The Washington County Detention Center is at 1155 West Clydesdale Drive, Fayetteville, AR 72701, on the north side of town near the county's other public safety buildings. Arrests from Fayetteville, Springdale, Farmington, Prairie Grove and rural Washington County end up here.

Washington County Inmate Search shows people booked in, with charges and bonds once set. The sheriff's online roster has refused to load for some visitors. If that happens, call 479-444-5700 with the person's full name and birth date. A University of Arkansas police arrest still ends up at this jail.

Arkansas criminal rules set a two-day limit for a judge to confirm cause after a warrantless arrest. At the first hearing, the Washington County judge sets bond and asks if the person needs an appointed lawyer.

District court has departments in Fayetteville, Springdale, Prairie Grove and other towns for misdemeanors and traffic. Felony cases are heard in Washington County Circuit Court at the courthouse in downtown Fayetteville. Check the paperwork for the right room. Read: court process.

Fayetteville refunds bail paid entirely in cash at the close, as long as the defendant goes to every hearing. If you use a licensed bondsman, their fee (up to ten percent) is not returned, and they may ask for a co-signer. Get the exact amount from the jail before paying. Read: bail.

The Washington County public defender's office takes cases for people the court finds can't afford a lawyer. Request it when you first see the judge in Fayetteville.

A jail this busy often holds people for several agencies, including nearby counties and federal authorities. Try the sheriff's office at 479-444-5700 and find out if the booking lists any outside warrants or detainers. A search using Search ARCourts, Arkansas's statewide court lookup, can reveal open cases in other counties. When another warrant exists, an attorney can coordinate with the issuing court so bond is set and release happens in one step. The Circuit Clerk in Fayetteville fields felony case questions at 479-444-1538.

Visits at the Clydesdale Drive jail are free. They are usually scheduled ahead, and video visits may also be offered. Call or check online for current times, and bring a government photo ID. Read: visits, remote video visits.

Detainees can only call out, using a prepaid balance. Paid messaging and tablet use may also be offered. Read: phones, messages, tablets.

Deposits on a Fayetteville inmate's account cover snacks, toothpaste and call credit. Read: deposits, commissary.

Use the person's full name, then 1155 West Clydesdale Drive, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Keep to plain paper. Read: mail.

Fayetteville and Springdale youths ordered held go to the Washington County juvenile detention center, 885 West Clydesdale Drive, Fayetteville, close to the adult jail. Its line is 479-444-1670, and visits there run about 30 minutes for parents and guardians.

Phone the detention center so nurses are told about prescriptions, pregnancy, or a risk of self-harm.

Washington County's online roster sometimes refuses to load, so the sheriff's phone line is the dependable check. Ring 479-444-5700 to confirm custody, bond and the visit schedule.

Federal cases usually involve IRS agents, the ATF, the U.S. Marshals or the FBI. Federal hearings in this county happen at the federal building in Fayetteville, 35 East Mountain Street, Room 510, Fayetteville, AR 72701, under Arkansas's Western District, Fayetteville Division. For filings and dates, call the clerk at 833-853-0345. Ahead of court, pretrial services looks into ties to the community and prior record and tells the judge what it found. Usually the next court day, the defendant meets a magistrate judge for a first hearing. U.S. court uses no bail price list. The judge weighs what conditions apply at a bail hearing following federal bail law.

Search for them with the sheriff's roster first. This district's Marshals staff in Fort Smith can tell you where they are: 479-289-7470 or 479-424-5000 (call either), 30 South 6th Street, Room 243, Fort Smith, AR 72901. Some federal defendants stay in the Fayetteville jail contracted by the U.S. Marshals. After a federal sentence, they move into federal prison (the BOP). Find them on the BOP locator by register number.

• Right after arrest, fingerprints reach federal databases. ICE can then lodge a detainer (Form I-247A).
• Paying bail doesn't erase it.
• With a detainer, ICE asks the Fayetteville jail to delay release by up to two days. Once the 48 hours pass, the detainer expires.
• ICE agents often pick them up during the hold. If nobody comes, staff should release them.
• To ask where they are, call ICE's New Orleans field office (it covers Arkansas): 181 James Drive W, St. Rose, LA 70087, 504-318-2360.
• Loved ones can track them online at the locator site, which asks for an A-number plus birth country. The locator has a name search: it asks for first and last name with country of birth and birth date.
• Where they are sent depends on ICE.

Arkansas's prison system, the ADC, houses those sentenced to state time. For now, most people stay in the local jail while the ADC schedules the move, sometimes for months. After that, the ADC moves them to an intake center for processing. Staff review each person based on security risk, physical and mental health and any gang ties. The final move is a unit that matches them.

The ADC online lookup lists the current unit after intake. Our Arkansas state prison page explains visits and mail.

News media may ask for a booking photo that is not posted by phoning the sheriff's office on 479-444-5700. The public and the media cannot get federal booking photos. A booking photo from a federal arrest becomes public only through the Marshals, to find someone who escaped, if it's needed immediately for community safety, or to aid the search or alert people. ICE intake photos are not shared by phone. Instead, use an ICE FOIA request, and the agency rules on it.

• Fayetteville Police: 479-587-3555
• Springdale Police: 479-756-8200
• Farmington Police: 479-267-3411
• Prairie Grove Police: 479-846-3270
• Elkins Police: 479-643-2600
• West Fork Police: 479-839-2300
• Johnson Police: 479-521-3192
• Washington County Sheriff's Office: 479-444-5700

Lincoln, Greenland, Goshen, Tontitown, Elm Springs and rural areas: check with the sheriff, since some towns contract with the county.