Louisville Metro Jail

Start with the inmate search guide or the jail's roster to make sure the person was booked. The bond is set by a District Court judge, often within hours, after a pretrial officer interviews the person. To ask what was set, call the District Court Clerk's bond line at 502-595-4428 or 502-595-3060. Have the full name and date of birth ready, since a big jail can hold several people with the same name. Once a felony is indicted and moves to the Judicial Center, 700 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, bond changes run through the Circuit Criminal clerk at 502-595-3009.

Payment is taken in person at the Hall of Justice, 600 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, at any hour, every day of the year. You must be at least 18, appear yourself, and carry a valid government photo ID. The office takes cash, a certified check, and credit or debit cards; card payments carry a service charge. Release from the jail on Sixth Street usually follows a few hours after the clerk records the payment.

Sometimes. A self-bond lets someone use money already on their jail spending account to post their own bond, at a charge of $70 for each $1,000. It is open only to Kentucky residents with a District Court case. People charged with DUI or domestic violence, and anyone who still owes a booking fee, cannot use it. Ask the accounts line at 502-574-2146 whether the balance is enough.

No. In Louisville, bail is paid to the circuit clerk (502-595-4428) or at Metro Corrections (502-574-8477). State law forbids paying a private company to post bail for profit (KRS 431.510). Families pay the court directly, and that money is returned at the end of the case for a defendant who attended all hearings. That rule helps families, because there is no nonrefundable fee to a bond company.

Jefferson Pretrial Services (502-595-4451) does it inside Metro Corrections. Soon after booking, a Pretrial Services officer asks questions about work, home and past court record, then gives the judge a risk score (KRS 431.515). People scored low risk are often released on their own promise to return, without paying anything (KRS 431.066). The local Pretrial Services office answers at 502-595-4451.

A Louisville judge may grant recognizance, a signed promise to come back, or set an unsecured bond, where nothing is paid now but money is owed if court is missed. A ten percent deposit means paying a tenth in cash to the clerk (KRS 431.530). A full cash bond requires the whole amount up front, and a property bond pledges Kentucky real estate as security (KRS 431.535).

The Jefferson circuit clerk (502-595-4428) can tell you the amount set. State law says bail must not be more than needed to make sure the person returns, and the judge has to think about what the person can pay (KRS 431.525). Someone cited only for a violation usually walks out without bond (KRS 431.062). Many lower felonies follow a state schedule (KRS 431.540), and in domestic violence cases, the victim's safety comes first (KRS 431.064). On many charges, time already spent in jail is credited at $100 a day toward bail.

A judge may add conditions such as an ankle monitor, drug testing, a curfew, or an order to stay away from a person or place. Breaking a condition can put the person back in jail. A missed hearing leads to an arrest warrant, and the bond can be forfeited 20 days after notice is sent (KRS 431.545). Keep every court notice and update the clerk if you move.

If every date was kept through the end of the case, cash bail goes back from the clerk to whoever is named on the receipt, minus any fines, costs or fees the judge orders paid from it. A ten percent deposit has a small part kept by law (KRS 431.530). Keep the receipt from the Hall of Justice, because the clerk will ask for it.

People unable to pay for counsel may request the Jefferson County Trial Office of the Department of Public Advocacy, 701 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 833-934-5953. Counsel may move to lower the bond or change the conditions. Misdemeanors are prosecuted by the County Attorney, 600 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-574-6336. Felonies, once indicted, go to the Commonwealth's Attorney for the 30th Judicial Circuit, 514 West Liberty Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-595-2340.

Metro Corrections (502-574-8477) can tell you about holds; Louisville marshals: 502-588-8000; ICE: 502-625-6202. A federal charge is handled in the U.S. Courthouse, 601 West Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-625-3500, and only a federal magistrate judge can set release terms; paying local bail does not end a federal hold. An ICE detainer is separate too: the jail may keep a person up to 48 hours past release so immigration officers can pick them up. See the ICE Online Detainee Locator and our court guide. Someone already serving a state sentence appears in the Kentucky DOC offender search (KOOL) instead of the jail roster.

Louisville Metro Corrections warns that neither Metro Corrections nor the court calls to request bond payments. If someone calls or messages demanding immediate payment, end the conversation and look up the clerk’s number independently.

Call the District Court Clerk at 502-595-4428 or 502-595-3060 to check the case and payment options. Louisville’s official bond page explains in-person payment at the Hall of Justice and the separate rules for eligible self-bonds.

District Court handles misdemeanors, traffic cases, violations and juvenile matters. It also holds the first steps of every felony: the arraignment, bond hearings and the preliminary hearing. Felony cases reach Circuit Court once a grand jury of 12 people indicts, which takes at least 9 votes. Circuit Court then handles the trial or plea and the sentence.

