The search works the same on a phone or a desktop:

1. Pull up the online lookup for this county in your browser.
2. Type the surname. A crowded list calls for the first name as well.
3. Nothing yet? Use a nickname, the middle name or a variant spelling.
4. When your person shows, read the date of booking, the offense and any bond amount.
5. If a booking or inmate number is listed, save it. Staff find records faster with it.

Results show whether a person is held. A call is quicker for charges, release times and rules: 601-847-2155, then ask for the jail.

A few ordinary reasons explain a blank screen:

• Booking is not finished. Fingerprints, photos and forms take a while, and the list can trail behind.
• A town department booked them. A police department inside a town may hold the person before the county receives them.
• They are already free. A judge may have released them, or a bondsman may have posted bond.
• They sit in a different jail. An arrest in another county means that county's lockup.
• They are a minor. Youth Court, rather than the adult jail, deals with children.

When the main line is busy, the Sheriff's dispatch desk at 601-847-2921 is another door. Have the name and date of birth written out before you dial.

Adults who must wait for court are kept in Mendenhall, at the Simpson County Adult Detention Center. The Sheriff runs it, since state law puts each county jail under its Sheriff. Get the street address from the staff when you call.

Ask the Sheriff's Office, 601-847-2155, whether any other building, work program or city lockup holds adults, and which one has your person.

An arrest outside the county puts the person in that area's jail. Our list of Mississippi jails links to each one. A few counties hand their prisoners to a neighbor or a regional facility, so a quick call to the arresting agency clears it up.

Check the inmate search for a picture beside the name. Some county tools display mugshots and some leave them off, and the picture could change as records update.

Mississippi's public records statutes make an arrest incident report open to anyone, and the report lists every person charged (Miss. Code § 25-61-3). Agencies may charge for copies (§ 25-61-7). Nothing we found orders release of the photo itself, so ask politely.

• Sheriff's Office: 601-847-2155
• Magee Police Department: 601-849-2366
• A photo in ICE files can be requested through ICE's records request form.
• Federal agencies do not hand out mugshots. The U.S. Marshals Service is the exception and may share one, such as when a fugitive is sought.

The state's VINE service is named SAVIN. Once you register, you will hear if an offender in county or state hands is shipped elsewhere, let out, on the run or returned.

• Register on VINELink.
• Or call the all-day line at 888-967-7284. Staff speak English and Spanish.
• If the person leaves county custody for state prison, your sign-up goes along.

Not every county jail may be connected, so keep checking the inmate search as well, and phone 601-847-2155 to ask about a release time.

State rules give the person a judge within 48 hours of arrest. For a county arrest this is normally Justice Court, 1498 Simpson Hwy 149, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-5848. A city arrest goes before that city's judge, who reads the charge, explains legal rights and sets release terms.

• Release usually begins with a signed promise to show up in court, or with an appearance bond.
• Added rules may include no contact, a curfew or drug testing.
• For a cash deposit bond, hand the court clerk $250 or 10 percent of the bond, whichever amount is greater. Only people never convicted of a crime carrying more than a year may use it.
• For a property bond, an owner swears that land in Mississippi is worth the bond.
• A licensed bondsman charges a premium of 10 percent of bail with a $100 minimum, plus $50. That fee is gone for good. The Mississippi Insurance Department licenses these agents.

Judges use guide ranges of $500 to $2,000 for a one-year misdemeanor and $5,000 to $50,000 when a felony carries up to 10 years. They may go either way. Read our bail page and our overview of Mississippi bail law.

Choose the path that fits your question:

1. Phone the jail through the Sheriff at 601-847-2155 to learn which charge is on the booking.
2. A misdemeanor question goes to the Justice Court clerk at 601-847-5848.
3. A felony question goes to the Circuit Clerk, 100 Court Street, Suite 2, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-2474.
4. The arresting department's incident report names whoever was charged, so request a copy.

Certain courts share dockets on Mississippi Electronic Courts, where one login serves all of them. Not every court has joined. Bring the full name and birth date.

Anyone in custody may talk to a lawyer in private. A judge settles the question of free counsel no later than the first appearance, and a short form about income may be filled out.

To learn who takes court-appointed cases, ask the Circuit Clerk, 100 Court Street, Suite 2, Mendenhall, MS 39114, at 601-847-2474. Misdemeanor questions can go to the Justice Court office.

A family may hire its own lawyer too. The state public defender's office in Jackson, 601-576-4290, mostly takes felony appeals, not first-stage cases.

Visits follow jail policy, which can shift, so phone the Sheriff's Office on 601-847-2155 before you travel. Ask about these points:

• Which days and times are set aside?
• Is it in person, through glass or on a screen?
• Do you need an appointment?
• Who may come, and at what age?
• Which photo ID is accepted, and what may you carry in?
• What clothing is banned?

Lawyers often follow separate rules. Our visitation guide covers the usual jail practices.

An inmate account buys snacks, soap and phone time. Learn the deposit method before sending anything. Call 601-847-2155 and ask which options are live, what they cost and the limits. Know the full name and the booking number.

Do not mail cash. Save every receipt. See our deposit guide and store guide for what a balance can buy.

