1. Pull up the Current Inmate List. The county's tool runs in the browser, so give it a moment to load.
2. Type the surname first, and the given name if asked. No result? Drop letters, or try a maiden name.
3. Look at the custody status first. It tells you if the person is still inside or was released within the past day.
4. Read the charge list and the bond set on each charge. Several charges can each carry their own bond.
5. Write down the SO Number if it appears. Mail, deposits and money orders all need it. If you can't spot it, staff can give it.

The Sheriff's Office main line, 972-547-5100, also reaches the Detention Bureau. Staff there can't take messages for inmates.

• Still in booking. A brand-new arrest takes time to reach the list.
• Held by a city. Plano, Frisco, Allen, McKinney and Richardson police can hold people in their own jails first. The Sheriff's FAQ says agencies usually have 10 days to collect someone held for them.
• Released. People drop off the list a day after release.
• Across the county line. Richardson and some other cities reach into Dallas County, so an arrest on that side may lead to a Dallas County jail.
• Under 17. Kids are handled by juvenile detention, whose records stay private.
• Federal or ICE custody. Questions 17 and 18 explain those searches.

Call 972-547-5200 any hour. Have the full legal name, any nicknames, and the birth date.

The county's adult jail is the Detention Facility on the Justice Center grounds. Its Detention Bureau handles booking, classification, housing, release, mail, meals and medical care. A state report listed 1,298 beds in June 2022, and the state says a major addition was finished in 2025. Main line: 972-547-5200.

Each city lockup is a short stop. People stay only until they bond out, are let go, or are driven to the county jail:

• City of Allen Jail, police headquarters, 205 W. McDermott Drive, Allen, TX 75013, front desk 214-509-4200. It holds Class C prisoners. Visits run daily 9 to 11 a.m. and 7 to 9 p.m., once someone has been held 24 hours.
• Frisco City Jail, 7200 Stonebrook Parkway, Frisco, TX 75034, 972-292-6001. Open 24/7 for up to 41 people until release or transfer to a county jail.
• Plano city jail, Plano Police Department, 909 14th Street, Plano, TX 75074.
• The county seat's own city jail, at police headquarters, 2200 Taylor Burk Dr., McKinney, TX 75071.
• Richardson's city jail, Richardson Police Department, 200 N. Greenville Ave., Richardson, TX 75081, jail desk 972-744-4820. It holds people awaiting bond, court or transfer.

For the Plano lockup or the county seat's, ask the Sheriff's Office at 972-547-5100 how to reach the city desk.

The Sheriff's list is built to show custody status, charges and bond. Booking photos are a separate request. A sheriff must promptly hand over basic arrest information on request (Tex. Gov't Code 552.108). For a booking photo, write to the Sheriff's Office Open Records unit at 972-547-5133 or send the request to 4300 Community Ave., McKinney, TX 75071, and name the person and booking date.

• Some private websites charge $150 or more to take a mugshot down. Texas law makes them fix or remove a wrong or partial record at no cost. They also can't post records that a court sealed or erased (Tex. Bus. & Com. Code ch. 109).
• For a photo from an immigration booking, file a FOIA request on ICE's records page.
• Photos from federal bookings stay out of public hands. Deputy U.S. Marshals may still release a picture when a fugitive is being hunted.
• The DPS Texas 10 Most Wanted list shows photos of listed fugitives.

The state's custody notice system is Texas IVSS-Counties. It sends alerts when a person is booked, released or moved, and when a court event is set or changed. Look up the person by full or partial name. You may register for alerts without making an account. The 24-hour help number is 866-268-8959 in two languages, and nobody in custody learns that you registered.

The Sheriff's list itself keeps released people on view for 24 hours, so checking it each morning also works. For a family violence case, Texas law calls for the victim to be told before the accused is let out (Code Crim. Proc. art. 17.29).

First hearings for jailed people happen twice a day in the Magistrate Court, reached at 972-547-5485 and located at 2100 Bloomdale Rd., McKinney, TX 75071. Texas gives officials 48 hours at most, counted from the arrest. The magistrate reads the rights, takes any request for a free lawyer and sets bond.

• Bond types: cash, surety through an approved bonding company, a personal bond, or a pretrial release bond.
• Cash and surety bonds go through the Justice Center bonds window, open all day and night.
• Some violent charges rule out a personal bond. Since a 2025 amendment, bail can be denied for certain violent crimes after a hearing.
• Family violence cases carry a 4-hour hold after bond if further violence is feared. ICE detainers, parole warrants and other counties' warrants can also keep someone in.

Read our bail page for payment rules, refunds and every hold.

The inmate list shows each charge and its bond. Once the prosecutor files the case, the court record has the formal charge. Search the county's Court Case Search, or call the clerk:

• Felonies: District Clerk, criminal desk, 2100 Bloomdale Rd., McKinney, TX 75071, 972-548-4320.
• Class A and B misdemeanors: County Court at Law Clerks, 2300 Bloomdale Rd., Ste. 2106, McKinney, TX 75071, 972-548-4185.

