A quick search and one phone call answer most questions. Work through this list:

1. Open the inmate lookup and type the last name. Try the first name too if the list is long.
2. Write down any booking details you see, such as a date or number.
3. Call the Sheriff's Office at 845-225-4300. Offer the legal name, any other names the person goes by, and their birthday.
4. Ask three things: Is the person here? What are the charges? Has a judge set bail or a court date?
5. Write down the name of the court that will hear the case. Every later step depends on it.

Staff may not give out medical or personal details by phone. Keep your questions to custody, charges, bail and the next date.

When a name is absent, there is usually a simple reason:

• Still at a police station. Town or village officers may be finishing paperwork before the drive to Carmel.
• Waiting for arraignment. The person may be in front of a local judge right now.
• Sent home with a ticket. Many people get an appearance ticket and never reach the jail (CPL 150.20).
• Already released. Most people charged with a misdemeanor go home after arraignment.
• Moved. Once someone is shipped to a different county, a prison or a federal agency, the local listing drops them.
• Under 18. Teens go to youth facilities, never to the adult jail.
• Spelling. Retry the lookup under a nickname, a maiden name or an alternate spelling.

For an answer you can trust, phone the Sheriff's Office at 845-225-4300. If you know which department made the arrest, call that department too.

Adults charged here are held in the county's own jail in Carmel, 3 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-225-4300. Someone arrested in a neighboring county, though, would be held by that county. Check these if the arrest happened near a border:

• Dutchess County Justice and Transition Center (north), 150 North Hamilton Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601, 845-486-3900.
• Westchester County Jail (south), run by that county's Department of Correction on the Grasslands Campus, Valhalla, NY 10595, 914-231-1000.
• Orange County Correctional Facility (west, across the Hudson), 110 Wells Farm Road, Goshen, NY 10924, 845-291-7713.
• Rockland County Sheriff's Office Correctional Facility (southwest, across the river), 55 New Hempstead Road, New City, NY 10956, 845-638-5600.

An arrest across the state line in Connecticut follows that state's rules, so reach out to the police department that made that arrest.

Usually not. New York's records law calls the release of a booking photo an invasion of privacy. Release is allowed for a genuine law enforcement purpose, such as locating a suspect (Public Officers Law § 89(2)(b)(viii)).

• News outlets and others can ask the Sheriff's Office through a records request. Call 845-225-4300 to learn how.
• For a photo held by immigration authorities, file a request through the ICE FOIA page.
• Arrest pictures from federal agencies are seldom public, though the Marshals sometimes publish one while hunting a fugitive.

Old photos on private websites may be out of date. The jail and the courts are the only places with current custody facts.

This free statewide service was built for crime victims. Anyone may use it, though, to check a person's custody status and current facility.

1. Go to VINELink or call 888-846-3469.
2. Search by name. Adding a birth date narrows the results.
3. Choose the matching record, then register to get a call, a text or an email whenever custody status changes.

Registration stays private, so the prisoner never learns who signed up. If no record turns up, ask the Sheriff's Office about custody instead. For someone already in a state prison, the corrections department also runs a victim notification form for parole and release news.

Since 2020, judges in New York have had to free most defendants facing misdemeanors or felonies that involved no violence. Those people leave on a pledge or under supervision. Bail or remand applies only to what the law calls "qualifying offenses," such as violent felonies and some family violence charges (CPL 510.10(4)).

• A local judge decides at the arraignment, often within about a day.
• Any bail order has to give a choice of three or more payment forms, and one must be an unsecured or partly secured bond (CPL 520.10).
• The county's Pre-Trial Release program, run by Probation at 40 Gleneida Avenue, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-808-1111, supervises people a judge sends home with conditions.

The Sheriff's Office warns that scammers phone families pretending to be police and asking for bail money. Our bail and release guide covers where to pay, bond agents and refunds.

There are four good ways:

1. Ask the jail. Booking staff at 845-225-4300 can read the charges.
2. Read the papers. The defendant gets the written charges at arraignment, so ask them or their lawyer.
3. Call the court. The town or village court that held the arraignment has the file.
4. Search WebCrims. Once a felony reaches County Court, WebCrims shows the charges and next date.

Charges can change. Prosecutors may raise, lower or drop them, and a grand jury may vote different counts. Here is what the labels mean. A felony is a grave crime that may lead to years in a state prison. A misdemeanor is smaller, punished by no more than 364 days in a local jail. A violation is a minor offense, not a crime at all.

Every defendant without money for a lawyer is given one at the arraignment. Sitting in jail alone makes a person presumptively eligible.

The Legal Aid Society defends people in this county at 12 Fair Street, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-225-8466. Family members can call with the defendant's name and court to find the assigned lawyer.

