Albany County Correctional Facility

A judge decides, never the jail staff. The state court system says the wait from arrest to the first hearing is usually about 24 hours. That hearing is called an arraignment. The judge reads the charge, makes sure a lawyer is there, and decides whether the person goes home.

The court depends on where the arrest happened:

• Inside the capital city: Albany City Court, Criminal Part, 1 Morton Avenue, Albany, NY 12202.
• Cohoes: Cohoes City Court, 97 Mohawk Street, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-453-5501.
• Watervliet: Watervliet City Court, 2 Fifteenth Street, Watervliet, NY 12189, 518-453-5550.
• Colonie and Menands: Colonie Town Court, 312 Wolf Road, Latham, NY 12110, 518-782-2633.
• Other towns and villages: the local justice court for that town.

Plenty of people skip jail entirely. On most low-level charges, officers are required to write an appearance ticket, often called a desk appearance ticket. The person then goes home with a court date (CPL 150.20). Family violence cases, open warrants and a missed court date in the past two years are some of the exceptions.

New York calls the judge's decision a securing order (CPL 500.10). It comes in four kinds:

• Own recognizance. After signing a written promise to come back, the person is free to leave. Nobody pays anything.
• Release with conditions. The person goes home under rules, like checking in with a program, a curfew or staying away from someone. They can't be billed for these rules (CPL 500.10(3-a)). Judges here can use the county's Pretrial Release Under Supervision program, which the Probation Department runs from 60 South Pearl Street, 4th Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5200.
• Bail. Cash or a bond, handed back once the case is over if no court date was missed. The law reserves it for "qualifying offenses."
• Remand. No release at all, and no amount that can be paid. This is limited to some qualifying felonies (CPL 510.10(4)).

When bail is part of the order, it must offer at least three forms of payment. One of them has to be a bond that is unsecured or only partly secured (CPL 520.10). With an unsecured bond, someone signs and owes money only if the person fails to show. With a partly secured bond, the deposit is capped at 10 percent of the bail (CPL 500.10(18)).

Ankle monitors have limits too. Before ordering a monitor, the judge must hold a hearing. Each order lasts 60 days at most until a fresh review (CPL 510.40(4)).

New York has no bail chart with set prices. The judge picks a number for each case after weighing the charge, past record, any history of skipping court, and what the person can pay without real hardship (CPL 510.10(1)). For most misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies, the answer is no bail at all.

State figures from the Division of Criminal Justice Services show how often bail was set at arraignment in 2024 outside New York City:

• City courts: bail in 20 percent of cases, own recognizance in 57 percent, conditions in 16 percent, remand in 7 percent.
• Town and village courts: bail in 13 percent, own recognizance in 75 percent, conditions in 5 percent, remand in 7 percent.

If bail is set and a bond agent is used, state law caps the agent's fee (Insurance Law § 6804). The most an agent may charge:

• $1,000 bond: $100
• $3,000 bond: $300
• $5,000 bond: $460
• $10,000 bond: $860
• $25,000 bond: $1,760

To hear the exact figure for one person, phone the court that held the hearing, or ask the jail at 518-869-2600.

State law lets cash bail be handed to the sheriff who is holding the person (CPL 520.15). The jail sits at 840 Old Albany Shaker Road, Albany, NY 12211. Work through these steps:

1. Phone the jail at 518-869-2600 before you drive over.
2. Spell the person's name and share their birth date. Ask for the bail amount, the court and the docket number.
3. Ask what hours bail is taken and which payments the jail accepts today.
4. Ask whether any other hold, such as a warrant from another court, will keep them inside.
5. Bring a photo ID and the exact payment. You will fill out and sign a form.
6. Keep the receipt somewhere safe. It is your proof for the refund later.

When proof of the deposit reaches staff, state law requires release at once. For other Sheriff's Office questions, call 518-487-5440. The Civil Division line, 518-487-5400, handles papers in lawsuits and can't help with an inmate.

Yes. Besides the sheriff, cash bail may go to the judge's own court or to the county treasurer (CPL 520.15). Call ahead each time and ask the hours, the payment types and whether the jail will release the person as soon as you pay.

