1. Open our official inmate lookup link.
2. Key in the legal name exactly. No hit? Try adding the middle name, swapping in a former surname, or cutting the spelling down.
3. On a match, note the custody status and any booking or ID number it lists. Keep that number nearby for later calls.
4. Check by phone at 570-628-1450. Staff can confirm whether the person is on Sanderson Street or at a host jail in another county.

Pennsylvania also runs a statewide tool. VINELink, which the state calls PA SAVIN, reaches state prisons, county jails and people on state parole at no cost. Its help line, 866-972-7284, answers at any hour.

• Booking takes time. Fingerprinting, the photo and paperwork all come before any record goes online.
• They may be out. A district judge can release someone on bail or on ROR, a signed promise to return.
• A bed elsewhere. When the prison runs out of room, people go to the Centre, Clinton or Northumberland jails.
• A spelling snag. Hyphens, nicknames and double last names trip up searches.
• A youth case. A child under 18 goes to juvenile detention, and adult lists skip them.
• Still with officers. Booking can still be in progress. Central Booking is a unit of the Sheriff's Office, so deputies can say how far along it is.

Two numbers help here: the Sheriff's Office, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1440, and the prison at 570-628-1450. Say the full name and birth date when you call.

Adults from across the county are booked at the main prison, where men and women are both held. Its work release program operates under that same roof. A county Prison Board oversees it, and the state Department of Corrections inspects it on a set schedule (37 Pa. Code Chapter 95). It has 277 beds. In 2025 the Prison Board said crowding meant people were sent to the three host jails listed after it:

• Main county prison, 230 Sanderson Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1450
• Centre County Correctional Facility, 700 Rishel Hill Road, Bellefonte, PA 16823, 814-355-6794
• Clinton County Correctional Facility, 58 Pine Mountain Road, McElhattan, PA 17748, 570-769-7680
• Northumberland County Jail, 670 Northumberland County Drive, Coal Township, PA 17866, 570-509-2701

If police from a nearby county made the arrest, the person is likely in that county's jail. Neighboring jails are the Berks County Jail, 1287 County Welfare Road, Leesport, PA 19533, 610-208-4800; Carbon County Correctional Facility, 331 Broad Street, Nesquehoning, PA 18240, 570-325-2211; Columbia County Prison, 721 Iron Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, 570-784-4815; Dauphin County Prison, 501 Mall Road, Harrisburg, PA 17111, 717-780-6800; Lebanon County Correctional Facility, 730 East Walnut Street, Lebanon, PA 17042, 717-274-5451; Lehigh County Jail, 38 North Fourth Street, Allentown, PA 18102, 610-782-3270; and Luzerne County Correctional Facility, 99 Water Street, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711, 570-829-7741.

A booking photo may not be easy to get. Counties across Pennsylvania handle them differently, and recent rulings from state courts play a part. Ask the prison at 570-628-1450, or ask the arresting police department.

• Want a picture snapped by immigration officers? Ask through the ICE records request page.
• Most U.S. agencies withhold their own mugshots. The U.S. Marshals sometimes break that pattern to show a fugitive's face.

Yes, and it costs nothing. PA SAVIN, Pennsylvania's notice system, sends a phone call, text or email once the person you chose leaves custody, changes facilities or escapes. It watches county jails, state prisons and state parole.

• Enroll through VINELink, the VINELink app, or by phone at 866-972-7284 (TTY 866-847-1298).
• The prisoner never learns that you signed up.
• You have to enroll for each person. Nothing signs you up on its own.

Need to know right now? Call the prison at 570-628-1450.

Bail gets decided by a district judge at the preliminary arraignment. It usually happens within hours and is often done over video (Pa.R.Crim.P. 540). The state constitution guarantees bail to almost every defendant. Two exceptions exist: a charge that could carry death or life behind bars, and a case where no condition short of a cell would keep people safe (Pa. Const. art. I, § 14).

