Find San Bernardino County Released Inmates

Released inmate records in San Bernardino County are managed by the sheriff's department, which runs the county jail system. The county uses the JIMS Inmate Locator for online searches. San Bernardino County is the largest county in the United States by land area, stretching from the suburbs east of Los Angeles to the Nevada and Arizona borders. The sheriff operates multiple detention facilities across this vast region. You can search for released inmates through the JIMS portal, the statewide VINE system, or CDCR's CIRIS tool for state prison records. This page explains how to look up released inmate records and what resources are available in San Bernardino County.

San Bernardino County JIMS Inmate Locator

The San Bernardino County Sheriff runs the JIMS Inmate Locator at jimsnetil.shr.sbcounty.gov. JIMS stands for Jail Information Management System. You can use it to search for inmates who are in custody right now or who have been released from a San Bernardino County detention facility. The search is free and does not require an account. Enter a name, booking number, or other details to pull up results. Each record shows the person's charges, booking date, bail amount, and custody status.

San Bernardino County operates several jail facilities. The main ones include the West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga and the Glen Helen Rehabilitation Center in Devore. The Central Detention Center in San Bernardino also holds inmates. People arrested by law enforcement anywhere in San Bernardino County end up in one of these facilities. Several cities in the county contract with the San Bernardino County Sheriff for law enforcement services. Hesperia and Rancho Cucamonga are two examples. Arrests made in those cities go straight to the county system. When someone is released, the JIMS portal updates to reflect the new status, so anyone checking the record can see the change.

Call the jail at (909) 350-2476 for questions about a person in custody. For records requests, call the sheriff at (909) 387-8313.

How to Search Released Inmates in San Bernardino

Go to the JIMS portal. Type in the last name of the person you want to find. You can add a first name to narrow results. Click search. The system returns a list of matching inmates from San Bernardino County detention facilities. Look at the custody status column. If it says "released," the person is no longer in jail. The record should show the release date and the method, such as bail, own recognizance, or time served. If the person is still held, you will see the housing assignment and next court date when available.

San Bernardino County released inmate records from the JIMS system usually contain these data points:

• Full name, date of birth, and booking photo
• Booking number and arrest date
• All charges at time of booking
• Bail amount and court information
• Release date, time, and type
• Facility where the inmate was held

If JIMS does not turn up what you need, try the CIRIS database for state prison records. CIRIS covers people who served time in California state prisons, not county jails. For released inmates who went through the San Bernardino County jail system, JIMS is the right tool.

California Law on San Bernardino Inmate Data

Government Code 7923.610 requires every law enforcement agency in the state to make booking and arrest details public. The San Bernardino County Sheriff must share the full name, physical description, date of birth, arrest time, booking time, bail amount, charges, and release method for anyone they book. The only exception is when releasing a piece of data would put a person in danger or would compromise an active investigation. This law went into effect on January 1, 2023. It applies to every released inmate processed through San Bernardino County jails.

State prison parolees who come to San Bernardino County are covered by a different rule. Penal Code 3003 says CDCR must notify local law enforcement about each parolee heading to the area. The data package includes names, physical descriptions, tattoos, scars, criminal offenses, and the address where the released inmate plans to live. Parolees are required to return to the county they lived in before going to prison. Because San Bernardino County is so large, this covers a wide range of communities from Ontario and Fontana down to Barstow and Twentynine Palms. Each released inmate gets $200 in gate money and a ride to the closest bus or train station if nobody picks them up.

VINE Alerts in San Bernardino County

California's VINE system is another way to track released inmates in San Bernardino County. VINE sends alerts when a custody status changes. You pick whether you want a phone call, email, or text. The service is free and works around the clock. It supports more than 200 languages. VINE covers roughly 2,900 facilities in 48 states, and that includes San Bernardino County detention centers.

To sign up, go to vinelink.com or call 1-877-411-5588. TTY users can reach (866) 847-1298. Victims and families use VINE most, but anyone can register. Once you sign up for an inmate, the system checks for changes automatically. You get your alert within minutes of a status change. Many people in San Bernardino County use VINE alongside the JIMS portal to make sure they do not miss a release.

The screenshot below shows the California DOJ Public Records Act request page at oag.ca.gov. San Bernardino County residents can use this to request state-level records about released inmates.

The DOJ handles requests for state-maintained records. For San Bernardino County jail records specifically, contact the sheriff's office at (909) 387-8313.

San Bernardino County Records Requests

If you need official documents about a released inmate from San Bernardino County, you can file a public records request with the sheriff's department. The California Public Records Act gives you this right. Call (909) 387-8313 to start the process. You can also submit requests by mail. Agencies must respond within 10 calendar days. A 14-day extension is possible for requests that are complex or involve a lot of documents.

For your own criminal history, the California DOJ record review page explains the steps. You need Live Scan fingerprints and a $25 fee. The DOJ processes most requests in 2 to 3 days. Some take up to 2 weeks. Third parties cannot request another person's criminal history from the DOJ. That restriction comes from Penal Code 11142. If you need documents about someone else's record in San Bernardino County, a public records request to the sheriff or the CDCR Public Records Portal are better options.

Note: The CDCR portal handles requests about state prison inmates, not people held in San Bernardino County jails.

Nearby Counties

Inmates can be transferred between counties or booked in a different county than where the arrest happened. If you cannot find a released inmate in the San Bernardino County system, check one of these neighboring counties.

Cities in San Bernardino County

San Bernardino County covers a large area with many cities and towns. Several cities in the county contract with the San Bernardino County Sheriff for law enforcement, including Hesperia and Rancho Cucamonga. People arrested in those cities are processed through the county jail system. There are no cities in San Bernardino County with qualifying population thresholds that have their own released inmate pages on this site. Use the San Bernardino County JIMS portal to search for released inmates from any city in the county.