Because the lookup covers custody in county jails statewide, the Chambersburg jail is included. Follow these steps:

1. Go to the inmate lookup.
2. Enter a surname first, then a first name. Save the middle name for when the list runs long.
3. Choose the record that matches your person.
4. Check the custody status shown on that record.
5. Note the booking number if one appears. The jail uses it on mail and on the phone.

Still unsure? Call 717-264-9513. The business office keeps weekday hours of 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Here are the usual reasons a search comes back empty:

• Too fresh. Booking, a medical check and paperwork come first, and the record lands after that.
• Sent to the hospital first. Someone who seems drunk or unwell must be cleared at a local emergency room before booking.
• Already out. The MDJ may have released them on ROR, or someone posted bail.
• Held somewhere else. An arrest in the Cumberland County part of Shippensburg, or a federal case, can mean another jail.
• Spelling. Retry with a nickname, a birth surname or a hyphenated last name.
• Under 18. Youths never enter the adult jail.

The jail can settle it fast at 717-264-9513. For general questions, staff also read email sent to jail@franklincountypa.gov.

This county runs one jail. Everything sits under one roof at 1804 Opportunity Avenue, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-264-9513. A county department led by a warden operates it, with a Prison Board that meets each month.

• Central booking. Most arrivals are processed here first. The arresting officer fills out a health form, and the jail's medical provider does a quick check.
• Housing units. Men and women 18 and older live in units sorted by classification: minimum, medium or maximum security. Housing is assigned after a short quarantine.
• Pre-Release Unit. Work release inmates live in this unit inside the jail. Adult Probation runs it for people the judge cleared at sentencing.

Fulton County has no jail and contracts with this county and with Bedford County for space. A Fulton arrest may therefore be held here or at the Bedford County Correctional Facility, 425 Imlertown Road, Bedford, PA 15522, 814-623-2955. Nearby, try the Cumberland County Prison, 1101 Claremont Road, Carlisle, PA 17015, 717-245-8787, and the Adams County Adult Correctional Complex, 45 Major Bell Lane, Gettysburg, PA 17325, 717-334-7671.

Think of the lookup as a custody check. It answers whether someone is held, which is a different job from a photo gallery.

Release of Pennsylvania mug shots varies from county to county, and recent state court decisions bear on it too. A newsroom or family member seeking a photo should phone the jail at 717-264-9513 or the arresting agency.

• For an ICE photo, file on the agency's records request page.
• Booking photos tied to federal cases seldom go public. Fugitives sought by the U.S. Marshals Service are an exception, since it posts their pictures.

Yes, for free. The county's victim notification page sends people to PA SAVIN, the statewide alert service run with the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Coverage spans every county jail, the state prisons and people on state parole.

• Register through VINELink, through the VINELink app, or by phone at 866-972-7284. TTY users can dial 866-847-1298.
• Alerts can arrive as a phone call, text message or email. Each notice reports a release, transfer or escape.
• Live operators help 24/7. Your registration is confidential, and the inmate is not notified.

A release can still happen before an alert goes out, so call the jail if timing matters.

Bail is fixed by an MDJ, a local magisterial district judge, at the preliminary arraignment. That hearing is held on booking day or by the following business day. Pennsylvania offers five release types (Pa.R.Crim.P. 524). Four need no cash at the start, and only monetary bail must be paid before the person can leave.

• The judge weighs the charge, work, family ties, record and past court attendance.
• Money bail may be met with cash, Pennsylvania property or a bondsman's bond. Some judges allow a 10 percent deposit.
• Pennsylvania guarantees bail in almost every case. Refusal needs one of two reasons: a charge that could mean death or life imprisonment, or no workable safety conditions.

Every step, including refunds and holds, is on our bail page.

The quickest route is the docket. Search the free UJS case search with the name and the county. Each count is listed with its statute and grade, like F3 for a third-degree felony or M2 for a second-degree misdemeanor.

Grades set the ceiling on punishment. Summary offenses carry up to 90 days. An M1 can bring 5 years and an F1 can bring 20 (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1103-1105).

