The Sheriff keeps a live roster of everyone behind the walls. Here is how families tend to use it:

1. Go to the Jail Roster.
2. A page headed County Corrections Public Access Portal may pop up. Sign in, or make an account using your email.
3. Type the last name. If you get zero hits, cut it to the first few letters.
4. Copy down the Inmate ID number. Letters and deposits both need it.
5. Read the housing field. Waller Co Jail there means Hempstead, not Conroe.

Come back to the list once bond is posted. Per the Sheriff, a name that has vanished means release. Staff answer roster questions at 936-760-5800, option 1, or by email at mcsocjr@mctx.org.

Zero results rarely mean trouble. Common reasons:

• Paperwork is still moving. Every arresting agency's packet passes through Central Jail Records first, and only then does a name show.
• They're already out. Released people come off the list.
• The name is spelled another way. Retry with a maiden name, the middle name, or only one half of a double last name.
• The person is 16 or younger. Kids are held at juvenile detention, which has its own number below.
• Another agency has custody. A neighboring sheriff, the Marshals or ICE could hold them.

A two-minute call to the jail, 936-760-5800 (option 1), usually clears it up. To find out which department made the arrest, try non-emergency dispatch at 936-538-5900.

One adult jail serves the whole county, with overflow beds rented elsewhere:

• Montgomery County Jail, 1 Criminal Justice Dr., Conroe, TX 77301, 936-760-5800. Men and women charged with misdemeanors or felonies stay here before trial, and some serve sentences here. State jail inspectors counted 1,253 beds in a 2022 report. Anyone handed a felony prison term later rides to TDCJ.
• Waller County Jail, 100 Sheriff R. Glenn Smith Drive, Hempstead, TX 77445, 979-826-8282. The Sheriff calls this overflow deal temporary. People there get visits, mail and commissary on Waller's terms, yet questions about their charges stay with the Conroe jail.
• Juvenile Detention Center, 200 Academy Dr, Conroe, TX 77301, 936-760-5805, which holds children.

Arrested near the edge of the county? Then a neighboring sheriff's jail may be holding them:

• Harris County 1200 Jail, 1200 Baker Street, Houston, TX 77002, 713-755-5300
• Walker County Jail, 717 FM 2821 West, Huntsville, TX 77320, 936-435-2412
• San Jacinto County Jail, 73 W. Cedar Avenue, Coldspring, TX 77331, 936-653-4367
• Liberty County Jail, 2400 Beaumont Ave., Liberty, TX 77575, 936-336-9395
• Grimes County Jail, 382 FM 149 West, Anderson, TX 77830, 936-873-2151

Mugshots, the photos snapped at booking, stay in Sheriff's Office files. Request a copy by a written Public Information Act letter to that office (GC 552.108(c)). Questions about such requests go to the Open Records option, 936-760-5800 then 2.

• Under Bus. & Com. Code ch. 109, a site asking $150 or more for removal has to correct or pull an inaccurate or incomplete record free. Expunged or nondisclosed records are off limits to it.
• Pictures ICE took are released only through its own FOIA records request.
• Federal booking pictures are generally withheld. The one exception families see is a Marshals wanted poster for a fugitive.

Texas IVSS-Counties sends custody notices for people in county lockups. Register at ivss-counties.tdcj.texas.gov or ring 866-268-8959.

• Registering is free and kept confidential.
• Operators pick up day or night and speak English or Spanish.
• Reloading the Jail Roster works too, since a missing name signals release.

Crime victims wanting safety planning can also reach the Sheriff's Victim Services team at 936-538-3275.

New arrivals see an associate judge inside the jail the next morning. State law sets a 48-hour limit for that first appearance (CCP art. 15.17). That judge names each accusation, goes over legal rights, hears requests for a free lawyer and fixes bail.

• Options are cash, a bondsman's surety bond, or a personal bond posted without money.
• The jail accepts bonds around the clock and works them in the order they arrive. Press 1, then 5, at 936-760-5800 to ask about an amount.
• Plan on a wait of several hours, since staff run a warrant check before the door opens.
• Family violence arrests can bring a 4-hour hold once bond is made, when the magistrate sees a risk of more violence (CCP art. 17.291(b)).

Bond types, refunds and holds get fuller treatment on our bail page, and Texas law in general on our state bail law page.

Jail staff will tell callers the booking charges at 936-760-5800, option 1. They can shift once prosecutors review the file.

• Felony: District Clerk at 936-539-7855, or search the clerk's Court Records Inquiry.
• Misdemeanor: County Clerk at 936-539-7885.
• Any Texas county: re:SearchTX lists filed charges once you register, at no cost.

Punishment ranges for every class, from Class C tickets to capital felonies, sit in Penal Code chapter 12.

Staff of the Office of Indigent Defense visit new inmates ahead of the morning hearing. They ask about income and take down requests for appointed counsel. State reviewers in 2024 found most requests get an answer that day.

