Madison County Jail

Search his last name in the Madison County Inmate Search. The record shows the charge and any bond. If nothing appears, check again in a few hours, because a new booking is not always posted right away.

Questions the search cannot answer go to the Sheriff's Office at 731-423-6000.

The county jail that the Sheriff's Office operates at 317 Denmark-Jackson Road, Jackson, TN 38391. Madison County has its own jail, so people arrested here are not sent to another county.

Arrests by Jackson city officers or the Sheriff's deputies both end up at the same jail.

A judge or magistrate does. Tennessee Code 40-11-105 gives anyone arrested on a bailable charge a right to be admitted to bail, and the figure must be tailored to that person, not pulled off a chart. Deputies can release a person only once bail already exists (40-11-106).

Two General Sessions judges sit in Madison County. The court answers at 731-423-6011 and 731-423-6073.

The deposit equals the full amount of the bail (40-11-118). Cash bail carries no discount: you put up the whole figure. A clerk may accept a debit card or a mobile cash app and pass the fee to you.

Call the Circuit Court Clerk at 731-423-6035 to ask where cash is taken and until what time that day.

A bondsman promises the court the full bond in exchange for your premium. A Tennessee resident should be charged about 10 percent, and an out-of-state resident 10 to 15 percent (40-11-151). One $25 initiation fee and a $12 bail tax can be added.

Every bondsman needs a license from the Board of Professional Bondsmen (40-11-321) and approval from the court in the judicial district where the bond is written.

A receipt for each payment, a duplicate copy, and the contract itself. If you give collateral beyond the premium, the receipt must describe each item and say how you redeem it.

The bondsman must have good cause, such as breaking the contract, before returning the defendant to jail.

Real estate in Tennessee is one of four recognized ways to post bail. The others are cash, a professional bondsman, and a written promise from two sufficient sureties who are not bondsmen or attorneys (State Attorney General Opinion 03-054).

Expect title review and paperwork. For how the court handles property bonds here, call the Circuit Court Clerk at 731-423-6035.

The statute names the reasons (40-11-118(b)): how long the person has lived here, work and finances, family, character and mental state, prior record and past court attendance, the charge, the possible sentence, and danger shown by the record. Lawful presence in the state is considered too.

A friend who vouches for someone can only vouch for two defendants at the same time.

It must consider that first. Section 40-11-115(b) puts release on recognizance or an unsecured bond ahead of money, with attention to ties, job and record. If that is not enough, the court imposes the least onerous conditions that will assure appearance (40-11-116), and money bail comes only after that (40-11-117).

Yes. A capital charge is not bailable under Article I, section 15 of the Tennessee Constitution. Domestic abuse and stalking cases bring a 12-hour wait under 40-11-150, longer in some aggravated assault cases.

A probation hold or a warrant from another county can also keep someone in custody after money is paid.

He or she cannot be released within 12 hours of arrest unless the official finds no threat to the victim. When there is strangulation, serious injury or a deadly weapon in an aggravated assault, the hold may stretch to 24 hours.

A no-contact order must be in place before bond, and GPS monitoring is ordered in the aggravated assault case. The defendant pays for it if able.

Judges can order an ignition interlock (40-11-118(d)) after crashes with property damage, with a child in the vehicle, or with certain prior convictions. A repeat offender can be placed on transdermal alcohol monitoring at his or her own cost. Tampering with the monitor is a Class B misdemeanor.

Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 5 requires that the arrested person be brought before a magistrate without unnecessary delay. The magistrate reads the charge and explains the right to a lawyer and to remain silent.

A felony preliminary hearing is held within 14 days if the person stays in jail and within 30 days if released.

The county government address is 100 East Main, Jackson, TN 38301. The Circuit Court Clerk is at 731-423-6035 and the Clerk and Master is at 731-423-6052. The County Clerk is at 731-427-6022.

Phone before you drive. Rooms and dockets can change.

Request one from the bench when you first appear. The Twenty-Sixth Judicial District Public Defender covers Madison County and answers at 731-423-6657.

Juvenile cases are heard in Madison County Juvenile Court. The Madison County Juvenile Detention Center is at 224 Lexington Avenue, Jackson, and its number is 731-423-6144. The Juvenile Court Clerk is at 731-423-6146.

Children are handled by the juvenile offices, so use those numbers for a minor.

No. Money for the commissary or phone calls stays on the inmate's account and does not buy release. Only the court clerk, a bondsman or a property bond ends custody. Be skeptical of anyone online who promises a quick release for a transfer.

