Try this routine. Use the spelling from the person's driver's license or state ID:

1. Visit the jail search from any phone, tablet or computer.
2. Begin with the family name only. Use the given name later, if the list runs long.
3. Nothing yet? Try a nickname, any former surname, or an alternate spelling.
4. Write down any identifying details that appear, for example a booking ID, an offense or a bond. Deputies find files faster with them.
5. Look at the stamp on the page. A date or time shows how recent the list is.

The Sheriff's inmate information page says some people live in satellite locations, not the main towers. If you cannot tell where someone is, the Sheriff's Office can confirm at 216-443-6000. VINE is one more place to check custody status.

No match on screen? That alone does not say they were released. Possible explanations:

• Booking in progress. Paperwork, fingerprints and photos can take hours before a name appears.
• Police station or city lockup. A suburb may keep someone until a court appearance, then move them downtown.
• Handed a citation. Officers may release on a ticket, or a judge may let the person go on a signed pledge to come back.
• Paid bond. A relative may have posted it already.
• Transferred. Another county's jail, a federal site or a state prison might hold the person now.
• Odd spelling. Try a second version of the name.

Phone the Sheriff's Office on 216-443-6000 and recite the complete name plus birthday. Staff can look the person up.

These are the adult lockups we know about here, with the job each one does:

• Cuyahoga County Corrections Center, 1215 West 3rd Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-443-6000. It is the main full-service county jail, built as two towers named Jail I and Jail II, and it sees over 26,000 bookings in a year. A few inmates stay at satellite sites, so ask the Sheriff's staff where yours is.
• Parma Detention Center, 5555 Powers Boulevard, Parma, OH 44129, 440-885-1234. This city facility is a full-service jail sized for 26 people at most. Parma police book arrests here, and bond can be handled here.
• Lakewood City Jail, 12650 Detroit Avenue, Lakewood, OH 44107, police line 216-521-6773. A city jail for short stays.
• Bedford Heights City Jail, 5661 Perkins Road, Bedford Heights, OH 44146, police line 440-439-1234. Phone to learn if someone is being held there.

Teens and children go to a separate building, covered in the youth answer near the end. For an arrest just over the county line, open the Ohio jail directory and find that county. Federal, immigration and state prison cases come further down.

We could not verify that the county's search displays mugshots or booking photos. Call the Sheriff's Office at 216-443-6000 to ask whether a photo can be shared. When a city department made the arrest, ask that agency the same thing. Ohio's public records law is R.C. 149.43.

Be wary of sites that post arrest photos. Under Ohio law, a publisher of booking photos or arrest details may not ask for or accept payment to remove them. A violation is a first-degree misdemeanor under R.C. 2927.22. A harmed person may also file a civil suit asking at least $10,000.

• A photo from ICE booking must be asked for through ICE's FOIA request page.
• The public cannot get mugshots made in federal arrests. The U.S. Marshals Service alone may release one, for instance while hunting a runaway defendant.

Yes. Ohio VINE is a free program run by the Ohio Attorney General. It tracks county jails, state prisons and youth facilities. Alerts cover a person's release or move, as well as an escape or a death.

1. Open the VINE site, or phone 800-770-0192, which answers around the clock.
2. Search under the inmate's name.
3. Choose to be alerted by phone, text or email.

VINE can trail real events by a little. Before you set out in the car, ring the Sheriff's Office at 216-443-6000 to confirm a release.

Ohio law (R.C. 2937.011) asks judges to use the lightest conditions that work. The goal is simple. The person must come back to court, and the public must stay safe. When money is involved, the choices are an unsecured bond, a cash deposit worth one tenth of the bond, or, if the defendant prefers, a surety bond, pledged property or the full sum.

• Every court keeps a misdemeanor bail schedule, so release may be possible before a hearing.
• Only a judge or magistrate sets felony bail.
• Bail must be addressed in front of a judge before the second court day ends, if the person is still held (R.C. 2937.011).
• With the one-tenth deposit, the court hands back ninety percent once the case closes, provided the defendant obeyed each condition.

