Modoc County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

Run his name through Modoc County Inmate Search. If you see no record, call 530-233-4416. That number is also the Sheriff's office and the after-hours line, so say plainly that you are checking whether someone was booked.

The jail has only 48 beds. Someone arrested far out in the county may still be on the road to Alturas, so allow a few hours.

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The Sheriff, who is also the county coroner, runs it. The Sheriff's office and the jail are both at 102 South Court Street. Office hours are Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The same number, 530-233-4416, is the after-hours line.

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His listing on Modoc County Inmate Search may show it; if not, phone the jail at 102 South Court Street in Alturas (530-233-4416). Under Penal Code 1269b, the Superior Court judges adopt a countywide bail schedule, and the jail can release a person at the scheduled amount. A judge who has already set bail at a hearing overrides it. The court's Rule 6.02 covers bail and release procedures, so the clerk at 530-233-6516 can say which figure applies.

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The Modoc Superior Court is in the Alturas justice center, 205 South East Street, Alturas. It is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., except court holidays. The court answers at 530-233-6516. Criminal, juvenile, traffic, family, and civil cases are all handled there.

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Under Penal Code 825, a Modoc judge must see him inside 48 hours, though a Sunday or holiday stretches that clock. The court says the arraignment is where the complaint is read to the defendant. If the court is closed when the deadline ends, the matter moves to the next court day. Call 530-233-6516 for the next date.

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Start with a call to the Alturas jail, 530-233-4416, since neither Modoc website names a payment counter or its hours. The Sheriff's page does not describe a payment method, so ask what forms it takes and whether a bail agent is the only route. Carry a driver's license or other picture ID, his booking number, and the full sum. The court itself takes cash, personal checks, money orders, and cards for fines, but those are not bail.

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You can, but an agent may be based in another county. California's insurance regulators report a typical premium of 10 percent, sometimes trimmed by a rebate. On a $10,000 bail, ten percent is $1,000. Get the fee, any pledge of property, and what happens if he misses court put on paper. Deputies at the Alturas jail won't steer you to a particular bondsman.

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A property bond runs through the court. Call 530-233-6516 before you collect papers, and ask whether land outside Modoc County or outside California counts, what portion of the place must be owned outright, and whose signatures the clerk needs.

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His attorney may file for a reduction. The judge weighs the charge, his record, the chance he will return, and public safety, under Penal Code 1275. Penal Code 1318 also lets the Alturas judge free him with nothing paid, once he signs a written pledge to come back. For serious felonies and certain domestic violence, threat, and stalking charges, Penal Code 1270.1 requires a hearing first.

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Yes. Under the state constitution, capital charges and some violent or sexual felonies can mean no bail if freeing him poses a serious threat. A parole or probation hold, or another county's warrant, may block release as well. Check with the Alturas desk at 530-233-4416 whether a hold is listed.

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At his first Alturas hearing, he should tell the judge he can't pay a lawyer. Modoc County has two Public Defenders working from the County Courthouse, 204 South Court Street, Alturas. The office line is 530-233-7660, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with a lunch closure from noon to 1.

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Not in Modoc. The county Probation Department says it contracts with Shasta, El Dorado, Yolo, and Sonoma counties to hold youth who need a secure facility. The probation plan calls a locked facility a last resort, and says transport takes three to five hours each way. Day or night, an on-call Modoc probation officer handles youth detention. Call Modoc Probation at 530-233-6324 to learn which facility has your child and how to arrange a call. Do not look for a juvenile hall in Alturas.

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Expect a bench warrant, and the bond may be declared forfeited. Penal Code 1305 gives 180 days, plus five when the notice is mailed, to bring him in before the money is lost. Call the court at 530-233-6516 the same day and tell any bail agent.

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Usually, yes. Once the case wraps up, the court sends back cash bail minus any fines or fees ordered. Money paid to a bondsman stays with him. Hold on to all your paperwork. Ask the clerk at 530-233-6516 how a refund is requested.

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Yes, generally. The state's high court said in 2026 that a money amount has to be fair and within reach. In Alturas, the court-appointed attorney can tell the judge about the family's budget and ask the judge for a lower amount or release on conditions.

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Modoc, in the far northeast corner of California, has one court, the justice center in Alturas:

• Alturas justice center: 205 South East Street, Alturas, CA 96101 · 530-233-6516

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Modoc has a lot of federal land and borders Oregon and Nevada. A federal arrest here goes to the Eastern District of California, skipping the county bail schedule:

• He sees a magistrate judge in Redding or at Sacramento federal courthouse, 501 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814, which can mean a long drive.
• Pretrial Services interviews him.
• A detention hearing follows; prosecutors may ask three days, the defense five.
• The federal judge, not anyone in Alturas, decides on release terms or Marshals custody.

Marshals: U.S. Marshals Service, 501 I Street, Suite 5600, Sacramento, 916-930-2030.

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Modoc follows SB 54 and releases people on time. ICE may get a release date only if a serious or violent conviction is on the person's record. The TRUTH Act requires a written consent form before any ICE interview.

San Francisco ICE field office, 630 Sansome Street, Room 590, San Francisco, CA 94111, 415-365-8800 covers Modoc. Detainees end up far south at:

• Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center: 425 Golden State Avenue, Bakersfield, CA 93301
• Golden State Annex: 611 Frontage Road, McFarland, CA 93250
• California City detention site: 22844 Virginia Boulevard, California City, CA 93505

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• Modoc County Inmate Search: last and first name.
• VINELink (https://vinelink.vineapps.com/): California, then the name.
• Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator (https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/): register number or name; pretrial: 916-930-2030.
• CDCR Inmate Locator (https://inmatelocator.cdcr.ca.gov/): CDCR number or name.
• ICE Online Detainee Locator System (https://locator.ice.gov/odls/): A-number or name and birth country; then 415-365-8800.

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Call the Modoc court at 530-233-6516. In a small county the clerk can usually answer quickly about bail and the next date.

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