• County Court (felonies after indictment): Judicial Center, 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777. Open weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., closed on state holidays.
• Cohoes City Court: 97 Mohawk Street, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-453-5501. Open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; the payment window shuts at 3:45 p.m.
• Watervliet City Court: 2 Fifteenth Street, Watervliet, NY 12189, 518-453-5550.
• Colonie Town Court: Public Safety Building, 312 Wolf Road, Latham, NY 12110, 518-782-2633. It took over Menands cases when that village court closed on July 7, 2025.
• Bethlehem Town Court: Town Hall, 447 Delaware Avenue, Delmar, NY 12054, 518-439-9717. The office is open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and closes early on Tuesdays for court.
• Coeymans Town Court: Town Building, 18 Russell Avenue, Ravena, NY 12143, 518-756-8480.
• The capital's city court, Criminal Part: 1 Morton Avenue, Albany, NY 12202.

If the case sits in a different town court, ask the jail at 518-869-2600 which court has it.

New York counts three things as bail: cash, a bond, or a charge on a credit card or similar device (CPL 500.10(9)). The judge's order names which forms count in that case, so read it closely or ask the clerk.

• Cash: bring the exact amount and get a signed receipt.
• Credit card: a legal form of bail when the order lists it. Ask about any card fee first.
• Insurance company bond: a licensed agent files it for you.
• Unsecured or partly secured bond: signed papers, plus a deposit of no more than a tenth of the bail for the partly secured kind.

Any adult can post cash bail for the person, not just relatives (CPL 500.10(10)). The money still belongs to whoever paid it unless it is forfeited (CPL 520.15). Never mail cash. To learn which forms the jail takes on a given day, call 518-869-2600.

A bail bond agent covers the full bail for a fee called a premium. Nobody may sell bail bonds here without a license from DFS, the state Department of Financial Services.

• The fee can't go past 10 percent of the first $3,000, 8 percent of the next $7,000, and 6 percent of anything above $10,000 (Insurance Law § 6804).
• The agent usually keeps the premium. But if the person is never released, or is freed without money bail, the whole premium can be refunded within 14 days.
• No other fees are allowed, apart from a few listed costs such as tracking down someone who skipped court.
• Collateral, meaning property the agent holds as a backup, should be reasonable, like 10 percent of the bond. Once the agent receives the papers that close out the bond, the collateral is due back in 45 days, unless the bail was forfeited.
• You are owed a detailed, signed receipt each time you pay or get collateral back.

Check any agent with the DFS bail agent search before you sign. File problems on the DFS complaint page. A charitable bail group, which is a nonprofit that can pay bail in cash, must give its DFS certificate number if you ask in writing.

A bail payment settles one case only. A separate hold can still block release, so have the jail at 518-869-2600 list every hold first. These are the usual ones:

• Another open case or warrant. A different court may hold its own charge and set its own bail.
• County probation. A new arrest can bring a violation case. The Probation Department is at 60 South Pearl Street, 4th Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5200.
• State parole. Parole belongs to the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Harriman State Campus, Building #4, 1220 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12226, 518-457-5000.
• A federal hold. The county jail also keeps people for federal courts, and state bail does not touch those cases.
• An immigration detainer. Federal immigration agents sometimes ask for the person to stay put, though New York sharply limits when a local jail can agree.

A judge may order remand only for a qualifying felony (CPL 510.10(4)). With remand, there is no amount to pay; the person stays in jail. The list includes violent felonies, most class A felonies, some sex crimes, any crime said to have caused a death, a felony committed while on probation or parole, and some new charges filed while the person was already out on a similar case.

Local courts face one more limit. Judges in the city, town and village courts can't free a person accused of a class A felony, or one who already has two felony convictions (CPL 530.20(2)). A superior court judge has to decide those.

The judge must give the reasons out loud or in writing (CPL 510.10(1)). A 2023 budget law widened judges' power to use bail when the charge is serious. The office that argues for bail or remand is the District Attorney's Office, 6 Lodge Street, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5460.

