You can search from any phone or computer. It takes a minute.

1. Open the Ingham County Inmate Locator.
2. Enter the person's name, or their inmate number if you have it.
3. Try the full name first. If that fails, try just the last name.
4. If you see them, write down the inmate number. Staff can answer faster when you give it.
5. Call 517-676-2431 and ask for the charge, the size of the bond, and any expected release.

A search tells you who is held. It is not the same as a court record, so use the steps further down for that.

A blank screen in the first hours is common and seldom a bad sign. Possible reasons:

• Booking in progress. New arrests can lag by several hours.
• City cells first. A police department may keep someone in its own holding area before the trip to Mason.
• Gone home. They may have walked out after a small bond at the jail window, or after a judge's order.
• Different county. The arrest may have happened elsewhere, so another jail has them.
• Spelling. Misspellings are common, so also try how the name might be shortened, or the middle name.
• Age. Minors are never in the adult roster.

Phone 517-676-2431 and have staff check the jail's own list now. If you know which police department made the arrest, call it too. Numbers for local police are at the end of this page.

The main place is the Ingham County Jail in Mason, run by the Sheriff's Office at 630 N. Cedar St., Mason, MI 48854, 517-676-2431. It is the county's adult jail. We do not have a separate list of cell blocks, so ask staff about housing.

The City of Lansing may keep someone briefly at the Lansing Police Jail, 120 W. Michigan Ave., Lansing, MI 48933. Call Lansing police records at 517-483-4680 to ask if it is in use. Anyone arrested near the county line might be in a nearby jail:

• Clinton County Jail, 1347 E. Townsend Rd., St. Johns, MI 48879, 989-227-6580
• Eaton County Jail, 1025 Independence Blvd., Charlotte, MI 48813, 517-543-3512
• Livingston County Jail, 150 S. Highlander Way, Howell, MI 48843, 517-546-2445
• Jackson County Chanter Road Jail, 1995 Chanter Road, Jackson, MI 49201, 517-768-1609
• Shiawassee County Jail, 201 E. McArthur, Corunna, MI 48817, 989-743-2230

Ask the jail at 517-676-2431 whether a photo comes up for the person you want. All we can promise is that the locator looks people up by name or inmate number.

Michigan law also covers mugshots. In OAG 1979-1980 No 5593, the state's top lawyer said suspect pictures taken by police fall under public records. A department may still say no if giving one out would be a clearly unwarranted intrusion on privacy. Ask the police department that arrested the person, and mention Michigan's FOIA law, MCL 15.231, when you ask in writing.

• A photo kept by immigration officers is requested on ICE's records request page.
• Federal agencies do not usually hand out booking photos. The U.S. Marshals Service is one exception, as when it seeks a fugitive.

Yes, and it costs nothing. The state's VINE system alerts you if a person walks out, changes location or breaks out. It works for county jails and state prisons, and it follows court events.

• Call 800-770-7657 any time.
• Or sign up on VINELink.

The jail line, 517-676-2431, is another way to ask about a release. Staff may not give a time in advance.

After an arrest, a judge or magistrate has to see the person promptly (MCL 764.13). Many first hearings happen over live video while the person stays in the jail. A few misdemeanors allow an interim bond at the jail when no magistrate is reachable (MCL 780.581). Domestic violence arrests are handled differently. The person is held until a judge or district court magistrate decides on bond (MCL 780.582a).

• At the first hearing, courts usually start with release on a signed promise to appear, or with an unsecured bond.
• Rules may come with release, like staying away from a person, drug tests, or being home by a set hour.
• Cash bail is kept for cases where the judge says nothing milder will assure court attendance or safety (MCR 6.106).
• Cash bond can be met by paying a tenth to the clerk of the court (MCL 780.66), or through a surety bond from an agent the court has approved.
• Since May 1, 2026, a court may hold on to that deposit only after a conviction. With no conviction, it is returned, less any fines or costs the person owes.

Our bail page goes through each step, and our Michigan bail laws page covers the state rules. For the actual amount, ask the jail at 517-676-2431.

Ask the jail at 517-676-2431 for the booking charge. Once a case is filed, try MiCOURT Case Search by name. A blank result means you should phone the clerk's office at the court that has the file.

The County Prosecuting Attorney decides the final charges. A felony starts in District Court. Later, the case moves to Circuit Court if the judge finds enough proof to send it there.

Early in the first hearing, the court raises the question of a lawyer. If money is tight, it then rules on whether the state pays for a lawyer (MCR 6.005). Paying a bond does not block that help. The Michigan Indigent Defense Commission, 517-657-3066, can explain how appointed lawyers work.

You may also pay for a private attorney whenever you like. To ask about an appointed one, call the 55th District Court at 517-676-8400, 700 Buhl Street, Mason, MI 48854.

Rules for visits can change, so check first. Phone 517-676-2431 and ask when visiting is open, if a reservation is needed, and which ID is accepted.

The jail's online page also lists a vendor for video visits at 727-349-1561. Our visiting guide adds tips for a smooth visit.

The jail's website sends families to eXpressAccount for deposits. Visit the jail website to find it, and keep the full name and inmate number close.

