The roster is one long document that lists every person held by the Sheriff. Work through it like this:

1. Open the Sheriff's roster. It may take a moment to load on a phone.
2. Look at the date and time printed on the first page.
3. Hit Ctrl+F on a laptop, or use the browser's page search on a phone, then enter the surname.
4. Match the date of birth so you have the right person.
5. Write down the ICN number. You will need it for mail, deposits and calls to the jail.
6. Check the facility code to see which building they are in.

The bottom of the list shows how many people are in custody in total. The copy checked in October 2026 counted 811.

A blank result is common in the first hours. Usual causes:

• The list is older than the arrest. Look at its time stamp, then call the Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7638.
• The person is still at a police station. Some departments keep people in their own cell block before sending them downtown. Cheektowaga Police, 3223 Union Road, Cheektowaga, NY 14227, 716-686-3500, is one. Buffalo police book their own arrests at City Court Booking and hold men and women in separate cells in the City Court building, 50 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, until the next court session; call 716-851-4444. Call whichever agency made the arrest.
• The person was released. Many people get an appearance ticket and go home, or are freed at arraignment.
• The person is under 18. Teens go to the Youth Services Center, 810 East Ferry Street, Buffalo, NY 14211, 716-923-4062, not the adult jail.
• The arrest was in another county. Check that county's jail.
• The name is spelled another way. Try part of the last name, or search by birth date.

The Sheriff's main office, 10 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, can also help at 716-858-7618.

The Sheriff runs two adult jails with room for 1,380 people between them. The roster's facility code tells you which one:

• ECHC is the Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-858-7638. New arrivals are screened here. It is the maximum-security intake jail, and it holds both men and women.
• ECCF is the Correctional Facility, 11581 Walden Avenue, Alden, NY 14004, 716-937-9101. The larger of the two jails, it keeps men and women whose cases are pending as well as people serving county time, and it runs work and garden programs.
• Youths go to the Youth Services Center, 810 East Ferry Street, Buffalo, NY 14211, 716-923-4062.

If the arrest was on a warrant from a nearby county, the person may be sent to that county's jail:

• Niagara County Jail, 5526 Niagara Street Extension, Lockport, NY 14095, 716-438-3393
• Genesee County Jail, 3839 West Main Street Road, Batavia, NY 14020, 585-343-0838
• Wyoming County Jail, 151 N Main Street, Warsaw, NY 14569, 585-786-8808
• Cattaraugus County Jail, 301 Court Street, Little Valley, NY 14755, Sheriff's line 716-938-9191

The roster gives names, birth dates, ICN numbers, facility codes and booking dates. To ask about getting a mugshot copy, phone the Sheriff's Office, 10 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7618 and ask how to request one.

Know the limits first. Under the state's open records law, giving out an arrest photo counts as an unwarranted privacy invasion unless police need it released for their work (Public Officers Law § 89(2)(b)(viii)). News outlets can still ask the Sheriff's Office directly.

• ICE photos can be asked for through an ICE records request.
• Mugshots taken by federal agents are kept from the public in most cases, though the U.S. Marshals Service will publish some when hunting a fugitive.

Register with VINE, a free statewide system. It reports if someone is still locked up and at which facility. It can also send a message when the person is released or moved. The Sheriff's Office links to it as the New York Sheriffs' victim hotline. Parents, partners and friends may use it too.

1. Open VINELink's New York search.
2. Search by name. A date of birth or the jail number helps.
3. Tap the correct match, then set up a text, an email or a phone call.

The VINE phone line, 888-846-3469, signs people up too. Before driving over for a pickup, call the Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7638 to confirm the release time.

Often, yes. The state's bail reform law started on January 1, 2020. It was changed in 2020, 2022 and 2023. On a typical shoplifting, drug possession or other lower charge, the judge has to send the person home. The judge can add rules, like check-ins. Money bail and remand are kept for the charges on the state's list. Most of those are violent or other serious felonies (CPL 510.10).

• Any bail order lists three or more payment forms, and one of them is a bond needing little or no cash up front (CPL 520.10).
• The Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, accepts cash bail on local court cases at any hour of the day or night. The bail and cashier line is 716-858-7636.
• A licensed bail agent may charge only what state law allows.