Texas charges are graded from Class C (fine only) up to capital felony. The state's Penal Code chapter 12 lists the punishment for each level. The Criminal District Attorney's Office decides what is filed. Charges can change before trial, so recheck after each court date.

The request for appointed counsel is made at magistration, where the magistrate helps complete the paperwork. Since the county relies on appointed private lawyers, the work runs through Indigent Defense, which draws on a roster of approved private attorneys.

• Indigent Defense: 214-491-4824, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., closed at lunch. Office at 2100 Bloomdale Rd., McKinney, TX 75071.
• Relatives can help fill in the online Application for Court Appointed Counsel.
• People with a mental illness may be served by the Mental Health Managed Counsel Program, 214-491-4805.

Defense attorneys, hired or appointed, see clients in the Admissions Area, a space set aside for attorney visits. Texas law gives the lawyer a short deadline to reach out after appointment (Code Crim. Proc. art. 26.04).

Visitors must be on the inmate's visitation list, which the inmate may change once a month. Then:

• One adult visitor per inmate on each visitation day.
• Sign up no more than one hour before the visit. Arrive 20 minutes early, since late visitors are turned away.
• Visits last 25 minutes, plus 5 minutes to walk to the housing cluster.
• Bring a current driver's license or Texas DPS ID card.
• Children visit when space allows. Those 16 and under may come only if they are the child of the inmate or of the visitor.
• No mini-skirts, sleeveless tops, or see-through or revealing clothes. Shorts must reach within 5 inches of the knee.

Days and times are in the Sheriff's visitation packet and schedule, or call the visitation line at 972-547-5224. Times can change without notice. Texas jails must offer at least two visits a week. Our visiting page has more tips.

The jail itself refuses cash, checks and money orders in the mail. The Sheriff's FAQ lists these ways to fund an account:

• the account vendor's app or website;
• the kiosk in the jail lobby;
• by phone with a live agent who speaks English or Spanish, 636-888-7004;
• cash at a walk-in store using a barcode from the vendor;
• a money order mailed to the vendor's lockbox, made out to Jail Case Coordinator (JCC), with the inmate's name and SO Number.

The bonds window takes cash for bonds only, never for accounts. Deposits are explained on our money page, and store items on our commissary page. Snacks, hygiene items and writing supplies come only from the jail's approved store.

Calls are prepaid. Set up an account tied to your phone number online or by calling 888-506-8407. You can also leave a 60-second voicemail. The inmate can buy phone time from commissary too.

• Inmates can't receive incoming calls, and staff won't pass on messages.
• Tablets are free to use. Video visits, messages and photo sharing are paid services.
• Families register through the phone and tablet vendor's site or app to connect video visits from home.
• Calls can be recorded, so keep talk of the charges for the lawyer.

Rates and setup tips are on our jail phone page, and messaging on our inmate email page.

Personal letters go to a scanning center out of state. Inmates read them on kiosks. Address them this way:

Collin County Detention Facility
Inmate's full name
Inmate SO Number
P.O. Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131

Personal mail sent to the McKinney building goes back to the sender. Every envelope needs the sender's name and return address. Photos come back only with a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

For legal mail, books and magazines, write the inmate's full name and SO Number, then Detention Facility, at 4300 Community Ave., McKinney, TX 75071. Books must be new softcovers shipped by a publisher or an online seller's warehouse. Magazines must come from the publisher.

Some items are sent back. These include stamps, stickers and labels. Blank paper and envelopes are refused, and so are laminated items and instant photos. Musical or oversized cards, unsigned greeting cards, lottery tickets, clippings, calendars and bank cards are banned too. Our mail page has more.

Property is handed out at the jail lobby. With a valid photo ID:

• Small valuables like a cell phone, keys or license are available around the clock.
• Bulk property, such as clothes and bags, is released daily from 6 to 9 a.m.
• The inmate signs to release bulk property to one person, and it goes all at once.
• Before a move to state prison, the jail case coordinator decides what goes along. Personal letters stay behind.

Before driving to McKinney, phone 972-547-5200 to confirm the release form is signed.

Jail Medical won't share health details by phone because of privacy law. You can still help:

• Drop off eyeglasses at the lobby reception desk. Contact lenses must be in sealed boxes.
• Home medicine must come in the pharmacy bottle with its label and a current prescription, and the jail must carry that drug.
• Contact Medical within 48 hours after release, and it can arrange a month's worth of ongoing or psychiatric medication at a pharmacy.
• Ask about classes and programs through the Inmate Programs Coordinator, 972-547-5237.

For a worry about care, call the jail at 972-547-5200. Unresolved concerns can go to the state jail regulator, TCJS, through its online form or at 512-463-5505. In an emergency, call 911.

Deputies, constables and city police serve warrants here. Search names on the county's active warrant list, and see the constables' warrant division pages for Precinct 1 and Precinct 3. The state's Texas 10 Most Wanted page covers top fugitives. To check by phone, try the Sheriff's Office, 972-547-5100, or the Magistrate Court, which signs warrants, 972-547-5485. With a lawyer's help, a person can surrender at the Justice Center, where bonds are posted any hour, or have the issuing judge give a new setting. Felony warrant files are with the District Clerk, 2100 Bloomdale Rd., McKinney, TX 75071, 972-548-4320.

