The roster page links to one document that lists the people held right now. Steps that work on most phones:

1. Tap the link to the current inmate roster.
2. Use the find tool on your device to look for the last name. Try other spellings as well.
3. If you spot a booking or ID number, write it down. Staff can locate the person faster with it.
4. If an entry looks wrong, the roster page asks you to report it to the Detention Center at 406-454-6820.

The county shares the roster under Montana's public records law (MCA 44-5-103), and it gives no promise that every entry is correct. Check anything important with the jail before you act on it.

Names fail to appear for a few ordinary reasons:

• The booking is brand new. The list is refreshed about every four hours.
• Already released. A judge may have let them go, or someone posted bail.
• Transferred. Another county, the state or a federal agency may now hold them.
• A federal hold. Federal holds work differently. For anyone held for the U.S. Marshals, ICE or Customs and Border Protection, call the jail or that agency.
• The spelling differs. Try a middle name, a nickname or an earlier last name.
• Under 18. Youths go to the Juvenile Detention Center instead.

The fastest answer comes from the jail at 406-454-6820. The Sheriff's records counter is staffed weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

The Sheriff's Adult Detention Division runs the jail at 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404. It holds men and women 18 and older, both before trial and after sentencing, at every custody level from minimum to maximum. A 2023 audit under the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act listed a design capacity of 372 beds. In the year before that audit, the jail averaged about 412 people a day.

Besides local arrests, a March 2026 county funding request says the jail houses and transports detainees for the U.S. Marshals Service, ICE, Customs and Border Protection and the State of Montana. In booking, new arrivals are searched, pass through a body scanner and receive a handbook in English or Spanish.

Local adult arrests stay at the Ulm North Frontage Road jail. An arrest made by a nearby county usually goes to that county's own lockup:

• Chouteau County Detention Center, 1215 Washington St, Fort Benton, MT 59442, 406-622-3660
• Lewis and Clark County Detention Center, 221 Breckenridge Ave., Helena, MT 59601
• Teton County Sheriff's Office, 26 First Street SE, Choteau, MT 59422, 406-466-5781, which runs a short-term holding facility
• Meagher County Sheriff's Office, P.O. Box 449, White Sulphur Springs, MT 59645, 406-547-3397
• Judith Basin County Sheriff's Office, 91 Third Street North, Stanford, MT 59479, 406-566-2277

Teton, Meagher and Judith Basin have little or no jail space, so ask their sheriffs where a person was sent.

Under Montana law, daily jail rosters, bail records and initial arrest records with booking photographs are public criminal justice information (MCA 44-5-103). Montana puts no restriction on passing that kind of record along (MCA 44-5-301). To ask about a booking photo for someone held here, call the Sheriff's Office at 406-454-6820.

• Photos taken by ICE are requested through the ICE records request page.
• The county's roster page warns that anyone who republishes its records is responsible for any defamation or privacy claims.

Ask the jail staff at 406-454-6820 for each charge and the Montana law number that goes with it. The statutes themselves are free to read in the Montana Code Annotated online.

Formal charges appear in the court file after filing. Look up a misdemeanor on the lower court portal. Felonies sit in the District Court portal. Prosecutors at the County Attorney's Office decide the final felony charges. It is at 121 4th Street North, Suite 2A, Great Falls, MT 59401, 406-454-6915. That office also takes requests for police report copies on its own form, for $15 by money order or cashier's check.

Release terms are set by a judge, usually at a first appearance in Justice Court or Municipal Court. Cash bail still exists here. Even so, the law steers judges to the least restrictive terms that will get the person to court.

• For many misdemeanors, a statewide bond schedule suggests a starting figure.
• Felonies carry no schedule amount, so a judge sets one.
• Partner or family assault charges always need a judge before release.
• Someone held on another place's warrant can't be bailed by a local judge.
• Bail on a Municipal Court case must be paid in person.

Our bail page covers amounts, where to pay and how bail agents work.

Free legal help comes from the Office of State Public Defender for people who qualify. Its staff lawyers cover felonies and youth cases. They also take misdemeanors if a conviction could send the client to jail.

