Etowah County Detention Center Inmate Bail & Bonds

Look the name up in Etowah County Inmate Search. No match yet? Phone booking at 256-549-5408. The sheriff's office also lists booking@etowahcounty.org for questions about people in custody. Booking can take a while, so a name may appear hours after the arrest.

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Gadsden, Attalla and the other towns can book people into the county center, but a city case still belongs to that city's court. To learn the location, check with the officer who made the arrest or the sheriff's office at 256-546-2825 where your person is before you drive anywhere.

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A judge or a bond hearing officer sets it, not the jail staff. For lesser charges the amount may be set at arrest. For serious ones it is set at the first court appearance. Release also depends on probation or parole status, any bond conditions, and warrants from other agencies.

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Judges start from the statewide guide issued by the Alabama Supreme Court, which gives a rough picture. A Class B misdemeanor ranges from $300 to $3,000, a Class C felony from $2,500 to $15,000, and a DUI from $1,000 to $7,500. Judges can go above or below those ranges, so always get the real figure from the jail or the clerk.

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Go to the circuit clerk, 801 Forrest Avenue, Suite 202, Gadsden. The circuit criminal and magistrate line is 256-549-5437. Walk-in payers in Gadsden may use cash, a credit card, a money order or a cashier's check. It refuses personal checks and will not take a card number by phone. Carry ID plus the booking or case number, and hold on to your receipt.

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The clerk's counter closes at 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. Past closing, phone booking at 256-549-5408 and ask what is allowed for this person and what you must bring. Night and weekend rules can differ from daytime rules, so get the answer from the jail by phone.

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It depends on whether the judge has approved a surety bond. Use a company licensed in Alabama. A typical premium runs near a tenth of the bond and stays with the agent. Get the Gadsden agent's fee, the security asked for and the no-show terms written down. Only a relative, a friend, or a licensed agent can sign as surety; a lawyer cannot post bail for a client.

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With court approval, land can secure an Etowah bond. Ask the clerk at 256-549-5437 whether the land must sit inside Etowah County or only inside Alabama, because the answer depends on the judge. Plan on bringing the deed, a current tax or appraised value, and every owner's signature. Start early, since approval can take days.

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The court website links to Alapay for fines and court costs, which needs a case number, Social Security number, and date of birth. Do not assume Alapay covers a bond. The clerk can tell you if that route is open for a bond. Money sent to a jail commissary account usually does not count toward bond.

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Strong proof in a capital case lets a judge withhold bail, and Aniah's Law lets Gadsden judges deny it on some violent charges after a hearing. Amendment 1 (May 19, 2026) brought attempted murder and shooting at a building or car with people inside under that rule. Release can also stall on another county's hold, a parole or probation issue, or a federal detainer. Ask the circuit criminal office for the written order.

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City cases go to the municipal court. Etowah County lists courts in Altoona (205-589-2311), Attalla (256-538-9986), Gadsden (256-549-4595), Glencoe (256-492-1424), Hokes Bluff (256-492-2414, ext. 4), Rainbow City (256-413-1216), Sardis (256-593-6492), and Southside (256-442-9775). Call the court for that town to ask how city bonds are handled.

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An Etowah judge will likely sign a warrant and can forfeit the bond. Call the criminal clerk right away at 256-549-5437 to learn whether a new date exists, and have the person talk to a lawyer. Court dates move only by a judge's order, so a verbal change from a friend does not count.

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When the Gadsden case wraps up, the clerk normally refunds cash bond less any fines, costs and restitution owed. The agent's fee is gone for good. Ask the clerk for a written list of any filing fee before you pay, and check the court cost schedule for what is charged later.

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Young people are handled through juvenile court. Call the juvenile clerk at 256-549-5446 to find out where the child is placed and the hearing date. Youth files are sealed, so the adult roster leaves them out.

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Ask the circuit criminal clerk at 256-549-5437 how to request a court-appointed lawyer, and do it before the first hearing. Etowah has no public defender office, so a judge makes the appointment once the person swears they cannot pay. A lawyer is also the person who can ask a judge to lower a bond. The sheriff's staff cannot change the amount.