Our Erie release guide has the full steps, fees and refund rules.

Start with the jail. Call the Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7638 with the full name, birth date and ICN number. Staff can say what the person is held on and which court has the case.

• The court clerk can read the charges filed. For city cases, call criminal records at 50 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-845-2661.
• WebCrims, the state's online case search, lists open cases with a future date in County Court and some city courts.
• The defense lawyer gets the charging papers at arraignment and can explain them.

The first charges can change. The DA can swap in new counts or reduce old ones, and on felonies the grand jury has the final word on what moves ahead.

A lawyer is assigned at the first court appearance for anyone who can't pay. Being in jail counts as a reason to qualify, so families don't need to wait for paperwork. Which office takes the case depends on the court:

• Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo, 290 Main Street, Suite 400, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-853-9555, has taken many city court cases.
• Assigned Counsel Program, 403 Main Street, Suite 215, Buffalo, NY 14203, 716-856-8804, sends private lawyers to the town and village courts and to bigger felony cases.

Call with the person's name, birth date and court. Ask who the lawyer is and how to reach them. Relatives can pass along details the lawyer can use at a bail argument, such as steady work, a stable place to live or a health condition.

Each person gets two hours of visits a week, and up to two visitors may come at once. Visits are contact visits unless staff say otherwise. A short visit behind glass can be asked for in the first 24 hours (9 NYCRR 7008.4).

• Alden visits run Tuesday from 7:30 to 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday adds 3:30 to 5:15 p.m. and 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. to those times. Thursday is 3:30 to 5:15 p.m. and 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. Sign-up opens about half an hour before visits start.
• Holding Center sign-up is Tuesday and Wednesday, in morning, midday, afternoon and evening blocks. Call for exact times.
• Holiday shifts: Election Day visits on November 3, 2026 move to November 5. Veterans Day visits on November 11 move to November 12.
• ID: bring a photo card such as a NYS license, a state non-driver card, an out-of-state or Canadian license, or a U.S. passport or passport card.
• Children under 18 need a parent or guardian, one child per adult, and a birth certificate.
• Wear no orange. Everyone goes through a metal detector, and drug dogs may be used.

Anyone caught bringing in contraband faces charges and loses visits. Video visits can be booked from home. See our visiting guide for more.

There are three ways to fund an account:

1. Online or by phone through the deposit service linked on the Sheriff's page. Fees start at about $6.
2. By mail, free of fees. Send a U.S. money order made out to "ACCESS SECURE DEPOSITS," with the deposit slip, to Secure Deposits - Erie County, P.O. Box 12486, St. Louis, MO 63132. Write the person's full name and ID number on it. Don't add letters, photos or stamps, because they are thrown out.
3. In person at the Holding Center cashier window. It is open weekdays 7:00 to 11:15 a.m., 12:30 to 2:15 p.m., 3:00 to 5:15 p.m. and 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. On weekends it is open 7:00 to 11:15 a.m. and 12:30 to 2:15 p.m.

Deposits are capped at $2,900 a day. Packages must be bought through the package service the Sheriff links. Learn more on our deposits page and our commissary page.

People booked into a New York jail must be told they can make phone calls when they arrive (9 NYCRR 7002.8). That first call is often how families learn about the arrest, so keep your phone on.

• To set up a phone account or learn the rates, call the Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7638. Our phone guide explains how prepaid accounts work.
• Video visits are booked online through the scheduling site on the Sheriff's visiting page.
• For electronic messages, see our messaging page.

Assume every call is recorded. Talking about the case on a jail phone can hurt it, so save those talks for the lawyer.

Put the person's full name and their ICN number on the envelope. The ICN is on their wristband and on the roster. Then add the address of their building:

• Erie County Holding Center, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202
• Erie County Correctional Facility, 11581 Walden Avenue, Alden, NY 14004

Do not mail personal checks, Polaroid photos, stamps or food. Banned items are sent back at the sender's cost. Books, magazines and newspapers must be shipped by a company that sells them. Personal letters can be opened and checked for contraband. Mail from lawyers and courts is opened only with the person present (9 NYCRR 7004.4). Our jail mail page covers the rest.

