Shelby County Jail – Memphis, TN

Shelby County Jail is in Shelby County and is the main jail for that area. Are you looking for somebody locked up at Shelby County Jail? This site tells you about anything you might need to know about Shelby County Jailsuch as the following: Find an inmate at Shelby County Jail. Find mugshots. The jail’s address and phone number. Posting bail. Shelby County Jail intake procedures. Court records. And much more…

The thought of getting arrested and going to jail is a daunting and scary prospect, not only for the person who gets locked up, but also their family and friends. The purpose of this guide is to give you all the advice and information that you need to make going to jail a lot easier. If you have specific questions, please feel free to ask them, and any tips or comments that might be beneficial to others will be welcome.

Do you have a friend or family member that is incarcerated and need to contact them?

Has somebody that’s been arrested and you don’t know how to find out what jail they’re in?

In order to search who is in jail at Shelby County Jail you should navigate to their web site and use the inmate lookup.

The Shelby County Jail Inmate Lookup has information on persons who have been arrested and are in custody, including status, how much their bail is, and visiting hours. You can find information about anyone arrested and booked or released in the past 24 hours. Inmates are shown in alphabetical order by their last name. You’ll be able to find the information faster if you have their full name, birth date, or arrest number.

If your friend or loved one may be at another jail you can check our guide to other Tennessee jails: List of all county jails in Tennessee

A mugshot, or jail booking photo, is the picture taken by the police when you get processed at jail intake. A mugshot is actually two photos one frontal photo and a side picture. Your name and intake number will be on the photos, and they’re on file at the jail.

Mugshots of Shelby County Jail inmates can be viewed on the Shelby County Jail website, or you can view them at the Shelby County Jail. When you search for mugshots online you will have to enter the inmate’s first and last name, and an arrest date, if you know it.

Are you trying to get your mugshot taken off of the Shelby County Jail site? This may not be possible, because your mugshot is public record. To get your mugshot removed you need to file a Petition to Expunge in court. What this means is that your arrest record would be sealed, and will not be available to the public. Depending on your situation, this may be a longshot.

Read our in-depth tutorial about getting your mugshot taken down, the various websites with mugshots, and the websites that offer to remove your mugshot for you: How To Get Your Mugshot Removed

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Naturally, once you are locked up, your main thought is about getting out. After you’ve been booked, your bail will be determined either through a preset bail schedule or a magistrate. If there is no bail set this might mean that you will either be free to go until your trial, or you are kept in jail until your court date.

If you are released from jail you will have to agree to show up for court, and until that day you will not be permitted to go out of town.

Usually, an inmate will be given early release in exchange for good behavior when they follow the rules and area a good inmate while in jail.

If you do exhibit good behavior and the jail believes you can be trusted, you might be given work release detail. You will be required to stay jail at the end of the day when you’re finished at your job, or you may have the chance to live in a halfway house when you are not working.

Bail is money that you have to pay in order to be released from jail until your court date. The amount of bail that is set depends on what crime you are charged with and how serious it is. You will have to pay to the courts 10 percent of the total that was determined in order to get discharged from jail. If you miss court, the person that paid your bail will lose that money.

You have to call the Shelby County Jail or the County Courthouse. If you have all the person’s information, such as name, address and date of birth, they will let you know how much their bail is. You can also find out how much their bail is on the Shelby County Jail website.

Having to bail someone out of jail is never fun, but usually, its easy. To start with, find out if it is a Cash Only Bond situation. If so, you won’t be able to use a bail bondsman. Take cash only to the jail – the jail won’t take a check. Once the cash bond has been paid, the prisoner will be released into your care. If this person doesn’t violate any of the terms of their release, you’ll get your money back.

If their bail has been set too high, or you can’t afford it yourself, you should use a bail bondsman. Bondsmen will usually have a fee of 10-15% of the total bail amount, and sometimes have a minimum charge of $100. This money is non-refundable and must be paid in cash. If the bail is extremely high, the bondsman will usually ask to use assets as collateral for the bond in addition to whatever their charges are.

