Union County Jail

Put the full name into Union County Inmate Search. If there is a match, note the booking number and each charge. If there is none, wait a few hours and search again, since processing takes time. Then call 386-496-2501 and ask if a neighboring agency or another county's jail took the person.

↑ Back to the question list

Plan on the Lake Butler jail on NW 1st Street, which the Union County Sheriff's Office operates, according to its listing. Because lists of county jails can lag behind real changes, call 386-496-2501 to confirm that the jail is holding your family member before you bring money. If the search shows a different location, follow that.

↑ Back to the question list

Florida now has a statewide bond schedule. Under Florida Statutes section 903.011, the Supreme Court adopts it each year, and a chief judge may set local amounts higher without approval. A schedule is used only when an officer or jail employee releases a person before the first court hearing. A judge is never bound by it.

↑ Back to the question list

Union County shares the Eighth Judicial Circuit with Levy, Gilchrist, Bradford, Baker and Alachua counties. The chief judge's current bond order is the controlling list for the circuit. Rather than guess from other counties, whose circuits use different numbers, read the figure on Union County Inmate Search for your loved one's charge, and ask the jail whether it came from the schedule or a judge.

↑ Back to the question list

Section 903.011(6) says some people may not be released before a first appearance or bail decision. In Union, examples include people on release at arrest, three-plus arrests in six months, and certain serious charges. Section 903.046 adds others, such as registered sex offenders until their first appearance. A blank amount can also mean booking is not finished.

↑ Back to the question list

Florida Rule of Criminal Procedure 3.130 requires a first appearance within 24 hours of arrest, in person or by video. The judge decides release terms under rule 3.131 and rule 3.132. At that Union hearing, the judge appoints a lawyer right away for someone who asks, qualifies, and can't pay.

↑ Back to the question list

Only a judge. Under section 903.011(4), a Union judge alone sets or changes bail and can revisit the money part if the person cannot pay it. A lawyer's motion is the usual route. Jail staff in Lake Butler cannot bargain over the number.

↑ Back to the question list

Phone 386-496-2501 to ask if Union's jail bonding window or the clerk of court takes payment, the hours, and the payment types it accepts. Carry ID with a photo, the booking number and the full bond amount. Cash and surety release must carry the same dollar amount under section 903.011. Take a receipt.

↑ Back to the question list

The Florida Department of Financial Services licenses and oversees Union bail agents and puts the state bond premium at 10 percent of bail. On a $2,000 bond, that is $200. The Union agent keeps the fee once the person you're helping is out but must pay it back if there is no release. Union collateral is due back within 21 days once the bond is discharged. Be wary of any discount that seems too good. Get the fees, collateral, and no-show terms on paper, and read the bond instructions.

↑ Back to the question list

The statute is wider than that. Union follows section 903.05: non-company sureties must be Florida residents or own Florida real estate. The paperwork steps and the equity the county wants are for the jail or clerk to explain. Ask at 386-496-2501 before gathering deeds. The Union County Courthouse is at 55 West Main Street, Lake Butler.

↑ Back to the question list

Each charge carries its own bond, so one payment may not free the person if another hold is listed. A probation hold can block release until a judge acts (section 903.0351 covers certain probation violations). Read every line of the record on Union County Inmate Search, then ask the jail what is left to clear.

↑ Back to the question list

The Department of Juvenile Justice screens Union County youth at 3440 NE 39th Avenue, Gainesville, 352-955-2105. Detention is at the Alachua Regional Juvenile Detention Center there, a 45-bed facility that lists Union among its counties. Parents and guardians may visit on Thursday from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. The adult search does not list juveniles.

↑ Back to the question list

Tell the judge at first appearance that the person cannot pay. The judge reviews income and appoints the Eighth Circuit public defender on the spot for those who qualify. The Eighth Circuit Public Defender lists a Bradford and Union office at 945 North Temple Avenue, Starke, and a main office at 151 SW 2nd Avenue, Gainesville, 352-338-7370. Call the main number and ask which lawyer has the Union County case.

↑ Back to the question list

A Union court may forfeit the bond under section 903.26, and the clerk tells whoever signed as surety. Failing to appear can also make the person ineligible for a recognizance bond later, per section 903.046. Speak with a lawyer first, then the bail agent, and get the case reset.

↑ Back to the question list

• ICE uses Form I-247A to ask Union jailers for more time.
• That extra hold in Union lasts up to 48 hours.
• Saturdays, Sundays and holidays all count in Union.
• Paying a Union bond will not lift the detainer.
• F.S. 908.105 says the Union bond judge must be told.
• The Union prosecutor is told too.
• Florida law (F.S. 908.11) puts the Union sheriff in the 287(g) program.
• ICE lists these 287(g) models for Union:
  • Task Force Model
  • Warrant Service Officer
• To find a person ICE took from Union, try the ICE locator.

