Grundy County Jail Inmate Bail & Bonds

There is no online jail list for Grundy County. Phone 319-824-6933 at any hour and ask. Signing up on VINELink gets you a message when the person leaves custody or changes location. For other lookup tools, go to our inmate search page.

Most first-night bonds come straight from the state's uniform bond schedule. A simple misdemeanor costs $300 and a serious misdemeanor $1,000. An aggravated misdemeanor is $2,000. The felony amounts are $5,000 for class D, $10,000 for class C and $25,000 for class B. Two charges mean two amounts added together.

Some arrests skip the schedule entirely. Domestic abuse cases, forcible felonies and violations of no-contact or protective orders all go to a magistrate first, and so do stalking, sexual abuse ranging from first to third degree, meth manufacture or dealing or possession to deal, a weapon-intimidation charge involving a dangerous weapon, and any felon holding a firearm. In Iowa's First Judicial District, that judge looks at how serious the charge is, past convictions, roots in the area and danger to the public.

• Cash in the full amount, returned once the case closes, as long as the defendant never skipped court.
• A surety bond through an Iowa-licensed agent of an insurance company. You pay the agent a fee you will not get back.
• Real estate in Iowa, put up through the clerk.

Call 319-824-6933 before you drive over so you know what form of payment works at that hour.

The law went into effect July 1, 2026. In Grundy Center, as everywhere in Iowa, walking out on your word alone now requires a simple or serious misdemeanor charge. Drug and violent cases are left out. A judge choosing an amount below the schedule must write down why. The dollar amounts are the same for now. By July 1, 2027, the Judicial Council is to submit inflation-based changes to the Supreme Court.

The clerk works out of the courthouse at 706 G Avenue, Grundy Center, IA 50638. Reach the office at 319-824-5229 or countyclerk.grundy@iowacourts.gov. Bond money and court files go through here on weekdays, but staff will not give legal advice.

If the defendant does not show, the court can send out a warrant and forfeit the bond. Iowa Code 811.6 gives a bail company 30 days from notice to have the person in court, or else it owes the money. Failing to appear is a separate offense under 811.2(8). How serious depends on the first case: a felony brings a class D felony count, anything lower a serious misdemeanor.

When the case is over, cash bond is paid back to whoever posted it, provided the defendant came to each hearing. A judge may order fines, costs or restitution paid from it first. Questions about leftover jail account money are covered in our money guide.

Federal cases from Grundy County belong to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, clerk's office 111 7th Avenue SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401, 319-286-2300. Only a federal magistrate sets release in those cases. The jail honors ICE detainers as Iowa Code chapter 27A requires, and the ICE locator shows transfers.

Delinquency cases have no schedule bond. Secure placements are at North Iowa Juvenile Detention Services, 1440 West Dunkerton Road, Waterloo, IA 50703, 319-291-2455, and Iowa's juvenile code requires a detention hearing within 1 working day.