1. Open the Sheriff's inmate search from any browser.
2. Type a surname. Too many matches? Tack on the first name.
3. Match the age and full name so you know it's the right person.
4. Copy the Inmate ID onto paper. Letters and deposits need it, and staff pull up records faster with it.
5. Read what the record lists for charges, bond and housing, then double-check by phone.

Jail bookings and court filings can also be searched together on the county's Public Search Site. Still stuck? Phone 903-590-2800.

• Booking isn't finished. Intake paperwork can run hours behind the arrest.
• They're out already. Bond may already be posted, or a personal bond approved.
• A misspelling. Retry with a likely typo, a former surname or the middle name.
• The charge carries only a fine. Since 2022 the county has not booked people arrested solely on a Class C offense, a jail study that year notes.
• The person is 16 or younger. Youths go to juvenile detention instead.
• The case is federal. New federal prisoners have not been accepted here since 2022.
• The arrest was next door. A stop in a neighboring county lands the person in that county's jail.

Staff at 903-590-2800 can usually clear it up. The Sheriff's main line is 903-590-2661.

The Sheriff's Office operates both adult jails, which share one number, 903-590-2800:

• Central Jail, 206 E. Elm Street, Tyler, TX 75702. All bookings and all releases pass through here. Men and women live here whether their case is still open or they are serving a sentence, classed as minimum, medium or maximum custody. A 2022 county study put its size at 670 beds.
• Low-Risk Facility (North Jail), 2811 Public Road, Tyler, TX 75710. Its 432 beds are for low and medium risk inmates, and the video visiting room is here.

The old jail floor in the courthouse at 100 N. Broadway, Tyler, TX 75702, has been decommissioned and holds nobody. City officers bring adults straight to the county jails rather than to a city lockup. When beds run short, a few local inmates have been housed in other counties, and staff can say if that applies. Youths 16 and under stay at the Juvenile Detention Center, 2630 Morningside Drive, Suite 300, Tyler, TX 75708, 903-535-0850.

Mugshots are what many families search for first. The Sheriff's lookup is meant for locating people, so ask jail staff whether a record shows a photo. An official copy can be requested in writing under the Public Information Act. Address it to the Sheriff's Office, 227 N. Spring Avenue, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-2661, or fill out the records request form on its website. Texas requires prompt release of basic arrest information, as Gov't Code 552.108(c) sets out.

• Paid takedown sites. A site that wants $150 or more to delete a record has to correct or pull a wrong or incomplete one at no charge. Expunged records, and ones covered by an order of nondisclosure, may not be posted at all (Bus. & Com. Code ch. 109).
• Photos taken by ICE. Ask for them through ICE's FOIA request page.
• Federal booking photos. These are generally kept from the public. The Marshals sometimes make an exception while hunting a fugitive.

The state runs Texas IVSS-Counties, a free notice system tied to county jails. It sends word when someone is booked, let go, transferred to a state prison unit, or gets a hearing set or moved.

1. Visit Texas IVSS-Counties.
2. Look up the person by all or part of their name.
3. Choose how you want to hear. An account is optional.

Phone support runs around the clock, in Spanish as well as English, at 866-268-8959. Registrations stay private, and the inmate is not notified. Because some releases move quickly, calling 903-590-2800 remains the best check.

A magistrate meets each person at the jail within 48 hours of arrest, reads them their rights, starts the appointed-lawyer paperwork if asked and sets bail (CCP art. 15.17). Release can come through:

• cash, with the full amount posted
• a surety bond from a bondsman approved by the local bond board
• a personal bond arranged by the Pre-Trial Release Bond Office, 200 E. Ferguson Street, Room 213, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-2620, which charges $20 or 3 percent of the bond, whichever is greater

Certain charges rule out a personal bond. Since November 2025, judges may refuse bail entirely for some violent offenses. Family violence arrests also carry a four-hour hold once bond is made. Our bail page walks through every step.

Jail staff at 903-590-2800 can usually say right away. After a case is filed, its charges also show on the county records portal when you search by name, and on the state's re:SearchTX once you register for free.

