The roster is one plain list, so a phone works fine. Try this:

1. Open the Detention Center roster.
2. Look at the "last updated" date near the top of the page.
3. Use your browser's find-on-page tool and type the last name.
4. Read the whole entry. "Booked in on" is the booking date. Each charge shows (F) or (M), and some show the original charge as well.
5. Copy down the court and case number. You will want them for the court portals and for bail questions.

Still stuck? Call 406-535-3415 on a weekday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., or try the toll-free line, 877-361-3014.

A name can be absent for several reasons:

• The list hasn't caught up. Compare the update date with the time of the arrest.
• Released. Someone may have posted bond, or the court ordered release.
• Moved. A transfer to a different county, a state prison or federal custody is possible.
• Spelled another way. Search a middle name, a nickname or an old last name.
• Under 18. Youth cases go through Juvenile Probation instead.

Staff at 406-535-3415 can tell you more. You can also email fcsheriff@fergussheriff.com, and the office asks you to include all your contact details.

The Lewistown jail holds people for other agencies too. On a recent roster, many entries carried a "Courtesy Hold," a "DOC Hold" or a U.S. Marshals hold. Courts named on the list included Cascade, Wheatland, Hill and Flathead counties, a federal court and even a court in Texas.

That means two things for families. A person picked up somewhere else in Montana could end up here. And a person arrested here may also be wanted by a court far away. Read the court name beside each charge, then ask jail staff at 406-535-3415 which agency controls the release.

This county keeps its own adult prisoners. If the arrest took place near a county line, or the person was moved, try these jails in the region:

• Cascade County Detention Facility, 3800 Ulm N Frontage Rd, Great Falls, MT 59404, Sheriff's Office 406-454-6820
• Chouteau County Detention Center, 1215 Washington St, Fort Benton, MT 59442, 406-622-3660
• Musselshell County jail, run from the Sheriff's Office at 820 Main Street, Roundup, MT 59072, 406-323-1402
• Wheatland County Jail, 203 A Avenue NW, Harlowton, MT 59036, 406-632-5614, a small jail with 6 beds

Judith Basin and Petroleum counties have no jails of their own. For an arrest in one of them, ask that county's sheriff where the person is held. The Judith Basin County Sheriff is at 91 Third Street North, Stanford, MT 59479, 406-566-2277. The Petroleum County Sheriff's Department answers at 406-429-6551.

The roster is text only, with names, charges, courts and bonds. Under Montana law, an arrest photo is public criminal justice information, and so are bail records and the daily jail list (MCA 44-5-103). Nothing in state law limits who may pass it along (MCA 44-5-301). For a copy of a booking photo, contact the Sheriff's Office by phone, 406-535-3415, or by email, fcsheriff@fergussheriff.com.

If ICE took the photo, ask for it through the ICE records request page.

The most reliable check is a call to 406-535-3415, plus a look at the roster each day.

• VINE. This free service sends phone, text or email alerts about adult felony offenders that Montana's corrections agency supervises. Signing up is up to you: use VINELink or call 800-456-3076 any time of day.
• Victims of certain crimes. In partner assault, strangulation, stalking and protection order cases, the detention center must tell the alleged victim when the accused gets out on bail (MCA 46-9-108).

Release terms come from a judge at the first appearance. Most of those happen in the Justice/City Court, 406-535-5418, at the County Complex. The roster often shows the result as a bond amount or "No Bond."

• For many misdemeanors, the judge begins with the state's bond schedule.
• Felonies carry no schedule amount, so the judge sets one.
• Partner assault and a few similar charges must go before a judge before any release.
• A DOC hold, a courtesy hold for another court, or an ICE detainer can keep someone in jail even after bail.

Our bail page explains payment, bail agents and refunds.

Charges on the roster carry a letter: F means felony, M means misdemeanor. Some entries also show the original charge, which can differ from the current one. To read the law itself, use the free Montana Code Annotated website.