Cleveland Municipal Court bonds are paid in person at the Clerk's Criminal/Traffic Division, Level 3, Justice Center, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, any hour. The clerk accepts cash, Visa, MasterCard and Discover, and no checks. Phone 216-664-4790 before you leave home.

A surety bond may be written only by a bail bond agent whom the Ohio Department of Insurance has licensed. The department's consumer line is 800-686-1526. Read our bail page and the Ohio bail laws page before you hand money to a stranger.

Ask the clerk at the courthouse where the case sits, and have the full name and birthday ready.

• Cleveland Municipal Court, Criminal/Traffic Clerk, Level 3, Justice Center, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-664-4790. The counter is staffed Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Court of Common Pleas, Clerk of Courts, second floor of that building, 216-443-7999, for felonies. Arraignment and criminal records answer at 216-443-8660.
• Prosecuting Attorney, 9th Floor, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-443-7800. Prosecutors there file felony charges.

A suburb's court has its own clerk, with numbers in the court dates answer further down. Misdemeanors are usually prosecuted by a city law office, so the clerk can say whom to call.

Say at the first court date that you need one. The person completes an income form. The judge then rules on eligibility.

The county Public Defender is at 310 West Lakeside Avenue, Suite 400, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-443-7223. For a misdemeanor, use the Municipal Division intake number, 216-443-2190, which is in Suite 200 of that building.

A family can hire a private attorney too. That lawyer may ask a judge to adjust release terms whenever it makes sense.

These come from the Sheriff's visiting FAQ. Rules shift, so phone 216-443-6000 before you travel.

• In the lobby: no charge, 20 minutes, one visit per inmate each week.
• By video: 25 minutes for $12.99 through Securus Video Visitation at videovisitanywhere.com. Schedule anywhere from one day to one week ahead.
• Arrive a quarter hour early, photo ID in hand.
• A group can include two adults and two children.
• Obey the dress code.

Lakewood's city jail keeps separate visiting hours: Tuesday and Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. and Thursday from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Attorneys and clergy can visit at any time. For more advice, see our visiting guide.

The Sheriff directs families to Access Corrections for sending money. The commissary office sits at 1215 West 3rd Street, First Floor, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-698-6244. Bring the inmate's name and booking ID to the payment screen.

Our money guide shows the steps, and the commissary guide lists purchases. Cash should never travel in an envelope.

For phone calls, the Sheriff points families to a Securus advance-connect account. Ask at 216-443-6000 how to open one, what a call costs and which calls are recorded.

Securus Video Visitation also handles video visits. Our phone guide and email and text pages have more detail. Keep case details for the lawyer, because jail calls may be recorded.

Read the county's mail page before anything goes in the box. Its rules include:

• Use an embossed or metered envelope and write a return address. Letters with stamps come back to you.
• Paperbacks are the only books taken.
• No packages and no money.

Phone 216-443-6000 to get the exact address line for the envelope. Families can also order a gift package from the online commissary catalog. Our mail guide adds general tips.

Phone the Sheriff's Office at 216-443-6000 and ask how property is returned. Find out whether the person must sign a release, which ID you must show and what days work. The Corrections Center is at 1215 West 3rd Street, Cleveland, OH 44113.

Jail staff store the clothes and items taken at booking. Staff will explain the pickup rules.

MetroHealth's Correctional Health Program treats patients inside the Corrections Center. Call 216-443-6000 and describe the problem to the Sheriff's staff. Give each medication name and dose, and the prescriber if you know who it is.

Inside, the patient can also ask the clinic for care using a written request. In a life-or-death moment, use 911. If self-harm is the fear, tell staff that plainly.

The Sheriff's Warrant Unit serves felony warrants; ask for Records/Warrant at 216-443-6100. City police serve warrants in their own towns, so phone that department (see the last answer). For a Cleveland case, the Municipal Court criminal clerk at 216-664-4790 can check a name and birthday, and the Common Pleas Clerk of Courts at 216-443-7999 checks felonies. To clear a warrant, start by talking to a lawyer, then call the clerk's office in the court behind the warrant. The clerks are at the Justice Center, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113.

Contact the court that owns the case. There is no county court here. Thirteen municipal courts share the cities and villages, and felonies go to Common Pleas.

