Gratiot County Jail – Ithaca, MI

Gratiot County Jail is located in Gratiot County, MI and is the primary correctional facility for the region. Are you looking for somebody at Gratiot County Jail? This page will tell you about anything one might want to know about Gratiot County Jail: Find an inmate at Gratiot County Jail. How to view Gratiot County Jail mugshots. The jail’s address and phone number. How to post bail. Intake procedures. Court information and records. And more…

The thought of getting arrested and going to jail is a scary and daunting thought, not only for the person who goes to jail, but also that person’s family and friends. This guide is designed to give you all the information and tips you need to make getting locked up easier. If you have questions, feel free to ask it, and any comments or feedback that could help other people in the same situation is welcome.

Do you know someone that has gone to jail and don’t know how to locate them?

Do you know a friend or family member that’s been arrested and you want to find out what jail they’re in?

To find out who is in jail at Gratiot County Jail you have to navigate to their link and use the inmate search.

The Gratiot County Jail Inmate Locator is an online list of people who have been arrested and are in jail, which includes current status, how much their bail is, and times you can visit. Also, you are able to find info about anybody booked or discharged within the last 24 hours. Prisoners are listed in alphabetical order by their last name. You can get the information faster if you have the arrestee’s full name, birth date, or inmate ID Number.

If the inmate you are looking for is at another jail you should check our guide to other Michigan jails: List of all county jails in Michigan

A mugshot, also called a intake picture, is a picture taken by the police when you get booked into jail. A mugshot is actually one full face and one profile photo. Your name and intake number will be in the pictures, and they’re stored at the jail.

Mugshots of Gratiot County Jail inmates are online, or you can view them at the Gratiot County Jail. When you search for mugshots online you will have to enter the name, and a booking date, if you have one.

Are you trying to have your mugshot taken down from the Gratiot County Jail site? This is difficult, as the mugshot is a matter of public record. To get your mugshot removed you will need to file a Petition to Expunge in court. This means that the record of your arrest would be sealed, and unavailable to the public. Depending on your situation, this may be a longshot.

Read our in-depth tutorial about getting your mugshot removed, the many different websites with mugshots, and the mugshot removal services: How To Get Your Mugshot Taken Down

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Obviously, once you’re incarcerated, your primary thought is about how to get out. After you’ve gone through the booking process, your bail amount will be set by a special judge called a magistrate. If there is no bail set this can mean that you will either be released, or you don’t get released while you wait for your court date.

If you are released from jail you are required to agree to go to your court date, and you won’t be allowed to leave the area.

Usually, a prisoner are given an early release in exchange for good behavior if they follow the rules and area a good inmate while incarcerated.

If you follow the rules, you may be allowed to do work release. Either you will have to return to the jail at the end of the day when you’re finished with work, or you may be allowed to move into a halfway house instead of jail.

Bail is money that you have to pay to the courts to be released from jail until you go to court. The amount you have to pay is dictated by how serious your crime is. You or someone you know will have to pay to the courts 10% of the amount set before you can be released from jail. If you miss your court date, that person won’t get their money back.

You have to call the jail. If you have all the person’s info, including name, address and date of birth, they’ll tell you what their bail is set at. You can also see the bail amount on the Gratiot County Jail site.

Having to bail a friend or family member out of jail is no fun, but most of the time, its easy if you have the money. First of all, you need to find out if it is a Cash Only Bond situation. If it is, you will not be able to use a Bail Bondsman. Take cash only to the jail – the jail can’t accept a personal check. As soon as you’ve posted (paid) bond, the prisoner will be released. If this person doesn’t violate any of the terms of their release, you’ll get the bail money back.

If the bail amount is too high, of if you can’t pay it, you should try a bail bondsman. Bail bondsmen will generally charge a fee of 10 to 15 percent of the bail amount, and in most cases with a minimum of $100. The money you pay to the bail bondsman will not be returned to you and is typically cash only. If the bail has been set really high, the bondsman might ask to use your assets, such as home, property or cars, as collateral for the bond in addition to their charges.

If you need a bail bondsman click here: How to find a bail bondsman

Have you ever used the services of bondsman 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 for you.

Click here to post a comment

• Time Off For Good Behavior
• Work Release
• Released For Time Served
• Pre-Trial Release Programs
• House Arrest
• Get Released on Your Own Recognizance

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The jail intake process is made up of each of these steps:

• You will get put in a holding cell. If there are a lot of arrests, you will have to wait, sometimes for many hours, before you get processed.
• First, must answer a bunch of questions, such as your full legal name, address, birthdate and an emergency contact.
• They’ll also ask you about your medical and mental history.
• You’ll be given an inmate ID.
• Your fingerprints will be taken.
• You will have your mugshot taken.
• Any property you have will get taken away from you and stored until you get released from jail.
• You will then be allowed to make a telephone call in order to call a member of your family, friend, or bail bondsman.
• If you are expected to be released quickly, you will be allowed to keep wearing your own clothes, but if you are not expected to make bail quickly you will have to change into a jail jumpsuit.