• The judge can release on ROR, which is just a signed promise, or require money (Pa.R.Crim.P. 524).
• Money bail can be paid in cash, backed by property, posted through a bail bond agent, or, if the judge permits, met by depositing 10 percent (Pa.R.Crim.P. 528).
• For payment places and steps, phone the Clerk of Courts in the courthouse, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1140.

For every step, read our bail page.

The written complaint, handed over at the first hearing, lists every charge. After filing, the docket is public. Search the free UJS case search with a name, then set the county field to Schuylkill.

Charges are graded. A first-degree felony (F1) carries up to 20 years, and an F3 up to 7. Misdemeanors range from M1 (up to 5 years) down to M3 (up to 1). The lowest level, summary offenses, tops out at 90 days (18 Pa.C.S. §§ 1103-1105). Prosecutors in the District Attorney's office, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1354, make the final call on charges.

At that hearing the judge also says the defendant may have a lawyer. If paying one is out of reach, contact the Public Defender's Office, 420 N. Centre Street, Suite 7, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1515 (16 P.S. § 9960.1 and following).

• The office has applicants fill out a sworn form listing income and property.
• Relatives may phone the office and ask what the prisoner needs to do to apply.
• Hiring a private lawyer also works. Help is most useful before the preliminary hearing.

Visit days, hours and dress rules can change, so call the prison at 570-628-1450 before making the trip to Sanderson Street. Questions worth asking:

• What day and time does their housing unit get?
• How many adults can come, and may children join?
• What photo ID works, and which items must stay in the car?
• Is there video visiting, at home or on site, and how do I schedule it?

A person housed at a host jail follows that jail's rules instead. More tips are in our visiting guide.

Money on the books lets the person buy snacks, soap and phone time. Call 570-628-1450 to ask which ways of depositing work now, any limits, and which ID number goes with the deposit.

Never tuck money inside a letter. Deposit options are laid out in our money guide, while the items for sale are covered in our commissary guide.

Besides phones, the prison has tablets. Ask staff at 570-628-1450 which company runs calls and messages, what it costs, and how to sign up.

• Lawyer calls aside, expect that someone is recording.
• Leave details of the case out, because jail calls can end up with a prosecutor.

For common setups, see the jail phone guide, and for messages, the inmate messaging guide.

Before you mail a letter, call 570-628-1450. A number of Pennsylvania jails now send personal mail to an outside scanning company, so confirm the current address, the inmate number to write on the front, and what is allowed inside.

Address it with their legal name, and put yours in the top corner. Keep it plain: no stickers, glitter or perfume. Our mail guide lists common rules.

Items taken at booking are kept at the prison, 230 Sanderson Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, until the person leaves. Before you go to pick up belongings or leftover funds for them, call 570-628-1450. Find out the pickup hours, whether the prisoner has to sign a release form, and which ID to bring.

Health care at the prison comes from a contracted medical company, which checks each person at booking. If your loved one takes medicine, has an ongoing illness or seems sick, call 570-628-1450 and ask for medical. Have the medicine's name and dose ready, plus the prescriber's office number.

The state Department of Corrections inspects county jails every 12 to 24 months. In an emergency, dial 911. Any worry about suicide or self-harm should be stated plainly.

Deputies at the Sheriff's Office, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1440, serve bench warrants from the Court of Common Pleas, while police and constables serve many others. Check the county's Bench Warrant List, plus the Domestic Relations Bench Warrants List for support cases. Statewide and national lists: PSP Ten Most Wanted, the DOC absconder list, the FBI wanted pages and the Marshals' 15 Most Wanted. If you think you have a warrant, talk to a lawyer first and plan a surrender to the court that issued it. For Common Pleas cases, reach the Clerk of Courts at the same courthouse address, 570-628-1140.

Hearing dates for district courts and Common Pleas both show on the free UJS case search. Enter the name, pick the county, and read the docket sheet.

• Common Pleas: Clerk of Courts, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1140.
• District courts: the Court Administrator, 570-628-1226, can say which of the seven MDJ offices holds the case.