If you are unsure what works today, call 517-676-2431. Our money guide covers how deposits work, and the commissary guide shows what funds can buy. Do not mail cash.

The jail uses an outside company for inmate phones, video visits and messages. Its page points families to smartjailmail.com and gives 727-349-1561 for questions about phone service, video visits and e-messages. Ask what a call costs and how to set up an account.

Plan as if someone is listening. Save case details for your attorney. For more, see the phone call guide and the e-message guide.

The jail has moved to a digital mail system. Call 517-676-2431 before you send anything. Ask for the exact address or website to use, whether to add the inmate number, and what is allowed.

Use the person's complete legal name, and print your own return address in the corner. Find the common rules in our mail guide. Keep cash out of envelopes.

What officers took during booking is stored by the jail. Phone 517-676-2431 to learn how items are returned and whether a friend may collect them. Take photo identification, and ask which entrance to use, since county news says the jail now sits in the Justice Complex in Mason.

Phone 517-676-2431 at once and ask for the medical unit. Pass along each drug name, the daily amount, and the prescribing doctor. The person inside should also ask staff for a sick-call slip.

Dial 911 for a life-threatening problem. If someone may harm themselves, tell the jail that clearly.

Sheriff's deputies take care of warrants outside the cities. Phone them at 517-676-2431 and ask whether a warrant exists for the name you give. Michigan has no single statewide warrant search, so try MiCOURT Case Search or call a court's clerk. To clear one, first talk with a lawyer. Next, contact the issuing court and arrange how and when to surrender. The 55th District Court sits at 700 Buhl Street, Mason, MI 48854, 517-676-8400.

Each hearing is set by the court that owns the case. Call that court, shown below, or the jail:

• 55th District Court, 700 Buhl Street, Mason, MI 48854, 517-676-8400
• 54-A District Court, 124 W. Michigan Ave., Lansing, MI 48933, 517-483-4426
• 54-B District Court, 101 Linden St., East Lansing, MI 48823, 517-351-7000
• 30th Circuit Court (felonies after the early hearings), 341 S. Jefferson St., Mason, MI 48854, 517-483-6500

District Court handles arraignment, bond, misdemeanors and early felony hearings. Our court guide explains the steps.

Ingham's federal court is the Southern Division of the Western District, Michigan. It holds court in Grand Rapids and in Lansing.

1. The first stop is a brief hearing with a U.S. magistrate judge. Jail or home until trial is the question for a detention hearing (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Courthouses: 399 Federal Bldg, 110 Michigan St NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, 616-456-2381; and 113 Federal Bldg, 315 W Allegan St, Lansing, MI 48933, 517-377-1559.
3. The U.S. Marshals Service holds federal prisoners before trial. Call its office at the Gerald R. Ford Federal Building, 110 Michigan Street NW, Suite 744, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, 616-456-2438.
4. After sentencing, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons locator.

These steps tend to follow:

1. ICE files a detainer with the jail. The form is I-247A.
2. Under 8 CFR 287.7(d), the jail may keep the person for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released.
3. Look the person up on the ICE Online Detainee Locator.
4. If the locator finds nothing, call ICE's Detroit field office for Michigan and Ohio, 985 Michigan Avenue, Suite 207, Detroit, MI 48226, 313-771-6601.

A sentence to state prison begins with intake. County deputies make the drive. Men are processed in Jackson, at the Reception and Guidance Center, for about 30 to 45 days. Letters and deposits are allowed there, visits are not. Women are processed at Ypsilanti's reception center.

• Search the MDOC Offender Tracking Information System (OTIS) by name or number.
• Each prison sets its own visiting and mailing rules, laid out in the Michigan state prison pages on our site.

In Michigan anyone under 18 counts as a juvenile, and the file goes to the 30th Circuit Court's Family Division, 341 S. Jefferson St., Mason, MI 48854, 517-483-6500. Adult inmates must never be able to see or talk to a youth held by the county. A judge may transfer some teens aged 14 and up to adult court (MCL 712A.4), and a few grave offenses are filed directly in Circuit Court (MCL 600.606).

The Ingham County Youth Center is at 700 E. Jolly Road, Lansing, MI 48910, 517-887-4330. A new building has been approved on West Holmes Road, so call before you travel.

The department that made the arrest keeps the report and any booking photo. The Census Bureau counts about 289,709 residents. These agencies work here:

• Ingham County Sheriff's Office, 630 N. Cedar St., Mason, MI 48854, 517-676-2431. It covers areas without their own city police. Wheatfield Township is one, at 517-676-8444.
• Lansing Police Department, 120 W. Michigan Ave., Lansing, MI 48933, records 517-483-4680
• Lansing Township Police Department, 3209 W Michigan Ave, Lansing, MI 48917, main line 517-485-1700, dispatch 517-272-6026
• Michigan State Police Lansing Post, 7119 N. Canal Rd., Lansing, MI 48913, 517-322-1907

For East Lansing, Mason, Williamston, Leslie, Stockbridge, Dansville, Michigan State University and other local police, call the Sheriff's Office at 517-676-2431 and ask who patrols the place of arrest.