The defense may go to a superior court judge in the county when a local court's bail seems too high, release was refused, or the rules feel too harsh (CPL 530.30). That judge can lower the bail, ease the rules or let the person go. For a felony, the District Attorney gets to speak first. Only one request of this kind is allowed, so it should be strong.

Help the lawyer build it:

1. Collect pay stubs, a lease or mail showing an address, and names of relatives nearby.
2. List what the family could really pay. Judges must weigh whether bail can be paid without undue hardship (CPL 510.10(1)).
3. Offer a plan that answers the judge's worry, such as supervision by the pretrial program.

Time limits help too. If the prosecutor is not ready for trial within 90 days on a felony, a jailed person must be released, with shorter limits for misdemeanors (CPL 30.30(2)). For felony matters, the County Court clerk is at 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777.

Yes, when the person can't pay. New York's plan is for an appointed lawyer to stand beside them at the very first hearing (Executive Law § 832(4)). In this county, that is usually the Public Defender:

• Public Defender's Office: 112 State Street, 2nd Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-447-7150.
• Alternate Public Defender: steps in when the Public Defender has a conflict, for example when it already represents someone else in the same case. The Public Defender's line can point you there.
• Assigned Counsel Program: a county program that assigns private lawyers when neither office can take the case. The judge makes that assignment.

State guidelines presume a person qualifies when household income falls below 250 percent of the federal poverty level. Being in jail counts as a reason too. Only the person's own income counts, not a husband's or wife's. The judge decides in the end, and the court can appoint counsel on a temporary basis in the meantime.

Main courthouses for criminal and youth cases:

• County Court (felony trials): Judicial Center, 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777. Weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Supreme Court (mostly civil cases outside New York City): 16 Eagle Street, Room 102, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8989. Weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Family Court (children and families): 30 Clinton Avenue, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8600. Open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Albany City Court, Criminal Part: 1 Morton Avenue, Albany, NY 12202.
• Cohoes City Court: 97 Mohawk Street, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-453-5501.
• Watervliet City Court: 2 Fifteenth Street, Watervliet, NY 12189, 518-453-5550.
• Colonie Town Court: 312 Wolf Road, Latham, NY 12110, 518-782-2633.
• Bethlehem Town Court: 447 Delaware Avenue, Delmar, NY 12054, 518-439-9717.
• Coeymans Town Court: 18 Russell Avenue, Ravena, NY 12143, 518-756-8480.
• Guilderland Town Court: mail to PO Box 339, Guilderland, NY 12084, 518-356-1980.
• Green Island Town Court: court clerk 518-273-0661.
• Federal court: James T. Foley Courthouse, 445 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207, 518-257-1789.

Berne, Knox, New Scotland, Rensselaerville and Westerlo each have a town court, and Altamont has a village court. Get their addresses and hours from the state's Find a Court tool.

Cash bail is paid back when the case ends, or sooner if the judge cancels the bail. The court signs a refund order, but the check itself comes from the office holding the money, not the courtroom.

• A dismissal or a not-guilty verdict brings back every dollar.
• With any other outcome, 3 percent stays with the county as a fee (General Municipal Law § 99-m).
• The refund goes to the person whose name is on the receipt, so keep it with your photo ID.

If the person misses court with no good reason, the bail is forfeited, which means the county can keep it (CPL 540.10). A judge may erase that loss if the person returns and explains the absence before the case's final adjournment. For cash, the county treasurer must mail notice to the person who paid. From the date of the forfeiture, there is one year to ask a superior court to return part or all of the money (CPL 540.30).

Ask the court that set bail how to collect. For felony cases, call the County Court clerk at 518-285-8777.

Ask about the person's things and leftover account money before they walk out. The jail is at 840 Old Albany Shaker Road, Albany, NY 12211, and staff answer at 518-869-2600. Ask three things:

• how leftover money on their jail account is paid back,
• when and where clothes, phones, wallets and keys can be picked up,
• if collecting for someone else takes a written OK from them.

Bring a photo ID when you go. Our inmate account guide and commissary page explain how deposits and store orders usually work.

