually at the Washington County Jail in Chatom, add travel time for the jail to process them. Ask that jail how late it releases people at night.

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A new warrant usually issues, and forfeiture of the bond is possible. The person should call a lawyer at once and then the clerk at 205-459-2155 to ask about a new date. You can also look up the case on the Choctaw County court site.

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Usually, yes. Once the matter wraps up, cash bail is refunded less fines, costs or any forfeiture. A bondsman keeps the premium regardless. Save every receipt and ask the clerk what was done with the deposit at the end.

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A bondsman charges a fee on top of the bond. Expect a possible filing fee now and court costs later. Ask the clerk for a written total for this case, and never pay a fee quoted by someone who is not an official.

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Youth cases stay in juvenile court with sealed records, so teens won't appear on the adult roster. Baldwin County lists Choctaw among the counties served by its Regional Juvenile Detention Center, 43405 Nicholsville Road, Bay Minette, 251-580-2540. Only a juvenile court officer can order a release there. Ask the Sheriff's Office at 205-459-2166 where the child is housed and when juvenile court will first hear it. Parents will need to go to that hearing.

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Yes. Defendants without money for an attorney may request one from the judge. Ask the circuit clerk at 205-459-2155 how to file the request and which lawyer was named. A lawyer is also the best way to ask for a lower bond.

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Be wary of anyone who calls or texts about a quick release for a gift card, app payment, or wire. Hang up and phone the sheriff at 205-459-2166 yourself. Official offices never take bond money through social media messages.

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State cases are heard at the courthouse in Butler. Town cases go to a town court:

• Circuit and District Court clerk (Suite 10): Choctaw County Courthouse, 117 South Mulberry Avenue, Butler, AL 36904 · 205-459-2155
• Choctaw County Probate Court: 117 South Mulberry Avenue, Butler · 205-459-2414
• Butler Municipal Court: 222 South Mulberry Avenue, Butler · 205-459-3794
• Gilbertown charges: City Hall, 251-843-2766
• Other towns: the Butler clerk's office knows where a town ticket was filed

The county jail closed in 2019, so the Sheriff's Office, 117 South Mulberry Avenue, Suite 11, Butler · 205-459-2166, usually places people in the Washington County Jail, 45 Court Street, Chatom · 251-847-2202. That office is the one to call to find out where someone is held.

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Alabama's chart sets a range per charge, and a Butler judge can choose a different lawful amount. Examples:

• Town ordinance: $300 to $1,000
• Class C misdemeanor: $300 to $1,000
• Class B misdemeanor: $300 to $3,000
• Class A misdemeanor: $300 to $6,000
• DUI: $1,000 to $7,500
• Class D felony: $1,000 to $10,000
• Class B felony: $5,000 to $30,000
• Class A felony: $10,000 to $60,000
• Trafficking: $5,000 to $1,500,000
• Since May 19, 2026: under Amendment 1, judges can hold people without bail on attempted murder or for shooting at an occupied dwelling or car

All amounts are in the Alabama Rule 7.2 bail schedule (https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr7_2.pdf).

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Choctaw's bond chart has no role. The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama takes these cases at the federal courthouse in Mobile, 155 St. Joseph Street, Mobile, AL 36602, 251-690-2371. The usual course:

• Federal agents take the person into custody, sometimes from an outside county's jail.
• A magistrate judge holds the first court session.
• Pretrial Services checks job, family and record.
• If prosecutors seek detention, a hearing follows in a few days.
• Release orders list conditions, not a cash figure.

The U.S. Marshals keep custody the whole time: U.S. Marshals Service, 155 St. Joseph Street, Suite 201, Mobile, AL 36602, 251-499-6620.

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Free searches:

• Federal: the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator (https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/) searches names and register numbers. Pretrial federal detainees may be missing; call 251-499-6620.
• State: the Alabama Department of Corrections Inmate Search (https://www.doc.alabama.gov/inmate/inmate-search/) looks people up by AIS number or last name.
• County: Choctaw County Inmate Search, then the sheriff, since the holding jail is usually Washington County's, in Chatom.

Our Choctaw inmate search page explains more.

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Yes, for a short time. A detainer lets the jail holding the person keep them up to two business days past local release. The county bond still has to be paid.

The ICE New Orleans Field Office, 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360 covers Choctaw. Alabama jails used for short ICE stays:

• Baldwin County Correctional Center, Bay Minette, Alabama
• Etowah County Jail, Gadsden, Alabama
• Pickens County Detention Center, Carrollton, Alabama

Longer detention is usually out of state. The ICE Online Detainee Locator System (https://locator.ice.gov/odls/) needs an A-number and country of birth.

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VINE is free. It shows custody status and which jail has the person, which helps here because Choctaw uses outside jails:

• Go to VINELink (https://vinelink.vineapps.com/) and choose Alabama.
• Enter a name or ID number.
• Select the match to see the facility.
• Sign up for alerts by text or email.

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Official places:

• Alacourt: Alacourt Access public search (https://pa.alacourt.com/). A name search is $9.99 and covers one case; pick Choctaw.
• Clerk site: choctaw.alacourt.gov lists the office and hours, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays.
• Sheriff: 205-459-2166 for warrant questions.

Turning yourself in with a lawyer present tends to go better than an arrest.

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Check first, because the holding jail and amounts can change:

• Sheriff's Office, 205-459-2166, to learn the holding jail and bond amount.
• Circuit Clerk, 205-459-2155, for court dates and payment details.
• Butler Municipal Court, 205-459-3794, for Butler town charges.

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