The judge can order the bond forfeited (40-11-139, 40-11-201) and issue an arrest order. Cash can be lost. A bondsman may surrender the defendant under 40-11-132, and that ends the bondsman's risk.

If the date was missed, phone the Circuit Court Clerk right away at 731-423-6035.

After the defendant is discharged, the clerk returns the deposit (40-11-119), but fines and court costs are taken first (40-11-121). Someone who signs as a surety is not liable for fines, costs or restitution unless the bond says so and that person agreed (40-11-118(c)).

• Jail: Madison County jail, 317 Denmark-Jackson Road, Jackson, TN 38391; 731-423-6000
• Custody lookup: Madison County Inmate Search
• General Sessions Court: 731-423-6011 or 731-423-6073
• Circuit Court Clerk: 731-423-6035
• Clerk and Master: 731-423-6052
• Public defender: Twenty-Sixth Judicial District, 731-423-6657
• Juvenile detention: 224 Lexington Avenue, Jackson; 731-423-6144
• Bond help: bail instructions for the Madison County jail

Telephone numbers, office hours and charges can change, and bond decisions turn on the facts of each case. Confirm with the clerk or the Sheriff's Office before you send money. General information only; not legal advice.

If someone close to you has been arrested in Madison County, the questions that matter first are where that person is being held and when a judge will see the case. The county seat is Jackson, but the exact courtroom depends on whether the charge is a city ordinance violation, a misdemeanor, or a felony. Use the linked questions to find the courthouse information, bail process, defense-lawyer options, sentencing rules, youth-court process, and federal court details.

Circuit Court Clerk — court filings and hearing information

Madison County Circuit Court Clerk — Listed office address: 515 South Liberty Street, Jackson, TN 38301.

Circuit Court Clerk telephone: (731) 423-6035

Circuit clerks handle many criminal and civil filings. Chancery Courts usually address civil and equity matters, while General Sessions Courts handle many initial criminal hearings. Call the applicable clerk for the specific courtroom assignment.

Madison County: the county seat is Jackson. Tennessee General Sessions Court ordinarily handles initial criminal appearances, misdemeanor proceedings within its authority, and felony preliminary hearings. Felony jury trials are heard in the Circuit or Criminal Court serving Madison County. The Circuit Court Clerk is responsible for criminal filings and records in courts assigned to that clerk; some Tennessee counties have separate criminal clerks.

Courthouse and court clerk contacts

For any other court branch, call the clerk numbers listed on this page.

Chancery Court generally hears civil matters such as certain family, property, estate, and business disputes; a Chancery clerk is not a substitute for the criminal clerk. The exact court named on a summons controls where the hearing takes place.

After a custodial arrest in Madison County, the arresting agency arranges booking and detention. The person may be housed in a county facility or another authorized jail under an established custody arrangement.

Booking may include identification, fingerprints, a photograph, a property inventory, and a medical or mental-health screening. The defendant is then brought before the proper judicial officer for a probable-cause and release decision as required by law. A family member should write down the full legal name, booking number if known, charges, and scheduled hearing.

A judge or authorized magistrate decides whether someone charged in Madison County can go home before trial and under what conditions. Release on recognizance means there is no up-front bond payment; other orders may require a cash deposit, surety, supervision, travel restrictions, or no contact with another person. Commercial bonding is permitted in Tennessee, but a bondsman cannot decide the court’s bond amount.

If the order allows payment, first establish whether the court or jail collects the money, the exact amount, and whether another hold prevents release. A paid bond does not erase the charges and missing court can lead to forfeiture and arrest.

Many less serious cases in Jackson begin in General Sessions Court. A prosecutor can discuss a plea, dismissal or diversion; not every offense qualifies. A defendant does not receive a full jury trial in General Sessions Court, and a final misdemeanor decision there requires appropriate consent or waiver under Tennessee law. The case may instead proceed in a court with jury-trial authority.

Maximum misdemeanor punishments

• Class A misdemeanor: up to 11 months and 29 days in jail, a fine up to $2,500, or both.
• Class B misdemeanor: up to 6 months and/or a fine up to $500.
• Class C misdemeanor: up to 30 days and/or a fine up to $50.

These are the usual class limits under Tenn. Code § 40-35-111, not promised outcomes. DUI, domestic assault and other offenses can add required fees, treatment, jail minimums, or enhanced penalties based on earlier convictions.

