Monroe County Key West Jail

Start with Monroe County Inmate Search. It should show the facility. People are booked on Stock Island, in Marathon, or on Plantation Key, and a person can be moved between them. Monroe's list can trail a fresh booking, so look again later.

For anything the search cannot answer, the Sheriff's 24-hour non-emergency line is 305-289-2351. Headquarters is 305-292-7000. Monroe callers should give the inmate's legal name and birthday.

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The Sheriff runs it. The address most sources give is 5501 College Road, Key West, FL 33040. Sheriff's headquarters is at 5525 College Road, on the same road. Ask the desk which door to use before you drive.

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In 2026 the chief judge's order lets staff release people before first appearance only on a short list of misdemeanors. Every felony, from a third-degree felony up to a capital felony, waits for a judge. So does DUI or boating under the influence. A judge will usually see the person within 24 hours, under Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.130.

Nothing is wrong with the booking. The number comes after the hearing.

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The Sixteenth Circuit order for 2026 is Administrative Order 2.063/25-1, signed December 22, 2025. It runs from January 1 through December 31, 2026. The Monroe figures are $2,500 for a nonviolent first-degree misdemeanor, $2,500 for a forcible second-degree misdemeanor, $500 for a nonviolent second-degree misdemeanor.

A first-degree misdemeanor involving force, or stalking, has no pre-hearing bond. A Monroe judge may change the amount at any point. Expect one bond per charge.

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The Clerk lists three criminal offices. Key West: Monroe County Courthouse, 500 Whitehead Street, 305-294-4641. Marathon: 3117 Overseas Highway, 305-289-6027. Upper Keys: 88820 Overseas Highway, Plantation Key, 305-852-7145. The Clerk's criminal FAQ says people who bond out are told their next court date at release.

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Carry a government ID, the booking number and the right amount in full. The Sheriff's pages do not confirm hours. Call 305-292-7000 before you go, then ask whether the Key West window, a Clerk counter, or a bail agent is the right door for your case.

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Some Florida jails accept cards at a lobby kiosk or online for a fee. Whether Monroe County does is a question for the Sheriff at 305-292-7000. Never send a card number to a person who contacted you first.

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You don't have to, but many families use one. In the Keys, as everywhere in Florida, the state Department of Financial Services puts a state-bond premium at 10 percent of the bail. On a $2,500 bond that is $250. Monroe agents must charge the state-filed rate under section 648.33. Ask for the price in writing. Section 903.101 gives licensed agents equal access to the jails.

You can also ask whether the judge will take a cash deposit. Section 903.105 describes a deposit of 10 percent of the bond with the clerk.

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Maybe. Non-agents may back a Monroe bond if they're Florida residents or landowners (section 903.05), with net worth matching or topping the bond (section 903.08). Keys property is costly, but the court still wants a deed and papers signed by every owner. For the exact steps and forms, ask the Clerk's criminal desk at 305-294-4641.

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The Clerk's criminal FAQ says you may qualify for a public defender and points people to Pretrial Services at 305-294-7288. The Public Defender's office is at 1111 12th Street, Suite 311, Key West, 305-295-3100. In Monroe, ask the first appearance judge for one if you have no lawyer.

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In Monroe, section 903.011(6) bars release before a hearing for people on pretrial release, probation, or community control, those on the sex-offender list, and several other groups. Under section 903.0471, a judge may also revoke release if there is probable cause of a new crime. A hold from another county or agency stops release too. Ask the jail which case holds the person.

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The state Department of Juvenile Justice runs the Monroe Juvenile Detention Center at 5503 College Road, first floor, Key West, 305-293-1500. DJJ lists 10 beds for youth sent by the Sixteenth Circuit. Visits are listed for Saturday and Sunday from 1 to 2 p.m. Monroe's adult search leaves out children, whose records are private. The Clerk's juvenile desk in Key West is at 305-294-4641.

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The judge declares the bond forfeited. The Clerk then sends notice, and section 903.26 gives 60 days after the notice goes out to pay or get the forfeiture discharged. Surrender, or confinement in another jail with a hold, can lead to a discharge in listed cases. Phone a Monroe lawyer that same day. A Monroe letter may come late, so act now.

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Under section 903.31, the court must cancel the bond within 10 business days once conditions are met. If a 10 percent deposit was used, section 903.105 has the clerk return 75 percent and keep 25 percent as bail costs. A cash bond paid by someone other than a bail agent can be cut by unpaid fines and fees (section 903.286). Bail agent premiums work differently. Monroe agents earn and keep the premium the moment the person walks out, per the Department of Financial Services. A person who never leaves jail is owed the full premium back. Monroe collateral is due back within three weeks after the court discharges the bond.

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In Monroe, distrust demands for gift cards, crypto, or wires to someone. Real offices are the Sheriff at 305-292-7000 and the Clerk at 305-294-4641. Hang up and call them yourself.