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The circuit clerk's office takes reports of callers who demand money to cancel a warrant or avoid prosecution at 256-549-2174. Court staff never want payment in gift cards or through a phone app. End the call and dial booking directly at 256-549-5408.

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Most of them sit together on Forrest Avenue:

• Detention center booking: 827 Forrest Avenue, Gadsden, AL 35901 · 256-549-5408; Sheriff Jonathon Horton
• Sheriff's Office non-emergency (24 hours): 256-546-2825; office hours weekdays 8 to 4
• Circuit Clerk: 801 Forrest Avenue, Suite 202, phone menu 256-549-2150; circuit criminal and magistrate 256-549-5437; district criminal 256-549-5441
• District Attorney, 16th Circuit: Suite G-11 in the Judicial Building, 256-549-5362
• Gadsden Municipal Court: 1511 Campbell Avenue, 256-549-4595; Gadsden police 256-549-4500
• Rainbow City and Southside courts: 256-413-1216 and 256-442-9775
• Attalla and Glencoe courts: 256-538-9986 and 256-492-1424

City charges post through the city's own court, even when the person sleeps in the county center.

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Gadsden judges begin with these figures but may move up or down:

• Class C misdemeanor: $300 to $1,000
• Class B misdemeanor: $300 to $3,000
• Class A misdemeanor: $300 to $6,000
• Class D felony: $1,000 to $10,000
• Class C felony: $2,500 to $15,000
• Class B felony: $5,000 to $30,000
• Class A felony: $10,000 to $60,000
• Amendment 1 (May 19, 2026): Etowah judges may also hold no-bail hearings for attempted murder and for shootings into a home, building or vehicle with people in it

The full list sits in the Alabama Rule 7.2 bail schedule (https://judicial.alabama.gov/docs/library/rules/cr7_2.pdf).

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Alabama's chart no longer applies. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama runs the case from the federal courthouse in Anniston, 1100 Gurnee Avenue, Anniston, AL 36201, 256-741-1533. A common path:

• An agency such as the FBI or DEA makes the arrest, sometimes at the Gadsden center.
• The first hearing is before a magistrate judge.
• Pretrial officers gather facts on work, family and record.
• The government may seek detention until trial.
• When release is granted, it carries conditions, not a dollar bond.

Custody during the case belongs to the U.S. Marshals: U.S. Marshals Service, 1729 5th Avenue North, Room 240, Birmingham, AL 35203, 205-829-6611.

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All three are free:

• BOP: the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator (https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/) covers federal sentences; before sentencing, call 205-829-6611.
• ADOC: the Alabama Department of Corrections Inmate Search (https://www.doc.alabama.gov/inmate/inmate-search/) works with a name or AIS number.
• County: Etowah County Inmate Search lists who is held in Gadsden.

See our Etowah inmate search page for more.

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Yes. ICE uses the Gadsden center for short stays. Its detainers may also seek a hold of up to two business days past a local release date. Local bond must be handled first.

The ICE New Orleans Field Office, 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360 covers Etowah. Alabama short-stay jails include:

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

People held longer are often sent out of state. Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator System (https://locator.ice.gov/odls/) with the A-number and birth country.

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VINE reports custody status and the facility:

• Open VINELink (https://vinelink.vineapps.com/) and pick Alabama.
• Enter a name or a booking number.
• Choose the matching record.
• Sign up for alerts by text, phone or email.

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Use official sources only:

• Alacourt: Alacourt Access public search (https://pa.alacourt.com/). Pick Etowah; one case costs $9.99 by name.
• Clerk site: etowah.alacourt.gov has division phones, town courts and calendars.
• Scam reports: the clerk takes calls about fake warrant demands at 256-549-2174.

Turning oneself in beside a lawyer tends to go smoother than a roadside arrest.

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Rules shift, so check with:

• For a city case, that city's court; Gadsden is 256-549-4595.
• Circuit criminal at 256-549-5437 for state bonds and dates.
• Booking at 256-549-5408 for holds and the amount on file.

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