To contact a local bail bondsman visit our page about: Find a Bail Bondsman in Shelby County

Have you ever used a bail bondsman either for yourself, a family member or friend? If you have, post a comment below and tell about it, and let us know how it worked out.

Click here to share your story

• Early Release For Good Behavior
• Get Out on Work Release
• Released For Time Served
• Get Out on a Pre-Trial Release Program
• Get Released on House Arrest
• Own Recognizance

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The intake process is made up of the following steps:

• They’ll put you in a holding cell. If the jail is really busy, it will take a while to get processed.
• You will answer some simple questions, such as what is your full name, street address, date of birth and contact person.
• Also, you will also be asked about your psychological and medical history.
• You will be given an inmate ID number.
• You will be fingerprinted.
• You will have your mugshot taken.
• All personal property will be taken from you and stored until you are discharged.
• You will get to use the phone so you can call family, friends, or bail bondsman.
• If you think you will get released quickly, you might be able to keep wearing your own clothes, otherwise you will be issued a jail jumpsuit.

Have you ever been booked into jail? If so, please tell your story. How long did you have to wait in the holding cell? Were you treated fairly? Do you know any secrets that might help others get through the procedure?

Click here to tell your story

When you post bail, you will get discharged from jail. This process may take anywhere between 30 minutes to hours or even all day long. In other words the faster you post bail, the faster you will get out of jail. How quickly you get discharged might depend on if you’ve got a cash bond or if a judge must figure out how much your bail will be. For a minor offense, you will simply be booked and get released without having to post bail. When you get to the end of your sentence and have a date of your release, expect to get released at any time that day – but usually in the morning.

If you have a, or if you have to start a jail sentence, it is recommended that you do the right thing and go down to the jail and turn yourself in. If you have a warrant, report to the jail reception area, and tell the intake officer that you think they might have an outstanding warrant for your arrest. The officer will verify that you have an outstanding arrest warrant, and if so, you will be taken into the sheriff’s custody. When reporting to serve a sentence, go down to the jail at the time and date that the sentence order states. Make sure that you aren’t late. Just bring allowed items with you, for example a driver’s license or your ID, prescription medication, and a sentencing order.

In order to have visitors, inmates need to list each visitor’s name and date of birth to the jail in advance. Your visitor’s information will be put into a Visiting log as an authorized visitor. Each and every visitor must provide a photo ID when visiting. Anyone that arrives for visitation late or without a visiting order will not be allowed to attend visitation.
Visitation procedures at Shelby County Jail can change, so you should double-check the jail site before you try to visit an inmate.

Phone calls that inmates are allowed to make from jail are collect calls or through a pre-paid phone account. These phone calls are usually more expensive than phone calls made at home. Phone calls are restricted on when you can make phone calls, how long you can talk, and how often you can make calls, but inmates must keep in mind that a long line can form at the phones, because everyone wants to use the phone, too. If you break the rules, an inmate’s phone privileges might get reduced or totally denied.

The Shelby County Jail phone number is: (901) 222-8500

All mail has to be sent via US Postal Service. You must not use any other method of mail delivery. You should write the inmate’s name, inmate ID, and jail address on the envelope. Do not mail anything in a package or box, envelope with padding or insulation, plastic or paper bag, or an envelope with metal in it. Any mail is opened and examined and read by the jail officers, and the mail will get sent back if the jail decides it is inappropriate.

Use this address when sending a letter to an inmate at Shelby County Jail:

Shelby County Jail
1045 Mullins Station Rd.
Memphis, TN 38134

Here is how you should address the letter:

[INMATE’S FULL NAME]
[INMATE ID]
Shelby County Jail
1045 Mullins Station Rd.
Memphis, TN 38134

The mail policy changes often, so be sure to double check the site when send a letter to someone in jail there.

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If you get arrested, you should know you still have rights, and an important one is that you have the right to request an attorney. You are only allowed to make so many phone calls in jail, so it is important to have a friend or family member locate an attorney for you. You might be thinking ‘do I really need an attorney?’ While you are not required to have one, a lawyer will make sure you know your rights, protect your interests and show you the way through the criminal justice system that you are now faced with. The quicker you get an attorney working on your case, the better.

