The Missoula County Jail Roster is a public resource that allows anyone to check who is currently in custody at the county jail in the state of Montana. On the MissoulaCourt.us website, you can quickly find public information about current and recent inmates. Additional access methods include the official sheriff's office website, an in-person visit to the jail, or a phone call. A search in the roster allows you to find out the detainee's name, charges, and custody status. The roster is maintained by the Detention Division of the Missoula County Sheriff's Office, it is updated in real-time and hosted on the county's official website.
Search Current Inmates in Missoula Jail
The fastest way to find an inmate is to use the online roster. Here is a step-by-step guide:
- Go to the Missoula County Daily Inmate Roster page.
- The page displays a complete list of individuals currently in custody. The list is updated in real-time.
- Use the search function in your browser (Ctrl+F or Cmd+F) to find the desired last name in the list.
- For each inmate, the name, date of birth, date of detention, charges, and bail amount are indicated.
You will need the person's full legal name for the search. A booking number will speed up the search if you know it. Juvenile offenders are not displayed in the public roster.
In addition to the online roster, information can be obtained through MissoulaCourt.us — for searching publicly available court records.
Search by Phone or In Person
Call the jail on the non-emergency line or contact the Citizen Services Department of the Sheriff's Office. You can also visit in person during business hours.
Important: The Missoula County Sheriff's Office never collects bail money over the phone. During court business hours, bail must be paid directly at the court.
Find Missoula Jail Booking Records Online
A booking record is created at the moment when a detained person is officially processed into the jail. This process includes recording personal information, photographing, fingerprinting, and registering charges.
Each record contains:
- A unique booking number
- Date and time of detention
- List of charges
- Name of the agency that made the arrest
- Bail amount (if set)
Current records are available through the daily inmate roster on the county website. For more detailed information or records not available in the online roster, you can submit a public records request through the Missoula County Public Records page.
If the person has already been transferred to a state facility, the search can continue through the Montana Department of Corrections Offender Search system. Criminal history checks are available through the Montana Department of Justice.
Search the Missoula Jail Roster by Last Name or Booking Number
The inmate roster on the county website is displayed as a list that can be browsed manually or filtered using the browser.
Search by Last Name
Open the roster page and use the Ctrl+F (Windows) or Cmd+F (Mac) key combination. Enter the last name in Latin letters — exact spelling matters. If you are unsure of the spelling, try entering just the first few letters of the last name.
Search by Booking Number
If you have a booking number, use the same search function in the browser. The booking number is the most accurate identifier, eliminating confusion with identical names.
What to Do if the Search Yields No Results
- Check the spelling of the name.
- The person may have already been released — the roster only shows those currently in custody.
- The detainee may still be being processed — there is a time lag between arrest and appearance in the roster.
- Call the jail at (406) 258-4740 for clarification.
- For court records, use the Montana Public Access Court Records Portal.
Jail Roster Updates and Search Limitations in Missoula
The Missoula County Jail Roster is updated in real-time. This means that data appears shortly after the booking procedure is completed. However, "real-time" does not mean instantaneous — there can be a delay of several minutes to several hours between the physical arrest and the appearance of the record in the online roster, depending on the jail's workload and the complexity of processing.
Main limitations to consider:
- Only current inmates. The roster is not an archive. After release or transfer, a person's record disappears from the list.
- Processing delay. A recently detained person may not yet appear in the roster until the intake procedure is completed.
- Minors excluded. Records of persons under 18 are not published.
- Technical errors. Sometimes there are inaccuracies in the spelling of names or dates — this is a human factor in data entry.
For historical records or information about individuals no longer in custody, contact the sheriff's office directly or submit an official records request. Court cases can be tracked through the Missoula County Clerk of District Court.