Search the person's name in KYeCourts public case search, which shows charges, hearing dates and the courtroom. Most clerk divisions keep weekday hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the District criminal-traffic window closes at 3 p.m. Hours can change, so call 502-595-4428 before going. Arrive early, since security lines in the Hall of Justice can be long.

The county sheriff's office serves court warrants here, and its main line at 502-574-5400 can tell you whether one is active. Families make that call and then check Kentucky's statewide court record through the free KYeCourts guest login; a party search with Jefferson selected works best with a birth date added, since so many people here share a name.

Most warrants are cleared by surrendering at Metro Corrections downtown, which goes quicker when counsel has already brought up bond. The circuit clerk's criminal division in the judicial center at 600 W. Jefferson St., Louisville, KY 40202, answers at 502-595-3009 about resetting a missed date.

The Jefferson Circuit Court Clerk's main office is Suite 2008 in the Hall of Justice, 600 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202. The clerk keeps the case files, takes bond and fine payments, and issues copies of court papers. For bond questions in a new arrest, the District Court bond line is 502-595-4428 or 502-595-3060. For an indicted case, Circuit Court support answers at 502-595-3088 and the Circuit Criminal desk at 502-595-3009. Our bail guide explains how payment works.

Booking happens at the jail on Sixth Street, with photos and fingerprints, and Pretrial Services conducts an interview and assigns a risk score. At arraignment in District Court the charge is read and a lawyer is appointed if needed. A felony gets a preliminary hearing within 10 days if the person is jailed or 20 days if released. After a grand jury indictment, the case moves to Circuit Court for arraignment, motions, and a plea or trial.

Most arrests are made by the Louisville Metro Police Department, which patrols the old city and most of the county. Dozens of small cities, such as St. Matthews, Jeffersontown and Shively, keep their own officers. The sheriff's office (502-574-5400) serves warrants and court papers, and state troopers from Kentucky State Police Post 4, 954 Cameron Ponder Drive, Elizabethtown, KY 42701, 270-766-5078 also make arrests.

The Jefferson County Attorney, 600 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-574-6336, prosecutes misdemeanors, traffic cases and juvenile cases, and starts every felony in District Court. Once the grand jury returns an indictment, the Commonwealth's Attorney for the 30th Circuit, 514 West Liberty Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-595-2340, takes over. Victims and witnesses may phone either office with hearing questions.

The Hall of Justice clerk (502-595-4428) can classify a charge.

Jefferson judges can impose 12 months in jail and $500 for a Class A misdemeanor, or 90 days and $250 for Class B (KRS 532.090). Violations carry a fine of $250 at most, waivable for people who cannot pay (KRS 534.040). Felonies range from 1 to 5 years for Class D up to 20 to 50 years or life for Class A (KRS 532.060).

Ask the clerk's office for copies of a case file, or use the court records request page for the forms. Some records, such as juvenile files and sealed cases, are closed by law. For warrant questions, phone the sheriff's office at 502-574-5400, where staff can check directly.

At the first hearing, tell the judge you cannot pay a lawyer and fill out the short money form. If you qualify, the court appoints the Jefferson County Trial Office of the Department of Public Advocacy, 701 West Jefferson Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 833-934-5953. Private lawyers are also listed through the Louisville Bar Association. A lawyer can explain a plea offer and help with bond, diversion or expungement.

People who cannot make bond stay at the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections, 400 South Sixth Street, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-574-8477. Deputies bring them through a secure walkway or van to court. Family can keep in touch by phone, scanned mail and video visits, and can add money for commissary items.

Federal crimes from Louisville are filed in the Western District of Kentucky at the U.S. Courthouse, 601 West Broadway, Louisville, KY 40202, 502-625-3500. At the first appearance, a magistrate judge sets a detention hearing, usually within a few days, to decide whether the person can be released. The U.S. Marshals choose where federal prisoners wait, often in a contract jail. After a prison sentence, look the person up in the Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

No. The state case keeps going. With an ICE detainer, immigration officers ask under 8 CFR 287.7(d) that Louisville Metro Corrections keep a Jefferson arrestee up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released so ICE can take custody. Anyone who is not a U.S. citizen should talk with a lawyer about immigration effects before pleading guilty. Track transfers with the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

After sentencing to state time, the person first goes to a reception center, where staff classify them by security level, health and program needs. They are then moved to a prison that fits that rating, and a few lower felony terms stay in local jails. Follow each move in the Kentucky DOC offender search (KOOL), and see our Kentucky state prisons guide.