• Anyone released on bond before that interview makes the request at their first court setting.
• English and Spanish forms are posted by the Office of Indigent Defense.
• Law library computers can be used on request, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A family can hire private counsel instead. For statewide rules on appointed lawyers, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission is at 512-936-6994.

Reserve each visit online a full day or more in advance; the jail won't seat walk-ins. Open periods:

• Weekends: 8:00 to 11:00 a.m., then again 2:00 to 5:00 p.m.
• Mondays and Thursdays from 7:30 to 10:30 at night

Know these before you drive over:

• Each inmate gets one visit per period, and two visitors at most.
• Have a current government photo ID, and you'll pass a metal detector.
• Kids visit only alongside their own parent or legal guardian.
• Keep shoulders covered. No sheer fabric, no skirt or shorts higher than 3 inches over the knee, no pants with several tears, and nothing gang-related or offensive.
• Cellphones, cameras, purses and infant carriers stay in the car.
• Someone under quarantine gets no visitors.

The Waller jail sets its own visiting rules for overflow inmates. General advice is on our visiting page, and the jail's visitation menu is 936-760-5800, 1 then 1.

Money posts instantly by any of three routes, capped at $300 a deposit:

1. Kiosk in the jail lobby, 1 Criminal Justice Dr., Conroe, TX 77301, open all day and night. Cash goes in as $5 bills or bigger with a $4.00 fee. Visa or Mastercard costs $3.95 to $10.95, scaled to the amount.
2. Phone, 866-345-1884, Visa or Mastercard only, $4.95 to $11.95 in fees.
3. Website of the deposit company, fees matching the kiosk.

Have the Inmate ID number from the roster ready. Balances of people moved to Waller went with them, so send their money through Waller's setup. More is on our inmate money page.

Relatives may also buy care packages with snacks, drinks, meals or clothes, capped at $100 each week. Order online or call 800-546-6283, 7:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays or 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday. Allow as long as two weeks for delivery. Inside, inmates order from kiosks in their housing unit, and anyone without funds still gets basic hygiene items. See our commissary page.

At booking, a person gets one free call lasting up to a minute. After that, every call is billed by the phone company holding the jail contract:

• With a prepaid account, the inmate can reach only the single number that funded it.
• A debit account is the inmate's own and dials any number that hasn't been blocked.
• Open one online or through 888-506-8407, staffed 24/7. A money order or cashier's check by mail also works; the jail can give you the vendor's address.
• Accounts lapse after 180 idle days, and leftover funds can be refunded.

Staff relay a message to an inmate only when an emergency has been checked out. Ask the jail at 936-760-5800, option 1, about tablets or e-messaging. Background reading: our inmate phone page, plus our page on messaging inmates.

Starting May 26, 2026, the jail switched personal letters to a scanning hub in Arkansas. Write it like this:

Montgomery County, TX
Inmate's full name and Inmate ID #
PO Box 16120, Jonesboro, AR 72401

• Pages are scanned and delivered on screens Monday through Friday. Snapshots and kids' drawings are allowed.
• Whatever can't go through a scanner comes back: sheets over 8.5 by 11 inches, non-paper items, parcels and certified letters.
• The hub shreds originals 60 days after upload. Keep your own copy of anything you can't replace.
• Magazines, newspapers and other publications from stores or publishers are turned away.

Attorneys use a separate legal mail address: Montgomery County Jail, inmate's name, ID number and cell location, 1 Criminal Justice Dr., Conroe, TX 77301. It is opened only with the inmate watching and isn't read. Overflow inmates in Waller get mail under Waller's rules. Our jail mail page has more.

Belongings logged in at booking wait in storage at 1 Criminal Justice Dr., Conroe, TX 77301. Pickup hours are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.

• Show a government photo ID.
• Expect to sit in the lobby an hour or more.
• Property Release answers at 936-760-5878 and mcso.property@mctx.org.

Overflow inmates' belongings never leave the county, and their release happens back here, so that pickup is local too.

A contracted provider keeps doctors, nurses and mental health staff in the jail around the clock, and a dentist comes in as well. The medical unit also has two mental health liaisons who plan releases and look for diversion.

• Phone 936-760-5800, option 1, to pass along a diagnosis, a list of medicines or a doctor's name.
• Inmates have an in-house grievance process.
• Problems that go unfixed can be taken to the Texas Commission on Jail Standards by online form, 512-463-5505 or info@tcjs.state.tx.us.
• For spiritual support, reach the chaplain at 936-760-5817.

Dial 911 for any emergency. Tell the dispatcher about mental health symptoms so trained help is sent.

Try the Sheriff's online warrant search with a full last name plus first initial, or a warrant number; it gets regular updates but isn't a court record, so confirm by calling 936-760-5800 and pressing 1, then 3. Constables keep their own warrant lookup, with Precinct 3's unit at 1520 Lake Front Circle, Suite 200, The Woodlands, TX 77380, 281-364-4211. Oak Ridge North lists city cases on its warrants page, and statewide fugitives appear on the Texas 10 Most Wanted. Before walking in to surrender, get a defense lawyer's advice on timing and bond; felony questions go to the District Clerk, 936-539-7855.