Our court guide explains each stage and lists all seven district offices.

Northeast and central Pennsylvania federal cases belong to the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, 235 N. Washington Avenue, Scranton, PA 18503, 570-207-5600.

1. A federal judge holds a detention hearing soon after charges. That hearing settles whether the accused stays home or in a cell until trial (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Pretrial housing is the Marshals' choice. Find them at 235 North Washington Avenue, Unit 215, Scranton, PA 18503, 570-346-7277.
3. Once sentenced, the person goes to a Bureau of Prisons site. Use the BOP inmate locator with a name or register number.

FCI Schuylkill, Interstate 81 & 901 W, Minersville, PA 17954, 570-544-7100, is a federal prison and is separate from the county jail.

1. ICE gives the jail a written hold request on Form I-247A, known as a detainer.
2. This paper asks that the person stay for up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. The Third Circuit ruled in Galarza v. Szalczyk (2014) that a jail may say no to these requests. Holding a person on nothing more than a detainer can expose a county to a lawsuit. The prison, 570-628-1450, can explain its own practice.
4. The ICE office over this state is the Philadelphia Field Office, 114 N. 8th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, 215-656-7164.
5. Try the ICE Online Detainee Locator with an A-number. No A-number? A name plus country of birth works.

Under 42 Pa.C.S. § 9762, state prison takes anyone whose maximum term reaches 5 years. Most people with a top term of 2 to under 5 years go there too. The first stop is a classification center, and a prison is picked for them once that process ends, which can take weeks or months.

• Search by name or inmate number using the DOC inmate locator.
• Department of Corrections headquarters: 1920 Technology Parkway, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050, 717-728-2573.
• Our Pennsylvania state prisons pages explain mail, visits and deposits at each prison.

Kids are normally kept out of the adult prison. They go to juvenile detention instead, and their files do not appear on the public portal (42 Pa.C.S. § 6301 and following). Only murder and some armed violent offenses by youths 15 or older are filed in adult court from day one. Juvenile Probation, at the courthouse, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1245, knows which facility has the child and the hearing date.

Look on the complaint or the docket for the arresting department. Roughly 145,085 people live here, by a July 1, 2025 Census estimate. County dispatch handles non-emergency police calls at 570-628-3792, and 911 is for emergencies. Departments listed without a number are reached through dispatch.

County and state agencies

• Sheriff's Office, 401 North Second Street, Pottsville, PA 17901, 570-628-1440
• Pennsylvania State Police, Frackville station, 31 Eleanor Drive, Frackville, PA 17931, 570-874-5300
• Pennsylvania State Police, Schuylkill Haven station, 1070 South Pa Route 183, Schuylkill Haven, PA 17972, 570-754-4600. Troopers cover boroughs and townships that have no local department.
• Penn State Schuylkill Police Services (campus), 200 University Drive, Schuylkill Haven, PA 17972, 570-385-6144

Pottsville and Mount Carbon area

• Pottsville Bureau of Police (city)

Port Carbon, Minersville and Saint Clair area

• Saint Clair Police, 24 N 2nd St, Saint Clair, PA 17970, 570-429-3050
• Minersville Borough police
• Port Carbon Borough police
• Blythe Township police
• Schuylkill Township police

Orwigsburg and Schuylkill Haven area

• Orwigsburg Borough police
• Schuylkill Haven Borough police
• Walker Township police

Frackville, Ashland and McAdoo area

• McAdoo Borough police
• Kline Township police
• North Union Township police

Shenandoah and Mahanoy area

• Gilberton Borough police
• East Union Township police
• Mahanoy Township police

Tamaqua and Coaldale area

• Tamaqua Borough police
• Coaldale Borough police

Tremont, Pine Grove and Hegins area

• Pine Grove Borough police
• Tower City Borough police
• Cass Township police
• Foster Township police
• Hegins Township police
• Reilly Township police

Don't see your town? Dispatch can tell you which local department or State Police station covers it.