Calls usually start from inside the jail, paid by the person who accepts them or from prepaid funds. Ask the Sheriff's Office at 601-847-2155 which company serves the jail, how to fund an account and what a minute costs. Ask if tablets, texts or video visits exist.

Treat every call as recorded. Leave case details for the lawyer. Our guides to inmate calls and to inmate email and text give background.

Phone first. The jail can give you its exact mailing address and tell you if a booking or inmate number is needed on the envelope. Find out which items are accepted, such as photographs or reading material.

On the envelope, print the legal name and list your own address as the sender. Use plain paper. Never tuck in cash. Read the inmate mail guide for common rules, and call the jail at 601-847-2155.

The jail stores the items it took at booking and returns them at release. Call 601-847-2155 and ask how pickup works, who may collect and whether a signed form is needed. Ask what ID to bring.

Check before you drop off clothing or papers, since many jails refuse anything unapproved. Leave cash and phones at home.

Ask the Sheriff's Office, 601-847-2155, to connect you with the jail's medical staff. Share the name and dose of each drug and the prescribing doctor. Mention allergies and long-term conditions.

Your loved one should put a sick-call request in writing and keep a copy if possible. A life-threatening emergency calls for 911. When you worry about a mental crisis, state that clearly.

The Sheriff's Office handles warrant service in the county. Ask there, at 601-847-2155, whether one exists for your person. Statewide names appear on Mississippi's Most Wanted. The circuit or justice clerk can also say whether a case is open. Have the name and birth date on hand. If one exists, see an attorney first. Next, phone the court that signed it and plan the surrender. Justice Court: 1498 Simpson Hwy 149, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-5848. Circuit Clerk: 100 Court Street, Suite 2, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-2474.

Each court below keeps its own calendar:

• Justice Court takes county misdemeanors and early felony steps at 1498 Simpson Hwy 149, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-5848. Criminal and traffic dockets run on the first and second Tuesdays and Thursdays.
• Circuit Court hears felony trials after a grand jury indicts. Find it at 100 Court Street, Suite 2, Mendenhall, MS 39114, 601-847-2474, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Thirteenth Circuit Court District is shared with Smith County.
• City arrests belong to the city's own court. The arresting police department can name it.

The goal is a trial within 270 days after arraignment. A judge may push it back for good cause. For every stage in order, open the court page.

Prosecutors file federal charges from this county in Jackson. Look for the U.S. District Court there (Northern Division, Southern District of Mississippi), at 501 East Court Street, Jackson, MS 39201 (Suite 2.500), 601-608-4000.

1. At a detention hearing (18 U.S.C. 3142), the federal judge weighs release against jail for the time before trial.
2. The U.S. Marshals Service, 501 East Court Street, Jackson, MS 39201 (Suite 1.150), 601-608-6800, will tell you which jail has a federal prisoner.
3. A person who cannot pay may get the Federal Public Defender, 200 South Lamar Street, Suite 200N, Jackson, MS 39201, 601-948-4284.
4. Once a sentence is imposed, find the inmate through the federal Bureau of Prisons locator.

These are the usual stages:

1. ICE writes to the jail on a detainer form, Form I-247A.
2. Under 8 CFR 287.7(d), the jail may hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released.
3. Next, ICE assumes custody. For Mississippi the agency names its New Orleans Field Office, and it lists a Jackson, MS office as well.
4. Try the ICE Online Detainee Locator. Type the full name with the birthplace country. An A-number also works.

An empty result calls for a later retry and a lawyer's help in contacting ICE. A local bond may not erase the detainer.

Prison time means the Mississippi Department of Corrections takes over, starting with a stop at an intake site. One is the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, 3794 MS Hwy 468, Pearl, MS 39208, 601-932-2880. County deputies make the drive. Intake runs two weeks to 45 days and allows no visits and few calls.

• The state corrections search accepts a name or an MDOC number. It covers state prisoners only, so someone still in the county jail will not be in it.
• See our guide to Mississippi state prisons for each site.
• Parole belongs to the State Parole Board alone.

Youth Court covers almost every child under 18. A child may be held 24 hours at most unless a judge orders more, and 48 hours at most before a detention hearing. Normally a child is kept apart from adult jails.

Some children go to adult court. That applies at age 13 and up when the act could mean life or death in prison, or a deadly weapon was involved. For anything else, Youth Court can still choose to transfer the case.

To find where a child is held and who has the case, call the Circuit Clerk's office at 601-847-2474 and ask for Youth Court. The state's youth defense office, 601-576-4206, supports public defenders. If a court commits a teen, one possible placement is the Oakley Youth Development Center, 2375 Oakley Road, Raymond, MS 39154.

Each agency keeps its own reports, so contact whoever made the arrest:

• Sheriff's Office: main line 601-847-2155, dispatch 601-847-2921. Its deputies cover areas outside towns with their own police.
• Magee Police Department: 601-849-2366. Call first for directions.
• Mendenhall police: the Sheriff's dispatch desk can say how to reach them.
• Mississippi Highway Patrol, Troop C: 3851 Highway 468 West, Pearl, MS 39208, 601-420-6342.

Other towns may run their own departments. Dispatch can name the agency that made the arrest.