Charging decisions in adult and juvenile cases belong to the Criminal District Attorney, 100 North Broadway Avenue, Floor 4, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-1720.

Texas ranks crimes from Class C misdemeanors, punished only by a fine up to $500, to capital felonies. Class B carries a jail term as long as 180 days and Class A as long as a year. Felonies lead to state jail or prison (Penal Code ch. 12).

This county has no public defender office. It pays private attorneys instead. Three contract lawyers serve each felony court, and misdemeanor cases are handed out from a rotating list.

1. The person tells the magistrate they want a lawyer.
2. Jail staff give out the money forms and collect them.
3. A lawyer should be appointed within a few working days (art. 1.051).

To find out whether one was named, felony families can call the District Clerk at 903-590-1660. Misdemeanor families should try the County Clerk at 903-590-4670. Hiring your own attorney is allowed at any point.

Every visit is on screen at the Low-Risk Facility, 2811 Public Road, Tyler, TX 75710, including visits with people housed downtown. Sessions run 20 minutes.

• Women: Tuesdays and Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m.
• Men: Mondays and Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m.
• Trustees: evenings, 6 to 8 p.m.
• Signing up: in person on the day of the visit, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m., or 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. for trustees.
• Identification: required.

Wear modest clothing with sleeves at least halfway to the elbow. Leave home sheer or revealing outfits, spandex, tights, hems above mid-thigh and anything gang-related or offensive. For trustee days and holiday changes, call 903-590-2800, and read our visiting tips.

Account deposits go through the JailATM deposit site the Sheriff's Office lists. Have the inmate's full name and Inmate ID handy. The balance covers commissary purchases and phone time.

Ask 903-590-2800 about other deposit methods and any limits. Skip mailing cash. Our guide to sending money compares the usual deposit choices, and store items are described on our commissary page.

Jail calls are handled by the phone company at ncic.com, where you can open an account and load funds. The JailATM site can also add phone money, and it handles video messages and email too.

Expect calls to be recorded. Talk about the charges with the attorney, not over jail phones. Call rules come from the jail at 903-590-2800. More help is in our phone guide and email guide.

Personal letters are mailed to a Fort Worth address rather than to the jail itself. Put these lines on the envelope, top to bottom:

1. Your name and return address
2. Inmate's ID:Inmate's Full Name, the format the jail uses
3. C/O Smith County Jail, 2830 S. Hulen St. Box 809, Fort Worth, TX 76109

The largest size allowed is 12 by 15 inches. Up to four unframed photos may go inside, none bigger than 4 by 5 inches and none with Polaroid-style backing. Photos are the only enclosure accepted. Anything else is placed with the person's property until release. Commissary sells paper, envelopes, pens and stamps, and inmates without money get them free.

Lost mail is traced through the post office. Check with 903-590-2800 before sending legal mail or books, and see our mail guide.

Whatever was taken from the person at intake stays in jail storage until they leave. When a relative or friend needs to pick it up, call 903-590-2800. Property staff will say if the person has to sign a release and what pickup hours are. Bring photo ID to 206 E. Elm Street, Tyler, TX 75702.

A medical screening happens at a desk between intake and booking for everyone who comes in. Call 903-590-2800 promptly if the person is sick, hurt or relies on daily medication. Have the medication's name, its dosage and the prescriber's phone number ready.

Texas requires the jail to notify a magistrate within 12 hours of learning that someone may be mentally ill (art. 16.22). Dial 911 for emergencies. Problems the jail leaves unsolved can be reported to the state jail standards commission using its online complaint form or 512-463-5505.

Warrants here are carried out by deputies, constables and city officers alike. The Sheriff's Office at 903-590-2661 can check a name by phone. City police, 903-531-1100, keep a Most Wanted page, and the Department of Public Safety posts the Texas 10 Most Wanted. Filed cases appear on the county records portal. Misdemeanor warrants run through the County Clerk, 200 E. Ferguson Street, Suite 300, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-4670. To clear one safely, talk with a lawyer first. Options include surrendering at the Central Jail, 206 E. Elm Street, Tyler, TX 75702, or a motion from the lawyer asking the signing judge to reschedule.