The jail points court date calls to the clerks. Pick by case type:

• Felony case: District Clerk, 936-539-7855
• Misdemeanor case: County Clerk, 936-539-7885
• Class C citation: whichever justice or municipal court appears on the ticket

Case searches run through the District Clerk's Court Records Inquiry. Our court page maps the local courthouses and walks through how cases move.

Federal arrests from this county go before judges at the Bob Casey United States Courthouse, 515 Rusk Avenue, Houston, TX 77002, 713-250-5500.

1. Following a federal arrest, a magistrate judge rules on pretrial release or detention, guided by 18 U.S.C. 3142.
2. Pretrial, the defendant stays a Marshals prisoner, housed wherever that agency picks. Ask their Houston staff at 515 Rusk Avenue, Room 10002, Houston, TX 77002, 713-718-4800. The county jail had seven federal inmates in a June 2022 state count.
3. After sentencing, check the BOP locator. Search by name or by register number.

Free federal counsel: Federal Public Defender, 440 Louisiana Street, Room 1350, Houston, TX 77002, 713-718-4600.

Most ICE cases here begin with a hold placed at the county jail:

1. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent files a detainer (Form I-247A) with booking staff.
2. On that paper, the jail can hold someone up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Texas jails must honor detainers, the only out being proof that the person is here lawfully (CCP art. 2A.060). GC 752.053 forbids local policies that limit immigration enforcement. S.B. 8 (2025) then told every county with a jail to have a 287(g) pact with ICE signed no later than December 1, 2026. For this county's status, phone the Sheriff's Office, 936-760-5800.
4. ICE then transfers the person. Its Montgomery Processing Center sits at 806 Hilbig Road, Conroe, TX 77301, with detainee questions at 936-521-4900.
5. Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator. Enter the full name with a birth date, or the A-number, and the person's home country.

No match? ICE's Houston Field Office is at 126 Northpoint Drive, Houston, TX 77060, 281-774-4816.

Prison time on a felony is spent in a unit of TDCJ, the state's prison agency. Its state jails take people sentenced on lower-level felonies. Each new arrival is processed at an intake unit first, then assigned to a unit suited to the sentence.

• Current prisoners turn up in TDCJ's online inmate search. Enter a last name and first initial, a TDCJ number or a SID number. Only people now in a TDCJ unit appear. The data refreshes on working days and lags by a day or more.
• We describe the units on our Texas prisons page.
• People put on probation instead report to the local supervision office, 2245 N. First St, Conroe, TX 77301, 936-538-8200.

Texas treats an offense committed between ages 10 and 16 as a juvenile case, while someone 17 or over lands in adult court (FC 51.02(2)). Kids are detained at the Juvenile Detention Center, 200 Academy Dr, Conroe, TX 77301, 936-760-5805. That number also reaches juvenile probation.

• Police must let a parent know quickly that the child is in custody (FC 52.02).
• Judges review detention by the second business day after custody begins; for a Friday or Saturday arrest, the deadline is the first business day. Counsel is appointed ahead of that review (FC 54.01).
• Children never show up on the adult roster, so ask juvenile probation for news.

Every department below books into the same jail. Reports and impounded cars are handled by whichever office made the arrest.

Sheriff's Office, 1 Criminal Justice Dr., Conroe, TX 77301, 936-760-5800; non-emergency dispatch 936-538-5900. District patrol lines:

• District 1: 936-788-8371
• District 2: 281-297-6565
• District 3: 936-521-8971
• District 4: 936-539-7864
• District 5: 936-788-8366
• Woodlands Township Division, covering The Woodlands: 281-297-6500

Towns and cities

• Conroe Police Department, 2300 Plantation Drive, Conroe, TX 77303, 936-522-3200
• Shenandoah Police Department, 29955 I-45 North, Shenandoah, TX 77381, 281-367-8952
• Oak Ridge North Police Department, 27375 Spectrum Way, Oak Ridge North, TX 77385, 281-292-4762
• Montgomery Police Department, 101 Old Plantersville Rd, Montgomery, TX 77316; reach it through county non-emergency dispatch
• Cut and Shoot Police Department, 14391 Highway 105 East, Cut and Shoot, TX 77306; city hall line 936-264-3100
• Splendora Police Department, 281-689-3448; City Hall, 26090 FM 2090 E, Splendora, TX 77372
• Panorama Village City Hall, 99 Hiwon Drive, Panorama Village, TX 77304, 936-856-2821
• For Magnolia, Willis, Patton Village, Roman Forest, Stagecoach or Woodbranch, ring county non-emergency dispatch and ask for the officers who cover that town.

Constables and DPS

• Constable Precinct 3 Warrants Division, 1520 Lake Front Circle, Suite 200, The Woodlands, TX 77380, 281-364-4211; for any other precinct, start with the Sheriff's main number.
• Texas Highway Patrol, 2 Hilbig, Conroe, TX 77301, 936-442-2838