The District Attorney's Office makes the final call on what is filed in Common Pleas. It works from the Courthouse Annex, 157 Lincoln Way East, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-261-3827.

The Public Defender's Office represents people at no cost, and it presumes every jailed applicant qualifies. There is no fee. It is at 2 North Main Street, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-261-3863, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

• Call the office to book an intake time.
• Useful papers: the complaint, recent pay stubs, a tax return and bank statements.
• Try to apply at least five days before the preliminary hearing.

Private defense lawyers may also visit clients at the jail on weekdays. They should call the jail ahead for the professional visit hours.

Personal visits run Monday through Friday from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. People on work release can have visitors from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Weekend visits are not part of the schedule.

• Each person gets one personal visit a week, starting after a 48-hour quarantine on arrival.
• Visitors need no advance approval. Sign in at the lobby desk. Units are served in the order visitors arrive.
• Bring a valid government ID. Everyone 18 or over must show photo ID.
• A visit allows up to 2 adults plus 2 lap-size children. Under-18 visitors come with their parent or legal guardian, no exceptions.
• Everyone walks through a metal detector. Skip tank tops, hoodies and see-through clothes.
• Staff watch and record personal visits.

The jail posts visit changes on its Facebook page and asks people to phone before the drive. See our visiting guide for more.

The jail takes deposits three ways:

• A kiosk in the jail lobby, which accepts cash or a credit card
• Online, using the deposit site the county website points to
• By phone at 866-345-1884

Personal checks sent by mail come back to the sender. Every deposit needs the inmate's full name and booking number. An inmate can spend up to $125.00 a week at commissary, and family may also order up to $125.00 a week in packages from the county's approved online store. Deposit methods are in our money guide. The snack and hygiene store is explained on our commissary page.

On arrival, each person gets one free five-minute phone call. After that, family members open a prepaid phone account so calls can reach them. Every call stops at 20 minutes.

• Housing units have tablets for calls, video visits and messages.
• A video visit from home needs a computer, internet, a webcam and a credit card.
• Talk about the case belongs in calls with the lawyer, not family calls.

Account setup is explained in our jail calls guide. Tablet messages have a separate inmate email and messages guide.

Personal letters are mailed to a scanning center out of state. Staff there scan every page, and the person reads it on a housing unit tablet. Address it in this order: Franklin County Jail, PA, then the person's name and booking number, then P.O. Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131.

Legal mail goes to the jail itself: the person's name, Franklin County Jail, 1804 Opportunity Avenue, Chambersburg, PA 17201. Mark it clearly as legal mail and use a return address that can be checked. Staff open it in front of the inmate.

Never tuck cash or a personal check inside. Our mail guide lists items that usually get rejected.

When released, the person is called to the booking area and handed everything that came in with them. Leftover funds, after permitted deductions, come back on a debit card.

While someone is still inside, valuables can go to a family member. The inmate names the pickup person on a valuable property release form. That person brings photo ID to 1804 Opportunity Avenue, Chambersburg, PA 17201. Call 717-264-9513 first to set a time.

Emergency medical care is available 24 hours a day. Routine sick calls cost $5.00 and a dental visit $10.00, but no one is denied care for being broke. Dental, mental health and medical services are all offered.

• The Jail to Community Treatment program offers assessment, counseling and medication-assisted treatment for addiction.
• Daily medicine matters. Phone 717-264-9513 with each drug's name, its dose and the prescriber's name.
• If you fear they may hurt themselves, tell jail staff that plainly on the call. Outside the jail, use 911 for emergencies.

The Sheriff's Office serves court warrants from the Judicial Center, 14 North Main Street, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-261-3877, weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Police and constables serve others. Check the Sheriff's warrants page, which the county site links, plus three statewide and national lists: the Pennsylvania State Police Ten Most Wanted, the state parole absconders page and the Marshals' 15 Most Wanted. Questions about a single name go to the Sheriff or the court on the docket. Defense counsel can set up a planned surrender or request a fresh hearing date from that court. The Clerk of Courts holds criminal records in that building, 717-261-3805.