• Local branch: 615 2nd Avenue North, Great Falls, MT 59403, 406-770-3200
• Applications go through advopd.mt.gov. Have current pay stubs and bank records ready.

A privately hired attorney can see a client in person at the jail. Lawyers can also use the jail's secure legal system for remote meetings once the facility verifies them.

Call the jail at 406-454-6820 and check the roster often, since it updates every few hours.

• VINE is a free service that calls, texts or emails about adult felony offenders the state supervises. Sign-up is required, at VINELink or 800-456-3076, day or night.
• Victims get notice from the jail when the accused posts bail in partner assault, strangling, stalking and protection order cases (MCA 46-9-108).

The Sheriff's Office has cancelled in-person visits until further notice. Video visits are still offered through the jail's phone and video company. For help with an account, that company's line is 800-844-6591, open around the clock.

An older rules sheet on the Sheriff's page describes weekend visits that needed photo ID and followed a dress code. Since those visits are on hold, call 406-454-6820 to ask what applies now. Our visitation page has general tips.

The Sheriff's page lists three ways to add funds:

• Mail a money order made out to the inmate's first and last name. Send it to 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404.
• Use the kiosk in the Sheriff's Office lobby.
• Pay online through the deposit link on the Sheriff's Office page.

Care packages can be ordered from a vendor linked on that same page. Read our guide to inmate money and our commissary page for more. Do not send cash.

One contracted company runs the inmate phones, video visits and electronic messages. For billing or account questions, call it at 800-844-6591 at any hour. Ask them about opening an account, call prices and messaging.

Inmates use tablets, and scanned personal mail is delivered to those tablets. Keep any talk about the charges for the lawyer, not for jail calls. See our jail phone guide and our page on inmate email and texts.

Write the inmate's full name, then Cascade County Detention Facility, 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404. The Sheriff's sample also allows "Sheriff's Office" in place of the facility name. Follow these rules:

• Every personal letter is opened, inspected and scanned by the jail's Digital Mailing Center. It then goes to the inmate's tablet, and the paper is thrown away.
• Your complete name and address must appear on the envelope.
• Send no more than 10 pages per envelope, each no larger than 8.5 by 11 inches.
• Magazines, books, packages, cash, third-party mail, stamps and stickers are not allowed.
• Don't mail original papers you need back, because they can't be returned.

Our inmate mail guide has more tips.

Lawyers use a secure legal technology system for legal mail and remote client meetings. First, the facility must check the attorney in person, with government ID and proof that they represent the client. The attorney then hands the client the login details.

Clients can still write to their lawyer by regular mail or meet in person. Attorneys should keep their own copies of every document. Questions go to the jail at 406-454-6820.

Personal items taken at booking are kept by the jail until release. Phone 406-454-6820 on a weekday about pickup times. Ask too if the inmate has to sign a release. Bring a photo ID to 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404.

Evidence is a separate matter. If police or prosecutors are holding property in a case, fill out the County Attorney's Property Release Form and return it to that office at 406-454-6915.

The jail has a health services administrator on site and works with a contracted medical provider. Call 406-454-6820 quickly about any illness, injury or prescription. Give the medicine's name and dose plus the prescribing doctor's contact.

For an emergency, dial 911. If a mental health crisis is the worry, say that plainly.

The Sheriff's Office follows a written policy under the Prison Rape Elimination Act, known as PREA. Its reporting guide explains how to report sexual abuse or harassment in the jail. The full PREA policy is on the county site too.

New inmates watch a PREA video at intake, in English or Spanish with captions. If you are worried about someone's safety, call the jail at 406-454-6820.

Warrant questions for the county go to the Sheriff's Office at 406-454-6820, whose records staff process warrant papers. For city cases, read the Municipal Court Warrants List page. It tells you how to search the court's public portal for an active warrant, and you can call 406-771-1380 if the portal fails. Any open case can also be found through Montana's two free portals, one for lower courts and one for District Court. The corrections offender search flags people wanted for escape or for leaving probation or parole. Never ignore a warrant. Call a lawyer, then turn yourself in at 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404, or ask the issuing court about a new date.