Wallets, phones and other things collected during booking end up with the Sheriff's Property and Firearms Returns office, 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-858-8207. Call before you make the trip. Find out what is in the bag, which hours you may come, and if a signed okay from the person is required.

Court clothes are a common question. The Sheriff allows two outfits for trial only, dropped off on weekdays in the morning or early afternoon. No orange, sneakers, sweat suits, hoodies or belts. The Sheriff has also limited drop-offs at its jails, so call the Holding Center at 716-858-7638 first to confirm the rules that day.

Call the jail where the person is held and explain the concern. The Holding Center is at 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-858-7638. The Alden jail is at 11581 Walden Avenue, Alden, NY 14004, 716-937-9101. Everyone is screened for opioid use when they arrive at the Holding Center. Since July 2022, the jails have offered medication for opioid use disorder. A program for people with both substance use and mental health needs also runs inside.

Anyone under arrest in New York is owed attention to physical and mental health problems by the officers holding them (Civil Rights Law § 28). The HALT law limits solitary time for people with a disability or who are pregnant, 21 or younger, or 55 or older. If a problem is not fixed, write to the New York State Commission of Correction, 80 S. Swan Street, Albany, NY 12210, or call 518-485-2346.

The Sheriff's Warrant Office tracks local warrants at 716-858-3287 on weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Its online warrant search lets you look by last name, date or reason. Statewide fugitives are on the State Police wanted list. A court clerk can also check by phone. To clear a warrant, turn yourself in with a lawyer at the court that issued it, or call that court to get back on the calendar. For city cases, the criminal records office is at 50 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-845-2661. Tips on where someone is can go to 716-858-2903.

Ask the jail first, since staff know when a person is due to be taken to court. The Holding Center is at 40 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-858-7638. Then try these:

• WebCrims shows future dates for open cases in County Court and many city courts.
• For a town or village court, call that court and give the name and birth date.
• County Court can be reached at 25 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-845-9301.

Our Erie court guide lists every courthouse with its address and phone, and walks through each step of a case.

Federal defendants from Western New York go before a judge at the Robert H. Jackson U.S. Courthouse, 2 Niagara Square, Buffalo, NY 14202. The clerk is at 716-551-1700.

1. Release is argued at a detention hearing on the day of the first appearance (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. For anyone not released, the U.S. Marshals Service picks the jail. It places them in a jail that takes federal prisoners. Call its Western District office at 716-348-5300 to ask where.
3. The Niagara County Jail , 5526 Niagara Street Extension, Lockport, NY 14095, 716-438-3393, has signed a Marshals Service contract in the past to house federal detainees.
4. After sentencing, the person moves to the Bureau of Prisons. Use the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

Case papers are on PACER. The Federal Public Defender, 300 Pearl Street, Suite 200, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-551-3341, represents many people who can't pay.

For a family in Western New York, the immigration side usually goes like this:

1. ICE faxes or sends the Holding Center or Alden a Form I-247A detainer.
2. In that paperwork, ICE requests that staff keep the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. ICE officers collect the person. The local field office is at 130 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-843-7600.
4. Many are taken to the Batavia Service Processing Center, 4250 Federal Drive, Batavia, NY 14020. Its detainee information line is 585-344-6500, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
5. Search the ICE Online Detainee Locator using the eight- or nine-digit A-number. If you lack it, enter the name plus birth country.

New York limits local help with these holds. A 2018 state court ruling, People ex rel. Wells v DeMarco, decided that state law gives local police no authority for civil immigration arrests. The Attorney General tells police to honor a detainer only with a judge's warrant. Executive Law § 170-k ended all 287(g) deals on August 25, 2026, and Civil Rights Law § 28 protects people going to and from court.

Anyone sentenced to more than a year on a felony is handed to DOCCS, the state prison agency. Their first weeks are spent at an intake site, and then the state assigns a prison based on security level and needs.