• Felony settings: District Clerk, 972-548-4320, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Misdemeanor settings: County Court at Law Clerks in McKinney, 972-548-4185, or the Plano office, 900 E. Park Blvd., Suite 140-A, Plano, TX 75074, 972-881-3025.
• Class C tickets: the justice or city court named on the citation.

Online, start with the county's case information page. Our court page lists every court with its address and explains each stage.

For federal arrests, the court is the Sherman Division of the Eastern District. Its nearest courthouse is the United States Courthouse, 7940 Preston Road, Room 101, Plano, TX 75024, 214-872-4800.

1. Custody before trial depends on a detention hearing, usually held at the defendant's first appearance (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Until trial, deputy U.S. Marshals keep custody, frequently using a contract jail nearby. Ask the Marshals' Plano office at 214-705-9850.
3. After sentencing, look on the Bureau of Prisons locator, searchable by register number or name. A pretrial detainee may be missing from it.

1. Immigration officers send McKinney a Form I-247A detainer.
2. Staff may then hold the person up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)). Texas jails must comply unless the person proves lawful status (Code Crim. Proc. art. 2A.060).
3. Officers from ICE's Dallas Field Office, 8101 N. Stemmons Freeway, Dallas, TX 75247, 972-367-2200, take custody.
4. Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator by A-number, or by full name, birth date and birth country. When it finds nothing, ICE points families to the field office.

A 2017 state law bans local rules that limit immigration enforcement. S.B. 8, a 2025 state law, adds a deadline: by December 1, 2026, counties that run jails are to seek 287(g) partnerships with federal immigration authorities.

Following a felony sentence, transport to TDCJ comes from the county jail. Intake staff test and classify each new arrival before assigning a prison or state jail.

• The TDCJ online search accepts an exact surname with a first initial, or a TDCJ or SID number. Records lag by 24 hours or more and refresh on working days.
• Only people inside a TDCJ unit show up.
• Visit our Texas prisons page for each unit's details.

Ages 10 to 16 are juveniles in Texas. Their records are private, so they won't appear on the adult list. Juvenile arrests go straight to John R. Roach Juvenile Detention Center, where medical staff screen the child and an intake officer phones a parent.

• Detention Intake, 24 hours: 972-547-5400.
• Juvenile Court Liaison: 972-547-5402.
• Juvenile Probation offices: 4690 Community Ave., McKinney, TX 75071, 972-548-6470; and 900 E. Park Blvd., Plano, TX 75074, 972-881-3050.

Children can't post bail. A child kept after intake has a detention hearing before the Juvenile Court, usually the next business day. The court appoints a lawyer if the family has none.

Whoever made the arrest controls the first stop, so start with that agency. Departments and offices in the county:

• Sheriff's Office (patrol and investigations), 4300 Community Ave., McKinney, TX 75071, 972-547-5100.
• Allen Police, 205 W. McDermott Drive, Allen, TX 75013, non-emergency 214-509-4321.
• Frisco Police, 7200 Stonebrook Parkway, Frisco, TX 75034, non-emergency 972-292-6010.
• Richardson Police, 200 N. Greenville Ave., Richardson, TX 75081, jail desk 972-744-4820.

For these departments, call the Sheriff's main line above if you need help reaching them:

• Plano Police, 909 14th Street, Plano, TX 75074
• McKinney Police, 2200 Taylor Burk Dr., McKinney, TX 75071
• Wylie Police, 2000 N Hwy 78, Wylie, TX 75098
• Anna Police, 120 W. 7th Street, Anna, TX 75409
• Celina Police, 3025 S. Coit Rd., Celina, TX 75009
• Prosper Police, 101 S Main Street, Prosper, TX 75078
• Melissa Police, 2402 McKinney St., Melissa, TX 75454
• Princeton Police, 2000 E Princeton Drive, Princeton, TX 75407
• Murphy Police, 206 N. Murphy Road, Murphy, TX 75094
• Fairview Police, 372 Town Place, Fairview, TX 75069
• Garland Police, 1891 Forest Lane, Garland, TX 75042
• Dallas Police, for the Dallas part of the county, 1400 Botham Jean Blvd., Dallas, TX 75215

Constables: Precinct 1, 2300 Bloomdale Rd., Suite 1136, McKinney, TX 75071; Precinct 2, 1025 S. State Highway 78, Lavon, TX 75166; Precinct 3, 920 E. Park Blvd., Plano, TX 75074; Precinct 4, 8585 John Wesley Dr., Suite 100, Frisco, TX 75034.

Other towns, including Blue Ridge, Farmersville, Josephine, Lavon, Lowry Crossing, Lucas, Nevada, New Hope, Parker, Royse City, Sachse, St. Paul, Van Alstyne, Weston and Carrollton's Collin side: ask the Sheriff's Office which agency covers the address. DPS troopers patrol the state highways too, and the jail record names the arresting agency.