The court that has the case sets each date:

• Felonies: Clerk of District Court, 415 2nd Avenue North, Great Falls, MT 59401, 406-604-7796. The county's District Court calendars list court days.
• County misdemeanors: Justice Court, in that courthouse, 406-604-7787.
• City cases: Municipal Court, 406-771-1380. Open court meets Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings.
• Town cases: Belt City Court, 406-277-3621, or the town court in Cascade, 406-468-2808.

The state's free court portals show dates as well. Our court page explains every step of a case.

People charged with federal crimes here may be housed at the county jail for the U.S. Marshals Service.

1. Call the Marshals' Montana office at 406-200-6004 to confirm where the person is.
2. Their first court date is at the Missouri River Federal Courthouse, 125 Central Avenue West, Suite 110, Great Falls, MT 59404, 406-727-1922. It includes a detention hearing (18 U.S.C. 3142).
3. The federal docket is on PACER, which bills by the page.
4. After sentencing, search the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator by register number or name.

Yes, for a short time. An immigration hold usually unfolds like this:

1. ICE sends a detainer request, Form I-247A, to the jail.
2. The person can then be kept for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released. Montana officers must honor the detainer unless the person shows good evidence of citizenship or lawful status (MCA 27-16-801).
3. The jail also houses ICE detainees. An ICE inspection in 2023 found it held about one ICE detainee a day on average.
4. ICE's Salt Lake City Field Office, which handles Montana, is at 2975 Decker Lake Drive, Suite 100, West Valley City, UT 84119, 801-736-1200.
5. Use the A-number on the ICE Online Detainee Locator if you have it. Otherwise enter the exact full name and country of birth. If no result comes up, ICE's advice is to call the field office.

A person sentenced to the Department of Corrections may wait in the county jail until the department assesses them. They can appear in the state's search during that wait.

• Look them up by name or DOC ID on the Montana offender search. It lists where they are and their status.
• Our Montana state prisons guide explains visits and mail at each prison.
• For parole questions, the regional probation and parole office is at 219 5th Street South, Suite A, Great Falls, MT 59405, 406-727-6061.

Youths are taken to the Juvenile Detention Center, 1600 26th Street South, Great Falls, MT 59405, 406-454-6930. It is a 24-bed regional center for ages 10 to 18. It also serves Blaine, Broadwater, Chouteau, Glacier, Hill, Lewis and Clark, Liberty, Phillips, Pondera, Teton and Toole counties.

• Visits happen by Zoom only, on Saturdays and Sundays from 8:00 to 10:30 a.m. and Wednesdays from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Approved parents and close family may join. Call the center to book a time.
• Youths go to school all year, grades 5 to 12, through Great Falls Public Schools.
• A judge must review the detention within a day, not counting weekends or legal holidays (MCA 41-5-332).
• Juvenile Probation, Room 108 of the county courthouse, 406-604-7771, can explain the next steps.

Ask the jail which agency made the arrest. The county had about 85,029 residents in mid-2025, per the Census Bureau. Agencies that make arrests here include:

• Sheriff's Office, 3800 Ulm North Frontage Road, Great Falls, MT 59404, 406-454-6820, non-emergency dispatch 406-454-6979. Deputies cover the rural county and, by contract, the towns of Belt and Cascade.
• Great Falls Police Department, 112 1st Street South, Great Falls, MT 59401, 406-727-7688, non-emergency 406-455-8599. The city has about 60,208 people.
• Montana Highway Patrol, local office, 406-453-1121.
• Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Region 4, 4600 Giant Springs Road, Great Falls, MT 59405, 406-454-5840.
• Division of Criminal Investigation, local office, 406-791-2700.
• 341st Security Forces, Malmstrom Air Force Base, handles law enforcement on the base and runs a confinement facility that serves four Air Force bases. Public Affairs: 21 77th Street N., Bldg. 500, Rm 151A, Malmstrom AFB, MT 59402-7538, 406-731-4050.
• Little Shell Chippewa Tribe headquarters, 625 Central Avenue West, Great Falls, MT 59401, 406-315-2400. The tribe has no reservation, and none lies in the county.