1. Open the DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup.
2. Search by DIN, the state ID number, which works best. Or type the exact last name and the birth year.
3. Note the prison name and the DIN for mail and visits.

The lookup shuts down each night around 11:45 p.m. Read about each prison in our New York prisons section.

Raise the Age keeps minors out of the Holding Center and Alden. A teen who isn't sent home is detained at the Youth Services Center, 810 East Ferry Street, Buffalo, NY 14211. Intake answers around the clock at 716-923-4062. The office line, 716-923-4000, works weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

• Police must call a parent right away after taking a child into custody.
• A child can be questioned only at a special approved room or at home with a parent's okay, and the talk must be recorded on video.
• Kids kept at the East Ferry Street center get a hearing within three days, sooner when court is in session the next morning.

Probation answers Youth Part questions at 716-858-8680.

The Sheriff's Office runs reentry help for people leaving its jails. Project Blue is a free, voluntary program with weekly case management and classes inside. When a member is released, an officer drives them to the reentry center, and support continues for 12 months.

The Sheriff's Reentry Opportunity Center offers free help to anyone coming home from jail or prison. Staff help with health insurance, mental health care, legal issues, jobs and benefits, and peer mentors are on hand. Call the Sheriff's Office, 10 Delaware Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14202, at 716-858-7618 to get connected.

Ask the person or a witness which agency made the stop. Below are non-emergency numbers for the local departments, grouped by type. For emergencies, dial 911.

Cities

• City of Buffalo: Police Headquarters, 68 Court Street, Buffalo, NY 14202, 716-851-4444
• Lackawanna Police: 714 Ridge Road, Lackawanna, NY 14218, 716-822-4900
• City of Tonawanda Police: 200 Niagara Street, Tonawanda, NY 14150, 716-692-2121

Towns with their own police

• Amherst: 500 John James Audubon Parkway, Amherst, NY 14228, 716-689-1311
• Cheektowaga: 3223 Union Road, Cheektowaga, NY 14227, 716-686-3500
• Eden: 2795 East Church Street, Eden, NY 14057, 716-992-9211
• Evans: 8787 Erie Road, Angola, NY 14006, 716-549-3600
• Hamburg: 6100 South Park Avenue, Hamburg, NY 14075, 716-648-5111
• Lancaster: 525 Pavement Road, Lancaster, NY 14086, 716-683-2800
• Orchard Park: 4295 South Buffalo Street, Orchard Park, NY 14127, 716-662-6444
• Town of Tonawanda: 1835 Sheridan Drive, Tonawanda, NY 14223, 716-876-5300
• West Seneca: 1250 Union Road, West Seneca, NY 14224, 716-674-2280

Villages with their own police

• Depew: 85 Manitou Drive, Depew, NY 14043, 716-683-1123
• East Aurora: 571 Main Street, East Aurora, NY 14052, 716-652-1111
• Kenmore: 2395 Elmwood Avenue, Kenmore, NY 14217, 716-875-1234

Towns patrolled by the Sheriff

Sheriff's deputies patrol Alden, Boston, Brant, Clarence, Colden, Collins, Concord, Elma, Grand Island, Holland, Marilla, Newstead, North Collins, Sardinia and Wales, plus the Village of Springville and Seneca Nation land in the south. Call the Sheriff's Police Services, 45 Elm Street, Buffalo, NY 14203, at 716-858-2903. The substations don't take walk-ins.

State Police

Troop A troopers also work these towns. The Alden station is at 11187 Broadway, Alden, NY 14004, 716-937-3391. The Boston station, 8555 Boston State Road, Boston, NY 14025, answers at 716-941-9300, the same line used by the stations in Clarence, Elma, Grand Island, Holland, Newstead and Collins.

Other places to ask

Smaller forces also make arrests here. They include village police in Akron, Blasdell, Gowanda and Hamburg, the Brant town police, UB campus police, Buffalo State police, the NFTA transit police and the state psychiatric center police. The villages of Alden, Angola, Farnham, Lancaster, North Collins, Orchard Park, Sloan and Williamsville sit inside larger towns. For any of these, call the Sheriff's dispatch number in this answer and ask which agency covers the address.