• Eligibility is the judge's decision, though Legal Aid often screens the person and makes a recommendation.
• A spouse's income does not count, and child support is not treated as the parent's money.
• When Legal Aid can't represent someone because of a conflict, a private attorney is appointed and the county pays (County Law § 722).

The lawyer works for the defendant. They may not share details with family unless the client agrees.

Regular visits happen at the jail, 3 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512. Questions go to 845-225-4300.

• Mondays and Thursdays: 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 to 9:00 p.m.
• Fridays: 9:00 to 11:30 a.m., 12:30 to 3:00 p.m., and 4:00 to 4:30 p.m.
• No visits on Saturdays, Sundays or legal holidays. When a holiday lands on a Monday, Thursday or Friday, that day's visits move to the Wednesday of the same week.
• Thanksgiving week: Monday and Tuesday use the Monday and Thursday hours, and Wednesday uses the Friday hours.

Each person gets one 15-minute visit within 24 hours of arriving. After classification, they get two hours a week in four 30-minute blocks, which can be combined. Unused time is lost at week's end, and a visit that ends early still uses its whole block. Lawyer, professional and clergy visits don't count against that time.

• Visitors may come two adults and two children at a time, seated in the order they arrive.
• Sign in at the window 15 minutes early. Visits start on the half hour, and nobody enters the room at 3:30 p.m.
• Anyone 18 or older shows an unexpired photo ID issued by a government, for example a passport, military ID or New York license.
• A child must come with a parent or guardian who proves the relationship with a certified birth certificate or school photo ID. Any other adult needs a notarized form SOJ999, which the jail approves or denies within 7 days.
• Expect a metal detector and mouth checks. Hooded tops and flip-flops are not allowed.
• Nothing may be passed. A hug or handshake is allowed only at the start and end.

Orders of protection are enforced at visits. More tips are on our visiting page.

A jail account covers snacks, hygiene items and similar small purchases. By county rule, the commissary fund exists to benefit the people held at the jail.

Ask the Sheriff's Office at 845-225-4300 which deposit methods the jail accepts today, whether fees apply, and what name and number to use. Then follow these safety rules:

• Never put cash in an envelope.
• Pay only through a method the jail itself names.
• Keep every receipt until the person is released.

Our pages on sending money and the jail store explain how accounts usually work.

Under state jail rules, a newly admitted person may place phone calls and must be informed of that right (9 NYCRR 7002.8). The rule sheet handed out at intake also covers how the phones work (9 NYCRR 7002.9).

• Each county picks its own phone provider and rates. Ask the Sheriff's Office at 845-225-4300 how to set up an account.
• Assume others can hear a jail call. Never talk about the case on one.

Our guides on inmate phone service and electronic messages explain the usual setup steps.

State rules set no cap on the number of letters going in or out (9 NYCRR 7004.1). Address the envelope with the recipient's full name, followed by the Sheriff's address:

3 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512

• Put your own full name and return address on the envelope.
• Call 845-225-4300 to ask whether a booking or inmate number must be added.
• Officers can open everyday letters to check for banned items. To read one, they need a written order that states why (9 NYCRR 7004.3).
• Envelopes from a lawyer or a court are unsealed only while the recipient watches (9 NYCRR 7004.4).
• Anyone who can't afford supplies receives stationery and postage for two or more letters weekly (9 NYCRR 7004.2).

Never mail cash, stamps or anything sticky. See our mail guide for more.

The jail stores wallets, phones, keys and clothes taken at booking. They are usually returned when the person walks out.

• If you need something sooner, call 845-225-4300 and ask how a family member can collect it.
• Bring a photo ID. The person in custody may need to sign a release first.
• Ask about refunding money still on their jail account.

Help after release is available nearby. Delancey Street Foundation, 100 Turk Hill Road, Brewster, NY 10509, 845-278-6181, runs a free two-year live-in program for people with past drug use or felony records. St. Christopher's Inn, 21 Franciscan Way, Garrison, NY 10524, 845-335-1000, offers long-term addiction treatment.

Health care at the jail carries accreditation from a national correctional health group, earned first in 2005 and renewed since. New York law puts officers on the hook for the physical and psychiatric care of people they hold (Civil Rights Law § 28).

1. Call the jail at 845-225-4300. Share the person's name, the health problem and any medicine they take.
2. Ask for extension 41990 if you need the county Co-Response Team, which links people in crisis to treatment.
3. If someone is in emotional crisis outside the jail, call or text 845-225-1222 any hour, or dial 988.

State law also limits solitary confinement. It is off limits, except in narrow cases, for anyone aged 21 and under or 55 and over, and for pregnant people or people with disabilities. Serious concerns can go to the New York State Commission of Correction, Alfred E. Smith State Office Building, 80 South Swan Street, Albany, NY 12210, 518-485-2346.

