Crawford County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds
Crawford County Bail and Bond, Denison, Iowa
Posting bond at the Crawford County Jail in Denison is how most people get out before court.
The jail desk gives the bail amount at 712-263-2146. Crawford County has roughly 16,000 residents spread across Denison, Manilla, Charter Oak, Schleswig, Dow City, Vail and the farm country in between.
Every arrest here ends up at the county jail, 1202 Broadway, Suite 3, Denison, IA 51442, which shares the building with the courthouse. The sheriff's office number is 712-263-2146.
1. Is my family member being held in Denison?
The sheriff does not post a public inmate list. Call 712-263-2146 with a name and birthday, or search VINELink, where you can also register for an alert the moment that person leaves the jail or is transferred. If nothing turns up, the arrest may still be getting processed. Our inmate search page has more tips.
↑ Back to the question list2. How much is bond before seeing a judge?
When no judge is available, Iowa's uniform bond schedule fixes the starting figure: - Simple misdemeanor: $300 - Serious misdemeanor: $1,000 - Aggravated misdemeanor: $2,000 - Class D felony: $5,000 - Class C felony: $10,000 - Class B felony: $25,000
Each charge carries its own amount, so the total grows with the number of counts. Traffic tickets follow the state fine list instead.
↑ Back to the question list3. Who has to wait for a magistrate?
Some arrests are never released on the schedule. The list covers forcible felonies, domestic abuse arrests, breaking a court's no-contact or protective order, and stalking. It also covers first-degree through third-degree sexual abuse, meth manufacturing or dealing (possession with intent included), intimidation with a dangerous weapon, and firearm possession by someone with a felony record. A Third Judicial District magistrate sees the person first and weighs their record, job, family ties and danger to others before naming conditions.
↑ Back to the question list4. How can bond be paid?
- Full cash bond, handed back at the end if the defendant kept every Denison court date.
- A surety bond, written by an agent licensed to sell bail insurance. Iowa has no independent bondsmen, and the premium stays with the agent.
- A pledge of Iowa property, filed with the clerk.
Prior to coming to the jail, call 712-263-2146 about the payment forms accepted that day.
↑ Back to the question list5. What changed with the 2026 bail law?
Senate File 2399 took effect July 1, 2026. Now only a defendant on a low-level misdemeanor, simple or serious, with no violence or drugs in the case can walk out on a written promise alone. Any bail set lower than the schedule, or as a percentage of it, needs the judge's reasons in writing. The dollar amounts above have not changed yet. The Judicial Council must send the Supreme Court an inflation update by July 1, 2027.
↑ Back to the question list6. Where is the Clerk of District Court?
The clerk's office is in Suite 1P of the courthouse at 1202 Broadway, Denison, IA 51442, one floor away from the jail. Call 712-263-2242 during weekday hours. Staff take bond deposits, keep files and post hearing dates, though they cannot give legal advice.
↑ Back to the question list7. What if the person skips court?
Expect a warrant, and the judge may declare the bond forfeited. Iowa Code 811.6 then gives a bonding company 30 days after notice to bring the defendant in or pay up. Failing to appear is charged separately under 811.2(8): a felony defendant who skips court faces a new class D felony count, and so does someone awaiting sentence or appeal; a misdemeanor defendant picks up a serious misdemeanor.
↑ Back to the question list8. How is cash bond returned?
If the defendant made it to every hearing, Crawford's clerk returns the money to whoever paid it when the case wraps up. The court may first subtract unpaid fines, costs or restitution. An insurance agent's fee is never paid back. Our page on jail account money is the money guide.
↑ Back to the question list9. What about federal charges or ICE holds?
Crawford County is in the Northern District of Iowa, Western Division. Federal cases are heard at 320 6th Street, Sioux City, IA 51101, 712-233-3900. A federal magistrate decides release there, and county bond money does not apply. Iowa Code chapter 27A requires the jail to honor ICE detainers, and the ICE locator shows where a person was moved.
↑ Back to the question list10. How does it work for a minor arrested in Denison?
Juvenile court handles it, and no schedule amount is posted. Once detention is ordered, Denison youths are driven to the Central Iowa Juvenile Detention Center, 2317 Rick Collins Way, Eldora, IA 50627, 641-858-3852, with a hearing required inside 1 working day.
↑ Back to the question listHow do Bail Bonds work at Crawford County Jail
Getting Released From the Denison Jail
Judge Patrick H. Tott's Third Judicial District supplies the magistrates and judges who fix chapter 811 release terms for every prisoner in Rasmussen's Suite 3 jail, and the Broadway desk (712-263-2146) can recite a bail figure once the court has entered it.