A felony complaint arising in Madison County may start before a General Sessions judge for the initial appearance and preliminary hearing. That hearing tests whether there is enough evidence to continue; it does not decide guilt. A grand jury may indict and the case then moves to the county’s Circuit or Criminal Court. Tennessee also provides other lawful charging routes and waivers in limited circumstances.

After formal charges, the defense can obtain discovery, seek hearings on contested evidence, negotiate a plea, or request trial. A serious felony trial typically uses a twelve-person jury. Felony cases can take substantially longer than minor citations, so hearing notices and attorney communications matter.

A homicide, robbery, rape, or aggravated-assault accusation in Madison County brings particularly serious release and sentencing questions. Judges examine the actual charge and lawful detention criteria; no family should assume that paying a bond automatically means release if there are warrants or other holds.

For example, Tennessee treats many intentional aggravated assaults involving serious bodily injury or a deadly weapon as Class C felonies, with a statutory class range of 3–15 years. Some forms are Class B or D, and the aggravated-assault statute separately caps the ordinary offense fine at $15,000. Murder and other offenses have special sentencing statutes beyond the ordinary felony chart. Defense counsel should review the exact subsection charged.

For a child under 18 accused of wrongdoing in Madison County, the juvenile-court process is different from an adult prosecution. Police or an intake officer may refer the complaint for informal services or ask the juvenile court to hear it. Detention is a separate decision and does not necessarily mean the child has been found delinquent.

A juvenile judge can consider supervision, treatment, community services, restitution, and placement when legally authorized. In especially serious cases, Tennessee law permits transfer proceedings to adult criminal court after a hearing and required findings. Families should ask promptly about appointed counsel, the detention hearing and any restrictions on release of a minor's records.

The punishment depends on the precise statute, offense date, prior record, and any mandatory or alternative-sentence rules. For crimes governed by ordinary Tennessee classification ranges, the overall imprisonment and usual maximum fines are:

• Class A: 15–60 years; ordinary fine ceiling $50,000.
• Class B: 8–30 years; ordinary fine ceiling $25,000.
• Class C: 3–15 years; ordinary fine ceiling $10,000.
• Class D: 2–12 years; ordinary fine ceiling $5,000.
• Class E: 1–6 years; ordinary fine ceiling $3,000.
• Class A misdemeanor: up to 11 months and 29 days in jail, a fine up to $2,500, or both.
• Class B misdemeanor: up to 6 months and/or a fine up to $500.
• Class C misdemeanor: up to 30 days and/or a fine up to $50.

A court may impose probation, diversion, restitution, treatment or a suspended sentence when the law permits. Tennessee’s felony offender-range rules narrow the sentence within the broader class range; special laws and prior violent convictions can change release eligibility. County jail and state prison are not interchangeable labels for every sentence.

Someone facing a criminal case in Madison County who cannot afford a private defense attorney may ask the judge for appointed counsel. The court reviews an affidavit or other proof about income, assets and ability to pay. An appointment can be through a district public defender or a conflict lawyer when the public defender cannot handle the case.

At the first hearing, the defendant should clearly say they want a lawyer and cannot afford one. A family member can help gather pay information and court papers but cannot waive the defendant’s rights for them. Tennessee has elected district public defenders, and their service areas can cross county borders.

Police in Jackson or another town in Madison County may issue a city citation rather than a county criminal warrant. Some Tennessee municipal courts handle ordinance violations and limited traffic matters; their powers depend on the local charter and state law. Serious criminal charges do not become city-court felonies merely because city police made the arrest.

Check the court name actually printed on the summons. If a charge carries criminal jail exposure, ask a lawyer whether the municipal court has authority over it and whether the case is before a General Sessions or state criminal court instead.

Madison County belongs to the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee — Jackson / Dyersburg Division. The division’s listed courthouse is in Jackson / Dyersburg: 111 S Highland Avenue, Jackson, TN 38301. A federal criminal case might involve interstate fraud, offenses on federal property, federal drug trafficking, some firearms offenses, or violations of federal criminal statutes. A state offense does not automatically become federal because it is serious.

Federal defendants may appear before a U.S. magistrate judge for detention and preliminary proceedings; felony cases usually proceed through indictment or another permitted federal charging process, followed by arraignment and trial or plea. Federal prison sentences are administered by the Bureau of Prisons. People awaiting trial or transfer may be held in a contracted or local detention center rather than a prison operated by BOP. Families can search the official Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator for eligible federal inmate records.

This Madison County guide offers general criminal-court information, not advice for a particular defendant. Law and court operations may change; a lawyer can explain the charge and next steps in the actual case.