• Cleveland Municipal Court, Justice Center, 1200 Ontario Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, criminal clerk 216-664-4790
• Common Pleas, General Division, same address, 216-443-8560
• Bedford, 165 Center Road, Bedford, OH 44146, 440-232-3420
• Berea, 11 Berea Commons, Berea, OH 44017, 440-826-5860
• Cleveland Heights, 40 Severance Circle, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118, 216-291-4901
• East Cleveland, 14340 Euclid Avenue, East Cleveland, OH 44112, 216-451-5900
• Euclid, 555 E. 222nd Street, Euclid, OH 44123, 216-289-2888
• Garfield Heights, 5555 Turney Road, Garfield Heights, OH 44125, 216-475-1900
• Lakewood, 12650 Detroit Avenue, Lakewood, OH 44107, 216-529-6700
• Lyndhurst, 5301 Mayfield Road, Lyndhurst, OH 44124, 440-461-6500
• Parma, 5555 Powers Boulevard, Parma, OH 44129, 440-887-7400
• Rocky River, 21012 Hilliard Boulevard, Rocky River, OH 44116, 440-333-0066
• Shaker Heights, 3355 Lee Road, Shaker Heights, OH 44120, 216-491-1300
• South Euclid, 1349 S. Green Road, South Euclid, OH 44121, 216-381-2880

Some villages also run a mayor's court. Ask the arresting police department where the case was sent. Want more detail on what happens at each hearing? Try our court guide.

The federal court for this region sits in Cleveland and belongs to the Northern District of Ohio. The federal courthouse is at 801 West Superior Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-357-7000.

1. At the first federal appearance, a magistrate rules on pretrial detention versus conditional release (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Marshals decide the bed for a federal defendant awaiting trial; it is often space rented in a county jail. The Marshals' office in that building, Suite 1200, 216-522-2150, can name the place.
3. Anyone unable to pay for counsel can reach the Federal Public Defender at 1660 West Second Street, Suite 750, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-522-4856.
4. A convicted defendant moves into the federal prison system. Find the assigned facility with the BOP inmate locator.

When ICE gets involved, the sequence runs like this:

1. Jail staff get ICE's detainer, filed on Form I-247A.
2. Under 8 CFR 287.7(d), the jail may keep the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released.
3. ICE then takes custody. The closest ICE office is 925 Keynote Circle, Brooklyn Heights, OH 44131, 216-749-9200. The Detroit Field Office oversees Ohio at 985 Michigan Avenue, Suite 207, Detroit, MI 48226, 313-771-6601.
4. Search the ICE Online Detainee Locator using a surname and birth country, or an A-number.

We found no signed Ohio law about detainers. To ask whether the Sheriff's Office has any agreement with ICE, phone 216-443-6000.

People sentenced to prison go to a state reception center first. Some linger in the county lockup before that move, so check with the jail.

• Enter a name in the state's ODRC offender search, run by the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.
• For how to write or visit once someone is transferred, open our guide to Ohio prisons.

People younger than 18 are kept out of the adult cell blocks. Their cases belong to the Juvenile Court, part of Common Pleas, at 9300 Quincy Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106, 216-443-8400.

When the court orders a child held, the child is taken to the Juvenile Detention Center at that address. Juv.R. 7 requires the detention hearing inside three days (72 hours), unless court opens sooner the next morning. If it is missed, the child is sent home to a parent. The Public Defender's youth office, 216-443-7295, assists families who cannot pay.

Each office below has a non-emergency line:

• Sheriff's Office, 1215 West 3rd Street, Cleveland, OH 44113, 216-443-6000. Records and warrants: 216-443-6100. Justice Center security: 216-443-6211.
• Lakewood Police, 12650 Detroit Avenue, Lakewood, OH 44107, 216-521-6773
• Bedford Heights Police, 5661 Perkins Road, Bedford Heights, OH 44146, 440-439-1234
• Parma Police, 5555 Powers Boulevard, Parma, OH 44129, 440-885-1234
• Ohio State Highway Patrol: find the Cuyahoga County post on the local post page.

For any other city or village, call its city hall, or let the Sheriff's Office tell you which agency booked the person.