After charges are filed, the court record has the details. Search the District Court portal for felony cases or the limited jurisdiction portal for misdemeanors. The County Attorney's Office decides what to charge. It sits at 801 W. Broadway St., Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-8127.

Right to counsel comes up early: the judge covers it at the first hearing. Montana's Office of State Public Defender takes cases that could mean jail, plus felonies and youth cases. Its office in town is at 505 W. Main St, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-3703.

• Apply at advopd.mt.gov and upload proof of income, like pay stubs.
• A judge reviews each application and decides (MCA 47-1-111).
• The Justice Court notes that the person may be ordered to pay back some of the cost.

Hiring a private attorney is another choice. The jail at 406-535-3415 can explain how attorneys set up client meetings.

Visiting days are Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. Each visit lasts 15 minutes. Up to two visitors can come during a visiting period, and an inmate gets one period per visiting day. Inmates serving 72 hours (3 days) or less get no visits.

• Visitors must be 18 or older.
• Visitors must be immediate family: a legally married spouse, parent, brother or sister, child, grandparent, grandchild, step-relative, in-law, aunt or uncle. Anyone else needs approval ahead of time from the Sheriff or Undersheriff.
• Bring a picture ID, since staff may ask for it.
• Rude or disruptive visitors, or inmates, may lose visits.
• The detention officer on duty has the final word.

Call 406-535-3415 before you go to confirm the schedule. Our visitation page has more tips.

Yes. NCIC, the jail's phone company, also runs video visits from home and electronic messages. One prepaid account pays for calls, video visits and messages. These rates appear on the Sheriff's inmate phone service sheet:

• Video visits from home: $0.30 per minute
• Text messages: $0.25 each
• Picture or video messages: $0.35 each

Set up and fund the account online through the vendor, or by phone at 800-943-2189. The sheet comes in Spanish too. Our inmate email and messaging page explains how these services usually work.

The visiting rules list money among the things that may be left for an inmate. Checks are refused for phone card purchases. For other deposits, such as commissary money, call 406-535-3415 and ask what methods and limits apply right now. Have the person's full name ready.

Money for calls, video visits and messages goes on the prepaid NCIC account described in the video visit answer. The basics are in our money guide and our commissary guide. Never mail cash.

Inmates call out from a prepaid account billed by the minute, with no connection fee. The Sheriff's rate sheet lists $0.16 a minute in the U.S., $0.25 to Mexico and Canada, and $0.35 to other countries.

• Three-way calls are against the rules.
• The jail takes no incoming calls for inmates. Approved inmates can receive voicemail.
• Leave case details out of family calls and save them for the lawyer.

To set up an account, call 800-943-2189. Our jail phone page has more help.

Write the person's full name, then P.O. Box 180, Lewistown, MT 59457. The Sheriff's rules use this same box for letters.

• The jail's rules say books and magazines are not accepted for inmates.
• Put your return address on the envelope.
• Use the person's full legal name, not a nickname.
• Keep cash out of the envelope.

Call 406-535-3415 about photos, legal mail or anything unusual before you send it. Common jail mail rules are in our mail guide.

The visit rules list what family members may leave for an inmate's personal property:

• one set of clean clothing
• money (no checks for phone card purchases)
• postage stamps
• newspapers

Books, magazines and tobacco are refused, and the building is tobacco free. Call 406-535-3415 before bringing anything, since rules can change.

Things taken at booking are stored until release. To collect items for them, call 406-535-3415 on a weekday between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Some jails want a signed note from the inmate first, so ask. Bring photo ID to the Sheriff's Office at 121 8th Avenue South, Lewistown, MT 59457.

The Sheriff's Office runs the jail and is responsible for the people inside. Call 406-535-3415 right away when your family member is sick, hurt or takes medicine. Share the name and dose of each medicine and the doctor's name and phone number. If you think the person may be in a mental health crisis, say so clearly.

For an emergency, dial 911.

