The locator covers people held at the Vine Street jail right now. Follow these steps:

1. Open the Inmate Locator on your phone or computer.
2. Search for the person with the name or other details the locator asks for. If you see no match, try fewer letters or another spelling.
3. Open their entry and read the booking details and the bond or bail amount.
4. Note the visiting schedule shown for them. You will need it to book a Securus visit.
5. Call 608-785-9630 for the inmate number and keep it handy for deposits.

The locator is for people in custody. To learn how a case ended, the Sheriff sends people to the state's free Wisconsin Circuit Court Access site.

Don't panic yet. Searches miss people all the time:

• Intake isn't finished. Fingerprinting and paperwork can take hours before the list updates.
• They went home. Release could have come on a signature bond, or a relative could have posted cash.
• The spelling is off. Check other spellings, nicknames and any earlier last name.
• A different agency has them. Federal officers, ICE or another county may have taken custody.
• They are 16 or younger. Youth Justice staff at Human Services handle children that age.

Phone the jail at 608-785-9630 and read off their legal name and birthday. For other questions, the business office answers at 608-785-9629, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

One adult jail serves the whole county. It opened in September 1997 with 172 beds. A 2011 addition raised that to 244 beds, plus 44 cells used for intake, medical care and close watch.

• Main jail, Law Enforcement Center, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9630. Adults held before trial and adults serving county sentences.
• Huber inmates. People a judge lets out for a job, school, counseling or treatment live in the main jail. Their schedule must be checked and approved first. The separate men's Huber building closed on January 1, 2006.
• Justice Support Services, 333 Vine Street, Room 740, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-789-4895. This office is not a jail. It runs pretrial and GPS supervision.
• Western Regional Adolescent Services, 300 4th Street North, 4th Floor, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-6407. Youth only (see the under-18 answer).

Someone may be moved to another county's jail, or picked up by another agency. Staff can tell you where. Call the Sheriff's Office at 608-785-9629.

The Sheriff describes the locator as a tool for current inmates, bond amounts, visiting schedules and booking details. The state's open records law, which starts at section 19.31 of the Wisconsin Statutes, lets any member of the public request a booking photo from the Sheriff.

• Wisconsin presumes records are open. A requester can stay anonymous and never has to explain why, says the state Justice Department.
• Write to the Sheriff's Office, 333 Vine Street, Room 1500, La Crosse, WI 54601, or call 608-785-9629. The records keeper weighs every request separately.
• Police records about youths are not public.
• News outlets use the same request route.
• Federal arrest photos stay sealed from the public. The U.S. Marshals Service is the exception and may release one, for instance when hunting a fugitive.
• Photos ICE took can be sought through its records request page.

The Sheriff's website links to VINE, a free service the state Department of Corrections runs with local police and sheriffs. Anyone may use it, not only victims.

• Look up custody status and location at any time, without an account.
• Register for a notice when the person is let out or transferred.
• Use VINELink or call 888-944-8463. No one learns who looked. Help comes in Hmong, Spanish or English.
• Phone alerts keep ringing back until your PIN goes in, up to 48 hours.

Nothing arrives unless you sign up. Jail staff at 608-785-9630 can confirm a release sooner.

Wisconsin law leans toward release. At the first court date, the judge sets the release rules. That hearing often runs by video link from Vine Street. Often they walk out on a signature bond: no money changes hands unless they later miss court or break a condition. A judge may require cash only to make sure the person returns. Violent charges let the judge add more to the scale, such as earlier violent convictions and any threat to the community.

• No bondsmen. Paid bail agents are banned here, so family pays the full cash amount.
• Weekdays: Clerk of Courts, Room 1200, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9573. Personal checks are refused.
• Nights and weekends: Master Control at the jail, same building. Come with a money order, cashier's check or major card, because cash won't work there.
• Online or by phone: AllPaid, Facility Code 1411, 888-604-7888. A fee is added.
• Keep the receipt. A conviction can turn the deposit into payment for fines and restitution, even money a parent or partner put up.
• Still held after 72 hours? If the terms can't be met by then, the judge has to review them.

City bonds, refunds and more are on our bail page. The state rules are summed up on our Wisconsin bail laws page.

Staff at the jail, 608-785-9630, know the booking charge. During the first court appearance, the judge names every count, and the person gets the complaint in writing.

When the case opens in court, its record appears on Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, a free state site with charges, hearings and status. Prosecutors choose what is finally charged. Their office is at 333 Vine Street, Room 1100, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9604.