For more information about this, read our guide: How to Find a Lawyer

If you are in trouble, but can’t afford a lawyer, you will be assigned a public defender. The Public Defender Office has a number of staff such as independent investigators, experts in forensics as well as case workers. You should be reassured that Public Defenders are bona-fide lawyers, admitted to the State Bar and are licensed to handle your case.

Have you ever had to use the services of a Public Defender? Are you satisfied with how they handled your case and represented you in court?

All court records are public records and are available upon request. They contain a case file with a docket sheet and every documents and motions in your case. You can access your court case records using the Shelby County website, or by going to the Clerk of Court’s office where the case was filed.

The Shelby County Clerk of Court is an officer of the court who manages court records. The Clerk of Court also administer the oath when court is in session, and read the verdict when decided by the jury. All court records relating to your case are kept and available to you at the office of the Clerk of Court.

Court costs and court fees are the costs from your court case, for example filing fees, motion and claim fees, and court charges. If you can’t afford to pay these fees and have been assigned a Public Defender, you can get a waiver for these fees.

The Shelby County magistrate is the person that will preside over your case in court. They do several different things, which include setting bail, issuing warrants, and overseeing preliminary court hearings and detention hearings.

A pre-sentencing report is prepared to include information about your background and details of the defendant’s life and public history, which the judge will consider when decide your sentence. Information and personal details will be requested from the defendant, his or her family members, and, if applicable, the victim of the crime. Keep in mind that you should ask to get a copy of your pre-sentencing report before you are sentenced, so you get the chance to correct the mistakes.

After you are convicted of a crime, you will be sentenced. The presiding judge in your case will weigh several options when determining your sentence, including community service to probation, to even prison or jail time. Depending on the particulars of your trial, the severity of your crime, and any sentencing guidelines that they judge will use, you may be locked up immediately, or you could get a date that you are supposed to report to jail to serve your jail term according to your sentence.

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Do you need to find out if someone is incarcerated, or has been an inmate in the past?

You can you will have to visit the Shelby County jail website and do an inmate search lookup, and do a search using:

• Their name.
• Birth date.
• Their booking date if you know it.
• and their jail inmate ID.

If you think this person is in jail, you can also call the jail get confirmation.

If you believe you have a warrant out for your arrest, you can access arrest warrants inquiry online or you can call the jail directly. This requires a first and last name. Or, you can just go down to the jail and inquire at the information desk. Bear in mind that if you do have an outstanding warrant, they will take you into custody immediately.

If you have a first and last name, and possibly an arrest date, contact the jail, either by phone, in person, or look online. Arrest records are in the public record and the information is accessible to anyone.

Civil processes are when you are served with legal papers, which can be court orders. You can find these by contacting the Shelby County Sheriff’s office, either by phone or through their website.

All registered sex offenders have to be listed and registered on a sex offender database. The people listed on these databases have been convicted of a sex offense. You are able to see these listings on the internet, but keep in mind that you will not find the street address, just the address block that they live on.

Court Records are public records and available to anyone. They include a court case file that includes a docket and all of the documents and filings filed in your case. You are able to access your court records via the internet service ‘Public Access to Court Electronic Records’, or at Clerk of Court in the county where the case was filed.

Every state maintains records of their state citizen’s criminal history. These databases are connected and you can track criminal histories from another state. You can go to county courthouse and make an inquiry, or check the website. It is helpful to know the county, and in the event that the crime was in a different state entirely, you might have to pay for a more complete search.

A search of someone’s criminal history you are able to find out if a person has ever been arrested, charged or convicted for any crimes, which can include:

• DWI or DUI.
• Drug offenses.
• Kidnapping.
• Sexual offenses including rape, assault.
• Violent crimes including assault, battery and murder.
• Theft.

But, when you do a criminal records check, you generally will not find if someone has had any infractions like moving violations:

• Speeding tickets.
• Drivers license revoked or suspended.
• Any accidents.
• Minor infractions or moving violations.
• Parking Tickets.