Where a Third District magistrate declines to release a Crawford County prisoner on personal recognizance, Rasmussen keeps that person on Broadway until the entire figure is paid or backed by a surety the judge approves. Section 811.3 confines Iowa sureties to insurers licensed for bail business in Iowa and Iowa residents pledging in-state property, so no paid bail agent has a part in a Crawford County release. The old practice of paying one-tenth into the Crawford County clerk's Suite 1P account ended for every Denison case with Senate File 2399 on July 1, 2026.
Crawford County Jail
Address:
1202 Broadway, Suite 3
Denison, IA 51442
Phone:
712-263-2146
Bail Questions From Crawford County Families
Can a Broadway jailer lower a Crawford County bail amount over the phone?
What sort of surety will a Third District judge accept for someone held in Denison?
How soon after an arrest by Rasmussen's deputies will a judge set the bail?
Can a Broadway jailer lower a Crawford County bail amount over the phone?
No. Suite 3 staff carry out whatever the Third District orders, and only a judge or magistrate sitting at the Denison courthouse can rewrite the amount.
My cousin posted ten percent at the Suite 1P window years ago; would that work for a Rasmussen inmate today?
No. Senate File 2399 removed it statewide as of July 1, 2026, so release now takes the full cash amount or a surety allowed by section 811.3.
What sort of surety will a Third District judge accept for someone held in Denison?
Only two kinds of backer satisfy section 811.3 in Judge Tott's courtrooms: an insurer cleared by Iowa regulators to write bail, and an Iowan whose own Iowa acreage or home matches what Rasmussen's prisoner owes.
How soon after an arrest by Rasmussen's deputies will a judge set the bail?
The first appearance comes promptly under Iowa law, and the exact Crawford County figure is available from the Suite 3 desk at 712-263-2146 or the clerk in Suite 1P at 712-263-2242.
Conditions That Follow a Denison Release
Bail out of Rasmussen's Suite 3 jail comes with homework, and a Crawford County defendant carries it until the Third District enters judgment.
- Terms remain binding. Whatever a Denison magistrate attached to release at the first hearing still governs under section 811.2 until Judge Tott's court modifies it or the case ends.
- Court-ordered limits. Release papers signed in Denison often list people to avoid, places to stay out of and an officer to report to, and one lapse is enough to send Rasmussen's former prisoner back to Suite 3.
- Missed hearings at 1202 Broadway. If a Broadway hearing is skipped, chapter 811 lets the Denison judge declare the posted money forfeited (section 811.7) and have Rasmussen's deputies bring the defendant in.
- Calendar help from Sioux City. Amber Bieler sets Crawford County hearings from the district office reached at 712-279-6608 (ask for 39749), and the same settings appear on Iowa Courts Online.
- Handing the defendant back. A Crawford County surety who brings the accused to the Suite 3 jail ahead of any forfeiture judgment is discharged, as section 811.8 provides.
Retained or appointed counsel can explain how each of these terms plays out in a particular Crawford County file. The Crawford County clerk in Suite 1P (712-263-2242) answers filing questions, and the Judicial Branch court directory lists clerks in every other Iowa county.
Instructions on how to post Bail or Bond in Crawford County
Steps to Post Bail in Crawford County
Rasmussen's Broadway staff (712-263-2146) search their roster by the booked name and date of birth, so a caller who supplies both can pin down:
- the sum of Third District bail on every Crawford County count, plus any detainer from another county, the federal government or immigration officers that would keep the person on Broadway after payment;
- whether Rasmussen's jail or the Suite 1P clerk receives the money, and what hours each window keeps;
- which payment types the Denison windows take and the exact payee wording for a cashier's check.
When a Crawford County family cannot raise the full amount
Short of the full sum, a Crawford County family can look for a qualified 811.3 guarantor or ask defense counsel to file a reduction motion in Suite 1P for Judge Tott's district to hear.
Public defense for Crawford County cases
Solberg's staff in the Sioux City Adult office, under a State Public Defender designation dated September 1, 2011, defend Crawford County residents charged with Class A felonies and no lesser offenses, working from the building at 507 7th Street, Suite 300 (office page, (712) 279-0202), naming Council Bluffs and the Special Defense Unit as backups for those cases. Other eligible Crawford County defendants receive court-appointed counsel, and the clerk can identify the lawyer assigned.
Who can post Bail or Bond for a Defendant at Crawford County Jail?
A neighbor, employer or relative may post cash for someone in Rasmussen's jail without proving any connection, and the Crawford County receipt should be filed away until the Third District either returns the deposit or applies it to the case.
Anybody guaranteeing a Broadway release answers to Judge Tott's district for the bond in full should the defendant skip court in Denison, so confirm the backing insurer's Iowa license with the Iowa Insurance Division before signing.
Under-18 cases from Crawford County run through the Third District's Juvenile Court Office in the same 1202 Broadway building as Rasmussen's jail, reachable at 712-263-5442.