Wisconsin grades misdemeanors A, B or C. Class A, the top grade, allows a $10,000 fine and 9 months of jail time. Class B reaches 90 days and $1,000, and Class C reaches 30 days and $500. Ignoring a bond condition is a new charge of its own, called bail jumping.

During that first court appearance, the judge makes sure the person knows a lawyer is available. Someone who tells the judge they have no money for one is pointed to the State Public Defender.

• Local office: 149 6th Street South, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-766-4001. It serves La Crosse and Vernon counties.
• How to apply: the application steps take about 15 minutes. The office checks income and assets.
• Turned down? Raise it in court; a county-funded attorney may still be possible.

In a felony case, a person held on bail over $500 gets a preliminary hearing within 10 days. If released, it is within 20 days. State jail rules give lawyers visits at reasonable hours.

Visits run seven days a week, in person at Vine Street or on video from your own device. Each visitor needs their own Securus visitor account. Approval comes by email.

• Book at least 24 hours ahead. Visits at the jail are free. Video visits from home cost money.
• Only one approved adult may come per visit. That adult may bring one minor who was approved by name and birth date for that visit.
• Leave vapes, phones, tablets and smart recording devices out of the visit area and out of view.
• From home, the registered visitor must be on screen and may see only the person they signed up for. Pictures and screenshots are not allowed.
• Former inmates have to stay away for 60 days after their own release.
• Sexual behavior, gang signs or damage can end visiting rights.

Securus video help: 877-578-3658. Our visiting guide has more tips.

You need the inmate number from 608-785-9630. Then pick a method:

• Lobby kiosk at the jail, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601. Cash or a card works, and a fee applies.
• TouchPay Direct online or at 866-232-1899. Use Facility Locator number 254601. Help: 866-204-1603.
• A cashier's check made out to the inmate, by mail. Ask the business office at 608-785-9629 where to send it.

Account money is not bail and won't get anyone out. Never mail cash. Our deposit guide compares methods, and the commissary guide lists typical store items.

Securus carries every call placed from the jail. To pay for them, add money at securustech.net or 800-844-6591. You can fund the inmate's debit account or open your own Advance Connect account.

For writing, make a Securus eMessaging account on the same site. You can send a message at any time to anyone held there, and they can write back. Jail staff will not relay messages for you.

Don't discuss the case on these lines; save it for the lawyer. More help: Securus call tips and inmate messaging tips.

No. The jail turns away paper mail and photos from family. Only legal mail and mail from other verified jails or prisons gets through. Use Securus eMessaging instead.

• Legal mail: La Crosse County Jail, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601.
• Care packages: order only through iCare Gifts at icaregifts.com. Packages reach inmates on Fridays.

Lawyers with mail questions can call the jail at 608-785-9630. State rules let staff read regular mail but only lightly check legal mail. Our mail guide explains more.

Jail staff can tell you what happened to what the person carried at arrest. Before you drive over, phone the business office at 608-785-9629, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

• Ask what can be released and whether the inmate has to approve the pickup in writing.
• Ask what to bring, such as a photo ID, and where to go at 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601.
• Ask about cash or cards they had, and whether it can go onto their account.

Dial 911 for any emergency. Otherwise, call the jail at 608-785-9630 and say what is wrong. Name any medicine, the dose and the doctor. If you think they might hurt themselves, or they seem to be in a mental health crisis, tell staff that first.

• By state rule, the Sheriff arranges doctors, mental health treatment and urgent dental work.
• Lack of money never blocks treatment.
• A health check happens within 14 days of arrival.
• The jail has medical and intake holding areas.
• Every jail must have a grievance process with an appeal.

The state inspects every jail each year. Its Office of Detention Facilities is at 3099 East Washington Ave., Madison, WI 53704, 608-240-5000.

Sheriff's deputies and local police act on warrants. The Sheriff's Office answers at 608-785-9629. Check the Warrant List, which the Sheriff keeps for the Clerk of Courts. It is current when posted, but a paid warrant can stay up a while. Tips on where a listed person is go to dispatch at 608-782-7575. Onalaska police take warrant calls at 608-781-9550. Look up the name on Wisconsin Circuit Court Access to spot a missed hearing. One way out is to surrender at the jail, best with a lawyer present. Another is asking the court clerk to set a new hearing. Clerk of Circuit Court: Room 1200, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9590.

Search the person on Wisconsin Circuit Court Access. Every courthouse has public computers for it too. You can also ask the Clerk of Circuit Court, Room 1200, 333 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9573.

• Crimes of every level go to circuit court in the same building as the jail.
• City of La Crosse tickets go to Municipal Court, City Hall, 400 La Crosse Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-789-7290.
• First appearance: state law requires it within a reasonable time. If police acted without a warrant, a judge reviews the grounds for the arrest, generally inside 48 hours.