Have you ever been booked into jail? If you have, please tell our readers about your experience. How long did it take? How did the guards treat you? Do you know any tips that could help other people that get arrested make it through jail intake?

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When you finally post bail, you will get discharged from jail. Getting discharged may take from 10 minutes to quite a few hours. In other words the quicker you post bail, the sooner you can get out of jail. Also, how fast you get released will depend on whether you’ve been given a cash bond amount or if a judge needs to decide on how much to set your bail at. For minor charges, you will simply be booked and released on your own recognizance. If you have served a sentence in jail and are given a date of your release, you should expect to be released in the morning.

warrant out for your arrest, or if you need to start your sentence, it is highly recommended that you do the right thing and turn yourself in. In the case of an outstanding warrant, go down to the jail intake center, and let them know that believe that there could be an outstanding warrant for your arrest. The officer will verify that you have an outstanding arrest warrant, and if they find one, they will ask that you surrender yourself and you will be taken into custody. When reporting to serve a sentence, report on the date and time that the sentence order states. Ensure that you are not late. Just bring required items when you go to jail, like your driver’s license or even your ID, any prescription medication you might take, as well as an official sentencing order.

To have visitors, you need to list each visitor’s name and date of birth to the jail before anyone can visit them. Your visitor’s information will go into the visitation log as an Authorized visit. Each and every visitor must provide acceptable photo identification. Any visitors that gets to visitation or that is not on the visitation list will be turned away.
The Gratiot County Jail visitation procedures change often, so it would be wise to review the official Gratiot County Jail jail site before you go to the jail to visit.

All phone calls from jail are made through a jail approved pre-paid phone account or phone card . Calls made in jail are generally 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 you should 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 and are disciplined, phone privileges could be reduced or totally denied.

Phone Number: 989-875-5211

All mail has to be sent via the actual US Postal Service. You cannot use any other form of mail or package delivery. You have to clearly write or type the person’s name, prisoner number, and the jail address on the outside of the letter that you send. Don’t send anything in a package or box, padded envelope, bag, or an envelope containing metal parts. All mail sent to inmates gets opened and examined by the jail administration, and the mail will be sent back to the person who mailed it if it can’t be delivered.

Use this address when sending a letter to someone incarcerated at Gratiot County Jail:

Gratiot County Jail
226 East Center Street
Ithaca, MI 48847

Here is how you should address the letter:

[INMATE’S FULL NAME]
[INMATE ID]
Gratiot County Jail
226 East Center Street
Ithaca, MI 48847

The Gratiot County Jail inmate mail policy is always changing, so be sure to double check the site when send a letter to someone in jail there.

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Even if you’ve been arrested, you have particular rights, the first of which is that you have the right to request an attorney. You won’t get many phone calls in jail, so make sure you ask a friend or family member to find a lawyer for you. I know you’re probably asking yourself right now ‘do I really need an attorney?’ While you are not required to have one, a criminal defense attorney can advise you of your rights, help protect your interests and help you through the legal system in Gratiot County. The quicker you hire an attorney to represent you and work on your situation, the better your chances.

For more info on the benefits of hiring a lawyer, visit: How to Find an Attorney in Gratiot County

If you are in trouble, but can’t afford an attorney, a Public Defender will be assigned to you. In addition, the Public Defender is staffed by independent investigators, crime scene and forensics experts and social workers. You should be reassured that Public Defenders are actual lawyers that are members of the Michigan State Bar and are legally licensed to practice law as an agent of the court.

Have you or someone you know used a court appointed attorney or Public Defender? What was your experience?

Court records are a matter of public record. They contain a court case file containing a docket sheet and all motions, documents, and evidence that have been filed in the case. You are able to access court records using the website, or at the Gratiot County Clerk of Court.

A Clerk of Court is an officer and clerk of the court who manages access to court records. The Clerk of Court also administer the oath in a court case, and also read the verdict when delivered by the jury. All records, documents, and evidence related to your case are kept at the Gratiot County Clerk of Court.

Court fees are the charges associated with 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 a court appointed attorney, you may not have to pay the fees.

The Gratiot County court magistrate is the person that presides on your court case. Magistrate judges do many different things, like setting bail, issuing warrants for arrest, and overseeing preliminary court proceedings and detention proceedings.