Charges brought by the U.S. government go before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York, Albany Division. It sits in the James T. Foley Courthouse, 445 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207, 518-257-1789, and the clerk's office keeps hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

• A federal judge decides release at the first appearance. The detention hearing is held right then. Either side can seek a few extra days, and the person stays locked up meanwhile (18 U.S.C. 3142(f)).
• The judge may release on a promise, an unsecured bond or conditions, or order the person held (18 U.S.C. 3142(a)).
• The U.S. Marshals Service keeps people in custody before trial. Its office is in the same courthouse, 445 Broadway, 2nd Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-472-5401. The county jail holds federal prisoners too, so ask the Marshals where the person is.
• Federal Pretrial Services, 445 Broadway, Room 347, Albany, NY 12207, 518-257-1700, watches people released before trial.
• The Federal Public Defender is at 54 State Street, Suite 310, Albany, NY 12207, 518-436-1850.

After a prison sentence, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator. Case papers are on PACER, which costs 10 cents a page.

It won't. An immigration hold is separate from state bail, and paying one leaves the other in place. Here is the federal process, and then what New York changes:

1. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodges a request, Form I-247A, with the jail. It is known as a detainer.
2. It requests that the jail hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. ICE officers come to take the person. This part of the state falls outside the New York City office's area, so the Buffalo Field Office, 130 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-843-7600, handles it. One place ICE holds people upstate is the Buffalo (Batavia) Service Processing Center, 4250 Federal Drive, Batavia, NY 14020, 585-344-6500.
4. Look the person up on the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

New York law limits step 2. In the 2018 Wells v DeMarco case, the Appellate Division ruled that local police and jail officers lack state authority to make arrests over civil immigration matters. It also found that keeping a person on an ICE detainer alone was unlawful. Guidance from the state Attorney General says a detainer should be honored only if it arrives with a judicial warrant.

Two more state laws matter. Executive Law § 170-k, passed in 2026, ended every 287(g) deal as of August 25, 2026. Those deals had let local officers do ICE work. Civil Rights Law § 28 protects people on their way into, inside, or out of a courthouse. A civil immigration arrest there needs a judge's warrant or court order.

Jail time for a misdemeanor tops out at 364 days. Longer felony terms are served with the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). After the judge hands down the sentence, they wait in the county lockup until local officials mark them "state ready." From that point, the state prison system gets a ten-business-day window to accept the transfer.

At the reception center, workers check papers, take prints, issue an ID number called a DIN, and look at health and mental health needs. Then they decide which prison fits.

• Search the DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup by DIN, or by last name and birth year.
• Without internet, call DOCCS on weekdays at 518-457-5000.
• Read about each facility in our directory of New York prisons.

Under New York's Raise the Age law, teens who are 16 or 17 can't be held in a jail that houses adults. It covered 16-year-olds from October 1, 2018, and 17-year-olds from October 1, 2019.

• Police holding a child must get word to a parent immediately (Family Court Act § 305.2).
• A teen charged with a felony starts in the Youth Part, a court part just for these cases. A nonviolent felony moves to Family Court unless the District Attorney, within 30 days of the arraignment, proves "extraordinary circumstances" (CPL 722.23).
• A misdemeanor arrest of a teen is sent to probation intake rather than to adult court.
• Youths who are held go to the Capital District Juvenile Secure Detention Facility, which serves this county along with Rensselaer, Saratoga and Schenectady.
• Family Court is at 30 Clinton Avenue, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8600.

For the youth's location and hearing date, call the Probation Department, which handles youth intake, at 60 South Pearl Street, 4th Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5200.

No. They start in the same local courts, but only felonies move up. New York sorts offenses into three levels:

• Felony. The most serious kind of crime, with state prison possible. Classes run from A, the worst, down to E.
• Misdemeanor. A smaller crime. The local jail term caps at 364 days for class A and three months for class B (Penal Law § 70.15).
• Violation. An offense that is not a crime at all, with up to 15 days in jail.

City, town and village courts are known as local criminal courts. They try misdemeanors and violations from start to finish. In felony cases, they only hold the arraignment and a preliminary hearing. After a grand jury votes an indictment, the felony goes to County Court. Outside New York City, Supreme Court mostly hears civil disputes, so criminal trials stay in County Court. Cases with young people go to Family Court or the Youth Part.