The court calendar depends on the stage of the case:

• Before the preliminary hearing: the MDJ office that filed the case. Felony and misdemeanor preliminary hearings meet at Central Court on Tuesdays, in courtroom six of the Judicial Center, 14 North Main Street, Chambersburg, PA 17201.
• After the case moves up: the Clerk of Courts at 717-261-3805, or Court Administration at 717-261-3848.

Dates also show on each docket in the UJS case search and on the county's court scheduling page. For the full path of a case, open our court guide.

Federal arrests here are filed in the Middle District of Pennsylvania at 1501 North 6th Street, Suite 101, Harrisburg, PA 17102, 717-221-3920.

1. Within days, the federal court holds a detention hearing on home versus custody until trial (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Until trial, the Marshals keep custody of federal prisoners and frequently rent county jail beds for them. Ask its office at 570-346-7277, 235 North Washington Avenue, Unit 215, Scranton, PA 18503, which jail is housing them.
3. Once sentenced, the person can be found through the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.

1. ICE first files Form I-247A at the Opportunity Avenue jail.
2. This form requests that staff hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Courts here follow Galarza v. Szalczyk (3d Cir. 2014), so Opportunity Avenue staff may treat the detainer as optional. Jailing someone for ICE with nothing more can leave a county liable, which is why each jail chooses its own approach. Call 717-264-9513 to ask about this jail's practice.
4. After a transfer to ICE, ask the Philadelphia Field Office: 114 North 8th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, 215-656-7164.
5. Search the ICE Online Detainee Locator to see where the person was taken.

State prison receives anyone whose maximum term reaches 5 years, and usually those with 2 to 5 years as well (42 Pa.C.S. § 9762). Terms under 2 years are served locally.

• The first stop is a state reception center. Staff there assess security and treatment needs over weeks or months before assigning a home prison.
• To find a state prisoner, try the DOC inmate locator. It accepts names as well as DOC numbers.
• State prison mail is processed centrally. Put the inmate's name, number and SCI first, then this address: Smart Communications/PA DOC, PO Box 33028, St Petersburg, FL 33733.
• The Department of Corrections is at 1920 Technology Parkway, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050, 717-728-2573.
• Each SCI sets its own visiting and mail rules, collected in our Pennsylvania state prisons guide.

Opportunity Avenue holds no one under 18. A detained minor goes to a juvenile detention center. The Juvenile Act keeps most cases in juvenile court, and their files are hidden from the UJS portal. A detained youth gets a hearing within 72 hours. Adult court is where a murder case starts, and so do some armed violent cases if the teen is 15 to 17.

Juvenile Probation tracks where each detained youth is held and when the hearing falls: Courthouse Annex, 157 Lincoln Way East, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-261-3122.

With 160,652 residents (Census, July 1, 2025 estimate), the county is policed by many agencies. Each agency is grouped by the district court that usually hears its arrests. If you can't tell which one booked the person, ask the jail at 717-264-9513.

• County seat (39-2-01): Chambersburg Police Department, 717-264-4131
• Waynesboro area (39-3-02): Waynesboro Police Department, 717-762-2132; Washington Township Police Department, 717-762-1447
• Greencastle area (39-3-05): Greencastle Police Department, 717-597-9506
• Mercersburg area (39-3-06): Mercersburg Police Department, 717-328-3116
• Shippensburg West End (39-3-04): Shippensburg Police Department, 717-532-7361
• Rural townships patrolled by troopers: Pennsylvania State Police, Troop H station on Black Gap Road, 3800 Black Gap Road, Chambersburg, PA 17202, 717-264-5161
• Sheriff's Office: 14 North Main Street, Chambersburg, PA 17201, 717-261-3877
• County Drug Task Force: a county department that works drug cases
• Campus police: Penn State Mont Alto, 717-749-6076; Shippensburg University, 717-477-1444; Wilson College, 717-372-2255
• Parks, forests and wildlife: Caledonia State Park, 717-352-2161; Michaux State Forest, 717-352-2211; Buchanan State Forest rangers, 717-485-3148; Cowans Gap State Park, 717-485-3948; Pennsylvania Game Commission, 717-603-0061; Pennsylvania Fish Commission, 717-486-7087