A pre-sentencing report is completed with information about the arrestee’s background and details of the arrestee’s life, which the magistrate judge will take into account when decide your sentence. Information will be solicited from the defendant, their family, and if necessary the victim. Be sure to remember that you can ask to see a copy of your pre-sentencing report before you are sentenced, and go over it and correct any mistakes in it.

If you get convicted of a crime, you will be sentenced. The judge will have several different options when sentencing you, which include community service and probation, to even incarceration in either jail (short term) or prison (long term). Depending on how serious your crime was, you could be locked up immediately, or you could be given a date that you must turn yourself into jail to serve your jail time according to your sentence.

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Do you want to find out if someone is in jail, or has ever been in jail?

This is pretty simple to do, just just query the jail’s website, and do a search using:

• The inmate’s name.
• Date of birth.
• Their approximate booking date.
• or jail ID.

If you’re not sure if this person is in jail or not, you should call the jail find out if they’ve been arrested.

If you believe you have a warrant out for your arrest, you are able to check the arrest warrants online or you can call the court. You have to have the person’s first and last name. Or, you can just go the jail in person and ask the officer in charge. Bear in mind that if you do have an outstanding warrant, you will be taken into custody immediately.

If you know the person’s name, and the date of their arrest, contact the Gratiot County jail, either by phone, go there in person, or look online. An arrest is in the public record and the information is accessible to anyone.

Civil processes are when someone has been served with papers, like a court order. You can access civil process orders by going to the Sheriff’s office, either by phone or through their website.

All convicted sex offenders must be registered and listed on both a national and state sex offender database. The people on these databases have been convicted in a court of law of a sex or kidnapping crime. You can access sex offenders online, but bear in mind that you will not see the exact address, but rather the block of the address that they registered.

Court Records are public records. They include a case file that contains a court docket and any filings and documents filed in your case. You can access your court records on the website, or at the clerk’s office of the court where the case was filed.

Each and every state maintains a record of people’s criminal history. These online databases are all linked so you can track criminal convictions from another state. Go to courthouse and inquire, or you can check online. It helps to know which county the crime occurred in, and if the crime was in a completely different state, you may have to pay a fee for a more intensive search.

When you look up someone’s criminal record you are able to find out if a person has ever been arrested, charged or convicted for these crimes:

• DUI or DWI.
• Drug Possession.
• Kidnapping.
• Sex offenses which could include rape, and sexual assault.
• Violent crimes.
• Breaking and entering, theft, larceny.

If you do a criminal records check, you generally will not find out if that person has had:

• Speeding.
• Drivers license suspended or revoked.
• Any accidents.
• Moving violations.
• Parking Tickets.

To find driving records, you must do a driving records search.

Have you ever searched for criminal records? Was it a difficult process? Was your search online or did you make a phone call to the courthouse? Was the information correct? There are lots of reasons that people look up criminal records and backgrounds, and your story may help other people that are in the same situation.

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Most Wanted

Everyone knows that the FBI keeps a list of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives. In Gratiot County, the Gratiot County Sheriff’s Department keeps their own list of most wanted criminals and fugitives.

FBI Top Ten Most Wanted List: Link


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Life In Jail / What Its Like

Daily Life

While the prospect of being incarcerated in Gratiot County Jail is very scary, eventually you will get accustomed to the daily routine. Expect an alarm to wake up each morning at six in the morning, and then roll call. You will then eat breakfast. After breakfast, you will have to 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 Gratiot 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 Gratiot 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 procedure to send money to someone in jail at Gratiot County Jail is always changing, so it would be best to review the the Gratiot County Jail website before send money 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 Gratiot County Jail

The Deputy Sheriff is the second in command at the Gratiot 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 Gratiot 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.

Click here to tell about all about it


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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:

• The right to protection from the accused.
• The right to notification.
• The right to attend proceedings.
• The right to speak at criminal justice proceedings.
• The right to consult with the prosecuting attorney.
• The right to restitution.
• The right to a speedy trial.
• 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 incarcerated in this jail? Do you have a friend or family member there? Have you ever visited a prisoner at Gratiot County Jail?

If your answer is yes, then you should tell us about it. Write about your experience so others can find out what to expect.

Things you might want to write in what you write:

• Conditions in Gratiot County Jail.
• Jail layout and facility
• Guards and staff
• Food and commissary
• Having Visitors
• Inmates.
• Safety
• Jail gangs
• Activities and programs


Click here to write your review

Tell Your Story

Anybody that’s ever been locked up has a story to tell. Why’d you end up in jail? Did you get fair treatment? What was your daily routine in jail? What about the other inmates? Did going to jail affect your life? How?

Tell Your Story About Gratiot County Jail

Send a Message to Your Cell Mate

Make some good friends in jail? Are you trying to send a message to somebody you met in jail? Then send them a message by posting a comment below.

Send a message to people incarcerated at Gratiot County Jail


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