These courts take cases from every corner of the county:

• County Court (indicted felonies): Judicial Center, 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777. Weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., closed on state holidays.
• Drug Court (court-supervised treatment): Judicial Center, 6 Lodge Street, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-6138.
• Supreme Court (civil cases): 16 Eagle Street, Room 102, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8989. Weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Family Court (youth, family offense and child cases): 30 Clinton Avenue, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8600. Open 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Family Treatment Court: inside Family Court at 30 Clinton Avenue, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8630.
• Regional Treatment Court: part of the capital's city court at 1 Morton Avenue, Albany, NY 12202, 518-453-5525. The same court runs an Alternative Treatment Court for people with a serious mental illness.
• Federal court: James T. Foley Courthouse, 445 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207, 518-257-1789.

Arrests are first heard close to home, in courts like these:

• Albany City Court, Criminal Part: 1 Morton Avenue, Albany, NY 12202.
• Cohoes City Court: 97 Mohawk Street, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-453-5501. Open 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., with payments taken until 3:45 p.m.
• Watervliet City Court: 2 Fifteenth Street, Watervliet, NY 12189, 518-453-5550.
• Colonie Town Court: Public Safety Building, 312 Wolf Road, Latham, NY 12110, 518-782-2633. Alternative number: 518-783-2714. Its window is open weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 3:00 p.m.
• Bethlehem Town Court: Town Hall, 447 Delaware Avenue, Delmar, NY 12054, 518-439-9717. Criminal court meets the first and third Tuesday at 4:00 p.m.
• Coeymans Town Court: Town Building, 18 Russell Avenue, Ravena, NY 12143, 518-756-8480.
• Guilderland Town Court: Town Hall, PO Box 339, Guilderland, NY 12084, 518-356-1980.
• Green Island Town Court: town and court clerk, 518-273-0661.

Menands Village Court shut its doors on July 7, 2025. All of its cases moved to Colonie Town Court.

The remaining local courts are the Berne, Knox, New Scotland, Rensselaerville and Westerlo town courts and the Altamont Village Court. Pull up their addresses and hours in the state's Find a Court search, or ask the County Court clerk at 518-285-8777 to steer you.

The arraignment is the accused person's first court appearance. Most happen within roughly a day of the arrest, the court system says. The hearing is held by the local court covering the city, town or village of the arrest. After a night or weekend arrest, ask the arresting police or the jail at 518-869-2600 where and when it will be.

During the hearing:

• the charges are read out loud;
• a defense lawyer stands with the person, free of charge when money is tight;
• the judge chooses release, conditions, bail or, for some felonies, remand;
• in family cases, a temporary order of protection may be issued (CPL 530.12);
• a misdemeanor might end with a plea, while a felony gets a date for its next step.

Someone held on a felony complaint gets a firm deadline. Within 120 hours, or 144 when the clock runs over a weekend or holiday, a preliminary hearing must start or a grand jury must act. If neither happens, the person must be let out on their own promise, with a few exceptions (CPL 180.80).

Misdemeanors usually stay in the local court that arraigned them. The District Attorney's Office prosecutes them. After the arraignment, the usual path looks like this:

1. The prosecutor turns over its evidence, called discovery, within 20 calendar days when the accused is in custody and 35 when free (CPL 245.10).
2. Trial readiness is due in 90 days for class A and 60 days for class B (CPL 30.30).
3. The case ends in a dismissal, a plea bargain or a trial.

Sentences the judge can give:

• Class A: jail of no more than 364 days, plus a fine reaching $1,000
• Class B: three months of jail at the most, plus a fine reaching $500
• Violation: 15 days of jail at the most, plus a fine reaching $250
• Probation instead of jail: two or three years for class A, one year for class B (Penal Law § 65.00)
• Conditional discharge: no jail and no probation officer, but one year of court rules (Penal Law § 65.05)

A case that ends in the person's favor is sealed (CPL 160.50). The Clean Slate Act also seals most misdemeanor convictions on its own three years after release or sentencing.