To get this kind of information, you have to do a search for their driving history.

Have you ever searched for criminal records? How easy was it? Was your search online or did you have to make a phone call to the local courthouse? Did you get information that was correct? There are lots of reasons that folks search for criminal backgrounds and records, and your comments may help other people.

Click here to tell your story

Most Wanted

For Federal crimes, the FBI maintains a list of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. In Shelby County, the Sheriff has their own list of the most wanted criminals, that you can access online.

FBI Ten Most Wanted List: Link


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Life In Jail / What Its Like

Daily Life

Just the thought of getting locked up in the Shelby County jail is something you wish you could avoid, eventually you will become accustomed to the routine that is set for you. You should expect an alarm to wake up at six in the morning, and next you’ll have roll call. You will then get breakfast. When you finish eating breakfast you will work in the program that has been assigned to you. This could be working in the kitchen, laundry, or some sort of manufacturing job. While this may seem tedious, it may help you when you leave jail, as you are gaining experience in a certain field of work. Other inmates go to school, while some take part in mandated treatment programs. After lunch, there will be another roll call, then back to work. Your evening will be spent either in your cell or a common room. During this time dinner is served and you will be expected to take a shower. After another roll call, it’s lights out. Even though you will be confined to your cell, there may be enough light to read or write letters. Then again, most inmates welcome lights out, and try to get as much sleep as they can.

Most people are frightened at the idea of jail because they don’t know what to expect. If you have spent any time in Shelby County Jail, your experiences would be welcomed, if it can help another person to deal with it.

Dress Code

When incarcerated, all inmates are expected to wear the Shelby County Jail uniform. This is normally a jumpsuit or scrubs. Of note to anyone visiting an inmate – you must be properly dressed. Any clothing considered inappropriate will not be permitted.

How To Send Money to an Inmate

You will have your own ‘bank account’ while in jail. This money is used to purchase items from the Commissary. Family and friends can deposit money into this account for you, and any money you earn while in prison will also be deposited into your account. Outside money can be paid in to your account via a money order, cash or check. If someone sends a check or money order, make sure that they write your inmate ID on it. The maximum amount you are allowed in your account is $290 per month.

The rules for sending money to jail inmates changes, so it would be best to double check the official Shelby County Jail site when send funds to someone in jail there.


Commissary

The commissary is the jail store. You can purchase a number of things here, such as toiletries, snacks and writing supplies. Bear in mind that you will probably want to use the commissary daily, and any infractions will get that privilege taken away from you.

Inmate Medications

If you are on any type of prescription medication, you will be allowed to continue taking it while in jail. When you are first processed, you will be asked what medication you take. You will then be referred to the jail nurse or doctor who will be in charge of monitoring your health and prescribing your medication.

Meals

You will get three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. As expected, they are very basic, but healthy. A typical breakfast might be cereal, toast, coffee and fruit. Lunch might be spaghetti, salad, bread and milk. Dinner could be chicken casserole, rice, vegetables, dessert and milk. Contrary to popular belief, prison food has greatly improved over the years, and you might find that it’s not much different from what you would eat at home.

Pods / The Yard

The jail is designed in a ‘pod’ layout, with self-contained housing arranged around an outdoor yard. Each pod has a central control station and a common room, and the inmates take turns in using the yard. The jail is designed this way to keep certain inmates together, and others away from the general population.

Gangs

As with life in general, gangs are a part of prison life. Obviously it is best to avoid becoming a part of this environment as it will only lead to trouble. When you first enter prison, you might find yourself being ‘primed’ to join a gang, or worse, you might get their attention in a negative way. The best thing to do is keep your head down and don’t get involved.


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News and Media

News

Photos / Pictures

Videos


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Jobs

Types of Jobs at Shelby County Jail

The Deputy Sheriff is the second in command at the Shelby County Jail, overseeing the day to day operations and administration of the jail. An inmate is unlikely to have much interaction with the Deputy Sheriff, unless they have committed an infraction. Detention Officers are responsible for the custody and care of the inmates. They maintain order in the jail, and handle security. A Detention Officer is assigned to a certain pod, and therefore is responsible for the same inmates each day. They get to know the inmates on a certain level and are well equipped to handle any problems that may occur.