↑ Back to the question list

For small crimes, a deputy might hand you a notice to appear. That ticket lists the day you owe the court a visit. Get taken to jail, though, and Florida gives the system 24 hours to put you in front of a judge. Lawyers call this quick hearing first appearance. For anyone who leaves jail ahead of it, the floor on bail now comes from a single statewide list the Florida Supreme Court put in place for 2026. Think of a bond as a deal: you put up cash or a pledge, and you return for court. Certain arrests, domestic violence among them, keep a person locked up until the judge weighs in. Bondsmen keep a 10% cut of the bond amount (no less than $100) when they post it for you.

First-degree misdemeanors are the top tier: as much as 1 year behind bars and fines reaching $1,000. For the second degree, the cap is 60 days and a $500 fine. Common examples are petit theft (taking something worth under $750) and simple battery (touching or hitting someone on purpose against their will). A first DUI adds a suspended license and DUI school.

The State Attorney for the 8th Circuit, who is chosen by voters, handles the prosecution of all state crimes in Union County. If a judge finds that you can’t afford a lawyer, the 8th Circuit Public Defender can be appointed. Conflict cases, such as two people charged together, are handed to a separate state lawyer office, Criminal Conflict and Civil Regional Counsel. Keep in mind that, per Fla. Stat. 938.29, someone found guilty may be charged for the public defender’s work, and the bill can become a lien. First-timers may qualify for pretrial diversion, a program where the charge is dropped after you finish classes or community service. If you want a trial, Florida’s speedy trial rule puts a misdemeanor on the calendar for trial inside 90 days of formal charges, unless you agree to wait. A jury of six decides.

Kids under 18: A young person who gets in trouble for a first small offense may be offered a civil citation instead of being arrested. That is a program with tasks like community service or counseling, and finishing it keeps an arrest record from being made. A juvenile judge in Circuit Court handles any youth case that is filed.

↑ Back to the question list

A Union County felony is serious enough to bring a state prison term. After the arrest and first appearance, the State Attorney weighs the evidence. If it is strong enough, that office files an information, which is the formal charge. Next comes the arraignment, where the accused tells the court “not guilty,” “guilty” or “no contest.” Felony defendants get a speedy trial window of 175 days after formal charges are filed, yet lots of them waive it to give their lawyer time to prepare.

Florida ranks felonies by degree. The lowest level, third degree, has a 5-year limit. Second degree goes as high as 15. First-degree felonies go up to 30 years, and some, called life felonies, can mean life in prison. To figure out the lowest legal sentence, the court fills out a Criminal Punishment Code scoresheet, a form scoring both the offense and any earlier convictions. Prisoners in Florida have to complete 85% or more of their time before release. Gun crimes are tougher under the 10-20-Life law (Fla. Stat. 775.087): a gun in hand during certain crimes means a 10-year minimum; pulling the trigger doubles that to 20; and wounding or killing a person with it carries 25 years up to life.

Most Union felony cases end with a plea deal, and the others go to a jury of six. Probation, drug court and treatment are possible outcomes, depending on the score and the charge.

Kids under 18: A teen accused of a felony who must be held is usually sent to Gainesville, to the Department of Juvenile Justice’s Alachua Regional Juvenile Detention Center. No more than 24 hours later, a detention hearing settles whether the teen heads home. Prosecutors may move some cases to adult court. This is called a direct file. They can do it for most felonies by 16- and 17-year-olds, and, for kids aged 14 or 15, only a named list of grave felonies. Since 2019, Florida no longer forces this. It is the prosecutor’s choice.

↑ Back to the question list

These cases take the same road as other felonies. What changes is how much is on the line. Bail is often very high, or a judge may hold the person with no bond at all after a special hearing. A no-contact order with the victim is a common condition. Armed robbery and many sexual battery charges are first-degree felonies or life felonies.

In Florida, first-degree murder is classed as a capital felony. That label means the only punishments are life without parole or death. A Union County grand jury has to approve that charge. A grand jury is a group of local citizens who meet in private to decide if there’s enough proof. If the jury convicts, it then votes on death. Since a 2023 law, a death recommendation needs at least 8 of the 12 jurors. Capital trials use 12 jurors instead of six. Union Correctional Institution, in this county, is where Florida’s condemned men are kept. For women, it’s Lowell Correctional Institution, a prison close to Ocala.

Victims in Union County are protected by Marsy’s Law, spelled out in Florida’s constitution under Article I, Section 16(b). Thanks to it, they can learn about hearings, show up for them and talk to the judge at sentencing. Victim advocates from the prosecutor’s office guide them through it.

Kids under 18: For crimes with a possible death or life sentence, grand jurors can return an indictment against a child of any age, which shifts the case to adult court (Fla. Stat. 985.56). Death sentences are off the table for anyone under 18, per the U.S. Supreme Court. A teen facing life also gets an extra sentencing hearing first.

↑ Back to the question list

The Union County Jail on NW 1st Street stands steps from the courthouse, and a planned surrender there goes smoothly when a lawyer calls ahead. The Sheriff's Office keeps Eighth Circuit warrants, and deputies at (386) 496-2501 can check a name. Dockets on the online court records search show whether a capias was signed. New dates come from Room 103, the clerk's office on West Main, and Raiford and Worthington Springs matters land there too. Outside agencies post to FDLE's statewide wanted persons database.

↑ Back to the question list