Felonies travel a longer road than misdemeanors:

1. Local arraignment. A city, town or village judge hears the felony complaint and rules on release.
2. Preliminary hearing. The local judge checks whether there is enough evidence to hold the case, unless it goes straight to a grand jury.
3. Grand jury. A panel of local residents meets in secret, listens to the prosecutor, and votes on an indictment, the formal charge. The accused may ask in writing to testify (CPL 190.50(5)).
4. County Court arraignment. The person answers the indictment before a County Court judge.
5. Discovery and motions. Evidence changes hands, and lawyers file written requests on legal points.
6. Plea or trial. The prosecution has six months to announce it is ready for trial (CPL 30.30).
7. Sentencing. If there is a conviction, the County Court judge sets the punishment.

Class A can bring life in prison. Class B tops out at 25 years, C at 15, D at 7 and E at 4 (Penal Law § 70.00). Felony fines reach $5,000 or twice the defendant's gain, whichever is higher (Penal Law § 80.00). Some people whose felony grew out of addiction can be sent to treatment instead through judicial diversion (CPL Article 216), handled here by the Drug Court.

The law lists certain crimes as violent felonies (Penal Law § 70.02). They bring fixed prison terms, followed by post-release supervision, which works much like parole. The ranges by class:

• Class B (first-degree robbery or burglary, for example): from 5 years up to 25
• Class C (second-degree robbery or weapon possession, for example): from 3.5 years up to 15
• Class D (second-degree assault, for one): from 2 years up to 7
• Class E: from 1.5 years up to 4

Each violent felony counts as a qualifying offense, which opens the door to bail or remand (CPL 510.10(4)). On a class A felony, release can come only from a superior court. After a felony conviction in a family case, a final order of protection can last up to eight years past sentencing or past the end of the prison term, whichever is later (CPL 530.12(5)). Violent felonies also can't be sealed later by application (CPL 160.59).

Prosecution is the job of the elected District Attorney, in county and local courts alike:

• District Attorney's Office: Judicial Center, 6 Lodge Street, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5460.

People who can't pay for a lawyer are defended by county offices:

• Public Defender's Office: 112 State Street, 2nd Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-447-7150. It covers most criminal cases, plus family and youth matters.
• Alternate Public Defender: handles criminal, family and appeal cases when a conflict keeps the Public Defender out.
• Assigned Counsel Program: places private lawyers on cases neither office can take.

A lawyer should be at the arraignment. The court can name one before it decides if the person qualifies (Executive Law § 832(4)). Being in jail points toward qualifying. So does low pay, under 250 percent of the federal poverty line.

Start with the paperwork. An appearance ticket, release form or bail receipt names the court and the next date.

• WebCrims is the state's search for criminal cases. Outside New York City it covers only certain courts. It shows pending cases with an upcoming date only, so closed, sealed and youthful offender files are left out. Enter the first two letters, or more, of both names and pick the county.
• County Court felony cases: the clerk at 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777.
• Cohoes City Court: 97 Mohawk Street, Cohoes, NY 12047, 518-453-5501.
• Watervliet City Court: 2 Fifteenth Street, Watervliet, NY 12189, 518-453-5550.
• Bethlehem Town Court dates: the clerk at Town Hall, 447 Delaware Avenue, Delmar, NY 12054, 518-439-4955, option 2.
• Colonie Town Court: 312 Wolf Road, Latham, NY 12110, 518-782-2633.

For other town courts, have the docket number ready when you call. The jail at 518-869-2600 can be asked about a person who is still held.

Deputies from the Sheriff's Office, 518-487-5440, and local police officers serve warrants in the county. State wanted notices appear on the New York State Police Wanted and Missing page. To ask whether a warrant exists, phone the court that handled the case or the Sheriff's Office. For a missed court date, a judge must usually give 48 hours' notice before issuing a bench warrant (CPL 510.50). To clear a warrant, go to the court that issued it with a lawyer and surrender, or call its clerk about a new date. Felony warrants come from County Court, 6 Lodge Street, Room 113, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8777.