Deputies, local officers and troopers can all arrest someone on a warrant. Call the Sheriff's Office at 845-225-4300 and ask whether a warrant is active, or call the court that handled the case. The State Police run a Wanted and Missing page for the whole state. WebCrims won't list a case stalled by a warrant, so phone rather than search. To clear it, the person should turn themselves in, with a lawyer beside them, at the issuing court. Or phone that court and request a new appearance date. County Court warrants are handled by the clerk at 20 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-208-7800.

Court dates are set at each hearing, and the defendant gets a slip with the next one. Families can find dates three ways:

• WebCrims lists County Court felony cases that have a future date. Search with the name and county.
• Phone the local court on a town or village case, with the defendant's name and birthday handy.
• Ask the defense lawyer, who will know about any change.

For County Court, the clerk's number is 845-208-7800, weekdays 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. All nine town and village courts, with phones and street addresses, are in our criminal court guide.

Federal prosecutions from these towns land in White Plains, at the U.S. courthouse, 300 Quarropas Street, White Plains, NY 10601, 914-390-4100. A judge weighs detention at the first appearance itself (18 U.S.C. 3142).

• Pretrial federal defendants are in Marshals custody, and that office can say where they are housed. Call 500 Pearl Street, Suite 400, New York, NY 10007, 646-563-9800.
• Some federal prisoners stay in local jails under deals with the Marshals, so check with both.
• Federal Defenders of New York, 81 Main Street, Suite 124, White Plains, NY 10601, 914-428-7124, represents people who can't pay.
• Once a sentence begins, search the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

If immigration officers want someone who is in the jail, expect this sequence:

1. The jail receives Form I-247A, which is how ICE lodges a detainer.
2. Staff are asked to hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. ICE agents take custody at the jail if they arrive in time.
4. The person is processed through ICE's New York office, 26 Federal Plaza, 9th Floor, Suite 9-110, New York, NY 10278, 212-436-9315. ICE also holds people upstate at its Buffalo (Batavia) Service Processing Center, 4250 Federal Drive, Batavia, NY 14020, 585-344-6500.
5. Search the ICE Online Detainee Locator by name and country of birth.

New York sets limits on local help. Wells v DeMarco, a 2018 appellate decision, ruled out civil immigration arrests by local officers acting under state law. Since August 25, 2026, Executive Law § 170-k has barred local 287(g) agreements. Civil Rights Law § 28 protects people going to and from court against civil immigration arrests made without a judicial warrant or order.

Sentences over one year are generally served under the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). A reception center comes first, with medical screening and a security review. A longer-term prison is picked after that.

1. Open the DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup.
2. Type the DIN, the state ID number, when you know it. If not, search by the exact last name with the birth year.
3. The record shows the current prison and release dates.

The lookup goes offline for a short time each night near midnight. Without internet, call DOCCS at 518-457-5000 on business days. Its office is Building #4 at 1220 Washington Avenue, Albany, NY 12226. Our New York state prisons page profiles each prison.

Under Raise the Age, the Carmel jail never houses anyone younger than 18. Youths go to juvenile detention instead. A parent gets a call right away whenever officers take a child into custody (Family Court Act § 305.2).

• Police may question a child only at a site the courts approve, or at home if a parent agrees. Questioning at such a site is recorded on video.
• The child must be told of the right to stay silent and to have a free lawyer.
• Misdemeanor cases go to probation intake. Felony charges against a 16- or 17-year-old are heard first in a Youth Part at County Court.

To find where a youth is held, call Probation at 40 Gleneida Avenue, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-808-1111. Family Court is at 20 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-208-7805.

The county has no county police force. Four local departments patrol their own towns or villages, and the Sheriff and State Police cover everyone else. Use these non-emergency numbers; dial 911 for emergencies.

Countywide

• Sheriff's Office Road Patrol, 24/7 across the county: 3 County Center, Carmel, NY 10512, 845-225-4300.
• New York State Police, Troop K, Brewster station: 1672 Route 22, Brewster, NY 10509, 845-298-0398.
• Troop K headquarters: 2541 Route 44, Salt Point, NY 12578, 845-677-7300.

Towns and villages with their own police

• Town of Carmel, including Mahopac: Town of Carmel Police Department, 60 McAlpin Avenue, Mahopac, NY 10541, 845-628-1300.
• Town of Kent: Kent Police Department, 40 Sybil's Crossing, Kent Lakes, NY 10512, 845-225-5646.
• Village of Brewster: Brewster Police Department, 208 Main Street, Brewster, NY 10509, 845-278-1895.
• Village of Cold Spring: Cold Spring Police Department, reached through the Village of Cold Spring, 85 Main Street, Cold Spring, NY 10516, 845-265-3407.

No local department: deputies and the Brewster troopers respond

• Town of Patterson
• Town of Philipstown, outside Cold Spring village
• Town of Putnam Valley
• Town of Southeast, outside Brewster village
• Village of Nelsonville