Phone the Sheriff's Office at 406-535-3415 with questions about a county warrant. Inside the city, the police department answers at 406-535-1800. The roster also shows the warrant type for anyone already in custody. Open cases can be found by name on the District Court portal and the justice and city court portal. The Montana offender search flags people wanted for leaving state supervision as absconders. If you learn of a warrant, see a lawyer before anything else. Then the person may surrender at the Detention Center or phone the issuing court to reschedule. For a felony warrant, the Clerk of District Court is at 406-535-5026.

Hearing dates come from whichever court has the case. Look at the roster entry: the court name and case number sit beside each charge, so you know whom to call:

• Justice/City Court, County Complex, 121 8th Avenue South, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-5418
• Clerk of District Court, 712 W. Main Street, Suite 303, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-5026
• Cases from another county: call the court named on the roster

A name search on either state portal also works. For a walk-through of a case, see our court page.

Because of a county deal with the U.S. Marshals Service, federal defendants may stay right in the Lewistown jail. The roster marks this as a Marshals hold.

1. The case is handled by the Great Falls Division of the federal court, Missouri River Federal Courthouse, 125 Central Avenue West, Suite 110, Great Falls, MT 59404, 406-727-1922.
2. A federal judge holds a detention hearing right at the start. That hearing decides between release and custody until trial (18 U.S.C. 3142).
3. Ask the Marshals' Montana district office at 406-200-6004 where the person is held.
4. PACER has the case filings. Once a sentence is handed down, the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator shows where the person is.

The roster shows "ICE Detainer" when immigration officers have asked the jail to hold someone.

1. Immigration's request arrives on Form I-247A.
2. With that form in hand, the jail may hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released. Montana officers must act on it unless the person offers believable papers showing citizenship or legal status (MCA 27-16-801).
3. For this county, the ICE office that handles check-ins is in Billings, 2900 4th Avenue, Suite 205, Billings, MT 59101, 406-247-4083.
4. Look the person up on the ICE Online Detainee Locator. Enter their A-number, or their name and birth country. If the search comes back empty, ICE tells families to contact the field office, 801-736-1200.

A person sentenced to the Montana Department of Corrections often waits in the Lewistown jail first. The roster may show this as a DOC hold. The state offender search can list the person even during that wait, since it counts county jail inmates who are waiting for transfer.

• Look up the person on the Montana offender search; a DOC number or a name both work.
• Every facility gets its own page in our Montana state prisons guide.
• Hearing results from the state parole board are on its dispositions page.

Arrests of people under 18 go through Youth Court and Juvenile Probation, not the adult roster. A youth can be held in an adult jail only a few hours for booking. Outside big cities, a youth waiting for a hearing may stay up to 24 hours, not counting weekends or holidays, fully apart from adults (MCA 41-5-349). Youth records are kept private and away from the online court portals.

Parents should call Juvenile Probation, 523 W Main St, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-9242, on weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. After hours, call law enforcement.

Usually not directly. Montana keeps arrest reports private as confidential criminal justice information. A Sheriff's Office handout lists three ways in:

• A defendant's lawyer receives the reports from the County Attorney during discovery.
• Victims send the County Attorney a written request.
• Everyone else has to petition District Court.

Some arrest facts are public, though. Mugshots, bail records and the daily jail list can be shared freely (MCA 44-5-301). For a full criminal history, the state Department of Justice offers a paid name search called CHOPRS.

To learn which agency made the arrest, ask jail staff. These agencies serve roughly 11,825 people, the Census Bureau's 2025 county estimate:

• Fergus County Sheriff's Office, 121 8th Avenue South, PO Box 180, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-3415. Covers the county outside the city, runs the jail and also monitors the town of Moore.
• Lewistown Police Department, 305 W Watson St, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-535-1800. Enforces city and state law inside city limits. Its dispatch center answers 9-1-1 for all of Central Montana's three-county area.
• Montana Highway Patrol, 18 Trooper Drive, Boulder, MT 59632, 24-hour dispatch 855-647-3777
• Bureau of Land Management, Lewistown Field Office, 920 Northeast Main, Lewistown, MT 59457, 406-538-1900, for federal land that includes the Missouri River Breaks area