The Riverside County Jail Inmate Roster in California is a public resource that allows anyone to check if a specific person is in custody. RiversideCourt.us helps quickly find publicly available information about current and recently released inmates. Additionally, information can be obtained through the official Riverside County Sheriff's website, by calling the jail line, or visiting the facility in person. A search in the roster allows you to find out the detention status, charges, and booking number. The roster is maintained by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department — a corrections division — and is regularly updated on their website.
Search Current Inmates in Riverside Jail
To find a person currently in custody in one of the Riverside County jails, use one of the methods below.
Online Search
- Go to the Inmate Information page on the Riverside County Sheriff's website.
- Enter the person's last name and, optionally, first name — or the booking number if you know it.
- Click the search button. The system will return a list of matches with basic data: full name, date of birth, booking number, charges, and place of detention.
If you are looking for court documents or public records related to the case, RiversideCourt.us is a convenient starting point. For city document requests in the city of Riverside, the city's public records portal is also available.
By Phone
Call the sheriff's dispatch non-emergency line or directly to the appropriate jail. The Riverside Police Department handles non-emergency calls at (951) 354-2007, but for inmate information, contact the sheriff.
In Person
Visit the lobby of any county correctional facility during business hours. Below are the main contacts.
Robert Presley Detention Center (main jail)
Juvenile records are not displayed in the public roster — this restriction is in effect at the state level in California.
To search, you will need at least the person's full legal last name. The booking number speeds up the process and eliminates false matches.
Find Riverside Jail Booking Records Online
A booking record is created at the moment a detained person is officially registered in a correctional facility. It is the first document that records a person's custody.
During booking, the following data is generated:
- Unique booking number
- Date and time of intake
- List of charges
- Arresting agency (e.g., sheriff, city police, or CHP)
- Mugshot and biometric fingerprints
Most of this information is available through the sheriff's online inmate locator. Photos and some details may be restricted depending on the case status.
If the person has already been transferred to a state facility, use the California Incarcerated Records & Information Search (CIRIS) — a tool from the California Department of Corrections. For court records, refer to the state judiciary public records portal.
To obtain a copy of the full booking report not displayed in the online registry, submit a written public records request to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department. Provide the person's full name, approximate arrest date, and booking number if known.
Search the Riverside Jail Roster by Last Name or Booking Number
The sheriff's online roster supports two main search methods.
By Last Name
Enter the last name in Latin letters in the appropriate field. Adding the first name narrows the results — this is useful for common last names like Garcia or Smith. A few practical tips:
- Check the spelling. One wrong letter and the system won't find the record.
- If unsure of the spelling, try entering just the first few letters of the last name — some systems allow partial searches.
- Double last names or hyphenated last names should be searched in both variants: with and without the hyphen.
By Booking Number
The booking number is the most accurate method. It uniquely identifies a specific detention case, even if the person has been arrested multiple times.
If the Search Yields No Results
- Ensure the name is entered without typographical errors.
- The person may have already been released — the roster shows only those currently in custody or recently released.
- The detainee may have been transferred to another facility or state prison. Check CIRIS.
- Call the jail directly — sometimes there is a delay of several hours between physical intake and the record appearing in the system.
Jail Roster Updates and Search Limitations in Riverside
The Riverside County inmate roster is updated throughout the day, but it is not instantaneous. There may be a delay of one to several hours between when a person is physically brought to the facility and when their name appears in the online database. Peak hours — nighttime and weekend arrests — sometimes increase this delay.
Main limitations to be aware of:
- Only current inmates. The roster is not an archive of all past bookings. After release, the record disappears from the public list within a short time.
- Data entry delays. Errors in name spelling or incomplete information from the arresting agency can temporarily "hide" the record.
- Transfers between facilities. Riverside County has several jails — Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Detention Center, Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility, Blythe Jail, and others. Transferring an inmate from one facility to another may cause a short-term absence of the record.
- Juvenile records and some sealed records are not displayed in the public roster under California law.
To obtain historical booking data, submit an official public records request to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department at:
If you need court documents rather than jail records, contact the Riverside County Superior Court clerk's office or use RiversideCourt.us for an initial search of available information.