Apply for a Job at Shelby County Jail

Requirements:

• You have to be over the age of 21.
• You have to possess a High School Diploma or GED
• You have to be a US Citizen.
• You have to pass a Criminal, Credit and Driving History background check.
• You have to pass a drug test.
• You have to have a good level of fitness.
• You have to be in good health.
• You have to have a valid Driver’s License
• An applicant for Deputy Sheriff must possess a Law Enforcement Certification.


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Family Resources

There are resources for families of both the perpetrator of the crime and the victim. The social and emotional impact of crime is far reaching, affecting many. Families can receive professional counseling, court related assistance, social services assistance and help in navigating the criminal justice system.

If you are a family member, which resources did you find to be particularly helpful? Please let us know, as this will be helpful to other families in the same situation.

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Victim Resources

Important Note: If you, or someone you know, are in immediate danger, call 911.

Victim’s Rights

The Victim Rights Act grants victims the following rights:

• You have the right to protection from the accused.
• You have the right to notification.
• You have the right to attend proceedings.
• You have the right to speak at criminal justice proceedings.
• You have the right to consult with the prosecuting attorney.
• You have the right to restitution.
• You have the right to a speedy trial.
• You have the right to be treated with fairness, dignity and respect.

The definition of victim includes:

• Spouses and children of all victims.
• Parents and guardians of minor victims.
• Parents, guardians and siblings of mentally or physically incapacitated victims or victims of homicide.
• Foster parents or other caregivers, under certain circumstances.

There are a number of services and programs designed to help victims and their families. You can find out about these services by contacting the courthouse, or local law enforcement agency.

Victim Notification

The Department of Justice Victim Notification System (VNS) is a system that provides victims with information pertaining to their case and/or any defendants in the case. You will receive a Victim Identification Number (VIN) and a Personal Identification Number (PIN) that will allow you to access VNS via the internet or by phone. Here, you will find information about future court hearings, historical court events, and detailed information about the defendant. This will include criminal charges filed, the outcome of charges, sentence imposed, custody location, projected release date and any other release information. The VNS website is updated daily. You will also receive any ongoing information by mail or email.

Have you, a family member or friend ever used the Victim Notification System? If so, was it effective? Did you get the information in a timely manner? Was the system difficult to use? We would like to hear from you, so please post any comments here.

Click here to leave a comment

Sex Offender Information and Search

All people registered as sex offenders are registered on either a national or state sex offender database. The people on these databases have been convicted of a sex or kidnapping crime. You can access this information online, but bear in mind that you will not get the exact address, rather the block that they live on.

Domestic Violence

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, there are services to help you. Your county will have a Domestic Violence Services office. They provide free and confidential services, such as emergency shelter information, legal advocacy, support groups and domestic violence education. They will work to help you create a safe and violence-free life, and heal from the trauma of abuse.

Important Note: If you, or someone you know, are in immediate danger, call 911.


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Reviews

Reviews of this Jail

Have you ever been an inmate in Shelby County Jail? Do you have a friend or family member that spent time there? Have you ever visited a prisoner there?

If you have, then please leave a comment below about it. Tell us about your jail experience so that other people can find out what to expect.

Things you might want to write in your comment:

• Jail conditions.
• Jail and pod layout and facility
• Guards and staff
• Jail food and commissary
• Visitors
• The other inmates.
• Inmate safety
• Gangs
• Inmate programs and activities


Write a Review of Shelby County Jail

Tell Your Story

Everybody who’s been arrested and thrown in jail has at least one story to tell about it. How’d you get locked up? Were you fairly treated? What was your daily routine in jail? What were the other inmates like? How did getting locked up affect your life?

Click here to tell about all about it

Send a Message to Your Cell Mate

Make some good friends in jail? Need to send a message to somebody you met when you were locked up? Post a message to them below.

Say Hello to people incarcerated at Shelby County Jail


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