U.S. government charges go to the Northern District of New York's Albany Division. Court is held at the James T. Foley Courthouse, 445 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207, 518-257-1789, where the clerk works 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

• The first federal hearing covers the charges, probable cause, and whether jail until trial is needed.
• Release options include a personal promise, an unsecured bond or a list of conditions (18 U.S.C. 3142(a)). The judge looks at the offense, the evidence, the person's ties and any danger (18 U.S.C. 3142(g)).
• Custody before trial belongs to the U.S. Marshals Service, 445 Broadway, 2nd Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-472-5401. The county jail accepts federal prisoners, so call the Marshals to learn where someone is.
• Appointed federal lawyers come from the Federal Public Defender, 54 State Street, Suite 310, Albany, NY 12207, 518-436-1850.
• More than 90 percent of federal defendants plead guilty instead of going to trial.

Read filings on PACER. After sentencing, search the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator to see which prison holds them.

The state charge continues in court even when ICE lodges a detainer. Federally, the steps run like this:

1. ICE, which stands for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, delivers its detainer paperwork, Form I-247A, to the jail.
2. In it, ICE requests that the person be kept up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. ICE agents then pick the person up. Counties outside the New York City office's region work with the Buffalo Field Office, 130 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-843-7600. One upstate site where ICE holds people is its Buffalo (Batavia) Service Processing Center, 4250 Federal Drive, Batavia, NY 14020, 585-344-6500.
4. Track the person with the ICE Online Detainee Locator.

State rules change the picture. Under Wells v DeMarco, a 2018 Appellate Division ruling, New York's local officers may not arrest anyone for a civil immigration violation. New York's Attorney General recommends that jails act on a detainer only when a judge has signed a warrant. Since August 25, 2026, Executive Law § 170-k has barred every county from keeping a 287(g) agreement with ICE. Civil Rights Law § 28 protects people attending court, plus their trips there and back, from a civil immigration arrest, unless a judge has signed a warrant or court order for it. Before any plea, a noncitizen should talk with the defense lawyer about immigration risks.

A state prison term means custody of the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). After sentencing, the county keeps the person until they are declared ready for state custody. DOCCS is required to receive them within ten business days of that point.

A reception and classification center comes first. Staff assign a DIN, run medical, dental and mental health checks, test for programs and decide the right prison.

• Find people with the Incarcerated Lookup. The DIN works best; a last name and year of birth also work.
• Phone DOCCS during business hours at 518-457-5000. Its central office is at the Harriman State Campus, Building #4, 1220 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12226.
• Browse prison details on our New York state prison list.

Raise the Age moved most 16- and 17-year-olds out of the adult system. It began for 16-year-olds on October 1, 2018, and for 17-year-olds on October 1, 2019.

• A felony case for a teen of 16 or 17 begins in a special Youth Part. Nonviolent felonies shift to Family Court unless the District Attorney files a motion within 30 days and shows "extraordinary circumstances" (CPL 722.23).
• Violent felony cases get a review within six days. They stay in the Youth Part only with proof of significant injury, a displayed weapon or unlawful sexual conduct.
• Misdemeanor arrests of teens go to probation intake, not to adult court.
• Children 12 to 17 accused of acts that would be crimes for an adult are handled as juvenile delinquents in Family Court, 30 Clinton Avenue, Albany, NY 12207, 518-285-8600.
• A teen who must stay locked up is placed in the Capital District Juvenile Secure Detention Facility, never the adult jail.

The Probation Department, 60 South Pearl Street, 4th Floor, Albany, NY 12207, 518-487-5200, runs juvenile intake and can say where a youth is held.

The District Attorney's Victim Services Unit guides victims through the court process. Reach it at 518-694-8445, in the DA's Office at 6 Lodge Street, Albany, NY 12207.

• A 24-hour hotline run by the county's Crime Victim and Sexual Violence Center answers at 518-447-7716.
• The Equinox domestic violence hotline is open around the clock at 518-432-7865.
• The state Office of Victim Services may help pay medical, counseling and funeral costs. Its help line is 800-247-8035.
• To get a call when someone leaves custody, register with VINE at 888-846-3469 or on VINELink.
• In family cases, the criminal court may issue an order of protection telling the accused to stay away (CPL 530.12).