For a walk-through of hearings, pleas and sentencing, open our court guide.

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin hears federal cases from La Crosse. Its clerk sits in Room 320 of the Kastenmeier federal courthouse, 120 N. Henry St., Madison, WI 53703, 608-264-5156.

1. A detention hearing comes early. The judge rules on custody or release until trial (18 U.S.C. 3142).
2. Before trial, the U.S. Marshals Service holds them. Call its office at 120 N. Henry St., Suite 440, Madison, WI 53703, 608-661-8300, to learn which jail.
3. Federal Defender Services of Wisconsin may help: 22 East Mifflin Street, Suite 1000, Madison, WI 53703, 608-260-9900.
4. After sentencing, find them on the Bureau of Prisons inmate locator. Wisconsin's lone federal prison is FCI Oxford.

This is how it tends to unfold:

1. First, ICE asks for the hold in writing. The paper is a detainer, Form I-247A.
2. Through it, ICE asks that the person be held up to 48 hours after they would otherwise be released (8 CFR 287.7(d)).
3. Agents collect the person next. Wisconsin falls under ICE's Chicago Field Office, 101 W. Ida B. Wells Dr., Suite 4000, Chicago, IL 60605, 872-351-3990. The Milwaukee check-in office is at 310 E. Knapp St., Milwaukee, WI 53202, 414-792-7198.
4. ICE detainees in Wisconsin have been housed in Juneau at the Dodge County Jail, and for short stays at the Sauk County Jail.
5. Look the person up on the ICE Online Detainee Locator. The A-number finds the closest match. No A-number handy? Combine the person's complete name and native land.

No Wisconsin statute on detainers was found. A 2025 Assembly bill on sheriffs and immigration had not become law as of its last listed action in June 2025. The Sheriff's Office can explain its practice at 608-785-9629.

When a judge sends someone to state prison, intake comes first and lasts about 8 to 12 weeks while staff test and classify the person. After that, the state assigns a prison matched to their needs and sends them once space opens. The men's intake site bars visits during a person's first 3 days there.

• Find them on the DOC Inmate and Offender Search.
• Crimes committed on or after December 31, 1999, bring no parole. A period of extended supervision outside prison comes after the prison term.
• Visiting, mail and deposit rules for each prison sit on our Wisconsin prisons page.

A 17-year-old facing a criminal charge is an adult under Wisconsin law and gets booked into the adult jail. A child of 16 or younger goes through juvenile intake at Human Services, Youth Justice, 300 4th Street North, Third Floor, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-784-4357 or 608-785-6030, weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. By state law, intake must be available around the clock, and almost no youth is locked up without an in-person interview.

• Secure unit: Western Regional Adolescent Services, 300 4th Street North, 4th Floor, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-6407, 24 hours. It holds youth 10 to 17. Visits and calls run daily from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Bring photo ID.
• Shelter unit: the shelter side on the same floor, 608-785-6435, 24 hours.
• If intake keeps a youth locked up, a judge must hold a hearing. The deadline is 24 hours past the close of the day that choice was made, with weekends and holidays left out.

Each agency below works inside county lines. The state put the county's population at 124,590 on January 1, 2025.

• Sheriff's Office, 333 Vine Street, Room 1500, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9629. Countywide non-emergency dispatch: 608-782-7575. For the Village of Rockland and the towns, the Sheriff's deputies are the ones to call.
• La Crosse Police Department, City Hall, 400 La Crosse Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, office 608-789-7200, records 608-789-7227. Non-emergency calls use county dispatch.
• Onalaska Police Department, 415 Main Street, Onalaska, WI 54650, 608-781-9550.
• Holmen Police Department, 119 W Wall St, Holmen, WI 54636, 608-526-4212.
• West Salem Police Department, 175 Leonard Street South, West Salem, WI 54669, 608-786-0407. After hours, call dispatch and ask for a West Salem officer.
• Bangor Police Department, 106 15th Ave N, Bangor, WI 54614, 608-486-4276.
• French Island Police Department (the former Town of Campbell), 2219 Bainbridge Street, La Crosse, WI 54603, 608-783-1050.
• UW-La Crosse University Police: see the campus police page.
• Western Technical College Campus Community Safety, Coleman Center Room 131, 617 Vine Street, La Crosse, WI 54601, 608-785-9191, call or text.
• Wisconsin State Patrol, Tomah Post, 23928 Lester McMullen Drive, Tomah, WI 54660, 608-374-0513.