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• ICE uses Form I-247A to ask Monroe jailers for more time.
• In Monroe, that means up to 48 more hours.
• In Monroe, weekends and holidays count toward those 48 hours.
• Paying a Monroe bond will not lift the detainer.
• F.S. 908.105 says the Monroe bond judge must be told.
• The Monroe state attorney gets notice as well.
• Every Florida jail sheriff, Monroe included, must join 287(g) (F.S. 908.11).
• ICE lists these 287(g) models for Monroe:
  • Task Force Model
  • Warrant Service Officer
• If ICE takes someone from Monroe, search the ICE detainee locator.

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Lots of visitors get caught up in small cases here. Sometimes a deputy just writes out a notice to appear, which sets a court date and skips the booking. If you’re booked, a judge will see you at first appearance within 24 hours. Before that hearing, people can often bond out using a chart called the uniform bond schedule, which Florida’s highest court issued for 2026 in order AOSC25-69. That chart sets the lowest bond allowed for each charge everywhere in Florida. For certain charges, like domestic battery, no bond is posted until a judge reviews the case. A bond works as a promise, often backed by money, that you’ll be back for court. Licensed bail bond agents post bonds for a nonrefundable premium; Florida’s insurance department lists it at 10%.

The next step is arraignment, where you enter your plea. Monroe’s County Court handles many DUI and boating-under-the-influence cases. A first-degree misdemeanor, like petit theft over $100, can bring a jail stay of up to 12 months, with the fine reaching $1,000 at most. Second-degree misdemeanors max out at 60 days, plus a fine no bigger than $500. Out-of-town defendants can sometimes handle hearings through a lawyer without coming back. First-time offenders can ask about pretrial diversion, where finishing set tasks leads prosecutors to drop the case.

The elected 16th Circuit State Attorney prosecutes every state crime in the Keys. The elected 16th Circuit Public Defender can represent people the judge finds unable to pay. Conflicts, for example when the defender already represents a witness, are reassigned to the Keys region of Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel. Florida’s section 938.29 says a court may make you pay for that defense, starting at $50 for a misdemeanor case, and lets the state record a lien. Rule 3.191 aims for a misdemeanor trial no more than 90 days past formal charging, though defendants can waive it. Juries have six people.

Under 18: In the Keys, juvenile judges of the Circuit Court take every minor’s misdemeanor. For a first small offense, Keys law enforcement can issue a civil citation (section 985.12) in place of an arrest. If the child finishes the assigned program, there’s no arrest on record.

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A felony conviction can bring years of state prison. In Monroe County, a felony case is usually heard in the courthouse closest to where it happened: Key West, Marathon or Plantation Key. Following first appearance, prosecutors choose the charges and file an information. Arraignment comes next. During discovery, both sides swap evidence and may take sworn statements.

Florida has three main felony degrees. Taking a boat motor worth $750 or more is grand theft, a third-degree felony with a 5-year maximum. Home burglary counts as second degree, punishable by 15 years or less. First-degree crimes go as high as 30 years, and certain ones permit life. Selling drugs within 1,000 feet of a school or church raises the charge. Sentencing starts with a Criminal Punishment Code worksheet that adds up points for the current crime and past record to set a minimum. People sentenced to Florida prison must serve at least 85% of it.

Florida’s speedy trial rule allows 175 days between formal charging and a felony trial, and defendants may waive that window. Monroe’s felony juries have six members when the case isn’t capital. Plea deals settle most cases.

Under 18: Locked-up Keys youth stay at the state’s Monroe Juvenile Detention Center, 5503 College Rd., Key West. No more than 24 hours pass before a detention hearing, where a judge rules on sending the young person home until the case wraps up.

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Violent felonies use the same process but with heavier stakes. Prosecutors can ask a judge to deny release before trial. When a firearm is involved, the 10-20-Life section of Florida law, 775.087, sets mandatory prison terms. Possessing the gun during crimes like robbery means 10 years at least. Discharging it means 20. If the bullet takes a life or causes great bodily harm, the minimum jumps to 25 years, and life is possible.

Highest of all is first-degree murder, which Keys prosecutors charge as a capital felony; it carries death or life with no parole. Twelve jurors weigh the penalty, and since 2023 a vote of 8 to 4 can recommend death. Raiford’s Union Correctional Institution holds most death-sentenced men; women on death row live at Lowell.

Marsy’s Law gives Keys crime victims constitutional rights under Article I, Section 16(b), such as hearing about every key court date and addressing the court about a plea deal or punishment.

Under 18: Florida’s “direct file” statute, 985.557, hands prosecutors the power to charge some teens as adults. Kids who are 16 or 17 may be transferred this way on most felonies. For 14- and 15-year-olds, it works only when the accusation is on a list of grave crimes, such as murder, armed robbery and sexual battery. Mandatory direct file was repealed in 2019, leaving it up to prosecutors. Section 985.56 adds that grand jurors can indict children of any age on charges that could bring death or a life sentence.

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Yes. A warrant search is posted by the Sheriff's Office from its own records, and Keys deputies return calls at (305) 292-7000. Keys dockets, capias entries included, are in the clerk's court case search. A surrender at the Stock Island jail, set up with a lawyer, usually helps at bond. Whitehead Street is where the clerk resets dates, and the Marathon and Plantation Key courthouses serve the Middle and Upper Keys, so a deputy will know which courthouse holds your file. For the mainland, check FDLE's statewide wanted persons search.

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