• Felonies: District Clerk, 100 North Broadway, Room 204, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-1660, open weekdays 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Class A and B misdemeanors: County Clerk, 200 E. Ferguson Street, Suite 300, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-4670. Arraignments begin at 8 a.m. in the Central Jury Room on the courthouse's first floor.
• Class C tickets: the court printed on the citation, which may be a city court or a justice court. Precinct 1's justice court is at 200 E. Ferguson Street, Suite 501, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-2601.

The county records portal lists hearing dates too. For what happens at each stage, read our court page.

The federal courthouse for this area, 211 West Ferguson Street, Room 106, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-1000, hears cases for the Eastern District's Tyler Division.

1. Holding someone before a federal trial takes a detention hearing. There, a magistrate judge asks whether any release terms could keep the public safe and assure a return to court (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. The Marshals have custody before trial and choose the jail. With the county no longer accepting new federal prisoners, phone the Marshals at 211 West Ferguson Street, Floor 4, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-1370.
3. Federal Public Defender: Plaza Tower, 110 North College Avenue, Suite 1122, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-531-9233.
4. For anyone already sentenced, try the BOP inmate locator with a register number or name.

1. Jail staff get a hold request from ICE on Form I-247A.
2. Federal rules allow holding the person up to 48 more hours past their release time (8 CFR 287.7(d)). State law (art. 2A.060, Code of Criminal Procedure) directs Texas jails to honor them, except where the person can document lawful status.
3. ICE officers then take custody and transport the person to a detention site.
4. Search the ICE Online Detainee Locator by A-number. Lacking that number, type the full name plus birth date and country of birth.

Gov't Code 752.053 also bars local rules that restrict immigration enforcement. On top of that, a 2025 statute requires sheriffs who operate jails to join ICE's 287(g) program by December 1, 2026. Where the Sheriff's Office stands on that can be asked at 903-590-2661. When the locator finds nothing, try ICE's Dallas Field Office, 8101 N. Stemmons Freeway, Dallas, TX 75247, 972-367-2200.

A person sentenced to state jail or prison waits in a county jail cell until state prison officials (the Texas Department of Criminal Justice) pick them up. TDCJ then classifies each arrival and picks a unit for them.

• Enter a TDCJ number, or a surname with first initial, in the TDCJ inmate search. It covers people currently inside TDCJ units only.
• Our Texas state prisons page explains visits, letters and deposits at each unit.

Texas juvenile law covers offenses committed between ages 10 and 16. City police either release an arrested child to a parent or guardian or bring them to the Juvenile Detention Center, 2630 Morningside Drive, Suite 300, Tyler, TX 75708. Parents must be notified without delay (Family Code 52.02).

A juvenile judge must look at the detention within two working days, and the child has an attorney at that hearing (Family Code 54.01). Juvenile records are closed to the public. Call Juvenile Services at 903-535-0850 to learn where the child is and what comes next.

Census Bureau figures put the July 1, 2025 headcount at 252,549. Agencies that arrest people here:

• Sheriff's Office, 227 N. Spring Avenue, Tyler, TX 75702, 903-590-2661. Deputies cover rural areas, and constables in five precincts handle papers and warrants.
• Tyler Police Department, 711 W. Ferguson St., Tyler, TX 75702, 903-531-1100
• Lindale Police Department, 105 Ballard Drive, Lindale, TX 75771, 903-882-3313
• Whitehouse Police Department, 101 B Bascom Road, Whitehouse, TX 75791, 903-510-7550, with office hours weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Bullard Police Department, 204 W. Main St., Bullard, TX 75757, 903-894-7788

If the arrest happened in Arp, Troup, Overton, Winona, Hideaway or Noonday, ask the Sheriff's Office who patrols there. Department of Public Safety troopers also arrest people on area highways. To learn who brought someone in, call the jail at 903-590-2800.