Search Santa Barbara County Booking Reports

Santa Barbara County booking reports are created when arrests are processed through the county jail system on California's central coast. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office keeps these records and posts current custody data on a public website. You can search Santa Barbara County booking reports through the sheriff's "Who Is In Custody" tool for free. The system shows names, charges, bail, and booking dates for people held in Santa Barbara County jails. The county operates two main jail facilities, one in Santa Barbara and one in Santa Maria. Both feed into the same online system for booking data. Phone and in-person requests work too if you prefer those over the website.

Santa Barbara County Bookings Online

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office runs a "Who Is In Custody" portal where you can search for current inmates. Type a name and the system pulls up matching results from Santa Barbara County jails. You can see the booking date, charges, bail amount, and facility. The tool is free. No sign-up or login is needed. This is the most direct way to check Santa Barbara County booking reports without leaving your home.

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office provides custody data through its "Who Is In Custody" portal.

This search tool shows current Santa Barbara County inmates and their booking details.

Santa Barbara County Booking Info by Phone

Call the Santa Barbara Main Jail at (805) 681-4260 for booking information. Staff can tell you if someone is in custody and share basic booking details. Give them a full name and date of birth. The North Branch Jail in Santa Maria handles calls at (805) 554-3100. Both jails are part of the Santa Barbara County system and share the same booking database.

For written requests or copies of Santa Barbara County booking reports, contact the sheriff's records division. California law requires them to respond within 10 days. You do not need to explain why you want the records. Booking data in Santa Barbara County is public under the California Public Records Act. Expect per-page copy fees if you want printed records mailed to you.

Note: Online searches are free, but Santa Barbara County may charge copying fees for printed booking report records.

Santa Barbara County Jail Facilities

Santa Barbara County operates two main jail facilities. The Santa Barbara Main Jail sits in the city of Santa Barbara and serves the southern part of the county. The Santa Maria North Branch Jail handles the northern section. When someone gets arrested anywhere in Santa Barbara County, they are brought to one of these two jails for booking. The booking report captures all the standard data: name, date of birth, physical description, charges, arrest time, and bail amount.

City police departments in Santa Barbara County make arrests within their own limits. Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Lompoc, and other cities have police forces. All of them send arrested people to the county jail for booking. So one search of the sheriff's database covers booking reports from every law enforcement agency operating in Santa Barbara County. If you know the arrest happened somewhere in this county but are not sure which city, the sheriff's search tool is the right place to start.

The booking process can take several hours. Data may not show up on the website immediately after an arrest. If you think someone was just arrested in Santa Barbara County, give it a few hours before checking online. The phone line may have information sooner in some cases.

Laws for Santa Barbara Booking Records

Government Code Section 7920.000 establishes the California Public Records Act, which applies to all Santa Barbara County booking reports. Government Code Section 7923.600 specifically requires law enforcement to release booking data. This includes the full name, charges, bail, time of arrest and booking, and where the person is held. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff must share this information when asked.

Full criminal histories are a different matter. Penal Code Section 13300 restricts access to complete criminal history records. A booking report from Santa Barbara County shows one arrest. A criminal history shows all of them. For your own criminal history, submit a request through the California DOJ with fingerprints and a $25 fee. For someone else, you generally cannot access their full history unless you have authorization.

People booked in Santa Barbara County can petition to seal records. Penal Code Section 851.91 allows arrest record sealing when charges were dropped or the person was acquitted. Sealed booking reports from Santa Barbara County will not appear in public searches once the court approves the petition.

Track Santa Barbara County Inmates

The California VINE system covers Santa Barbara County jails. Register for free to get alerts when an inmate is released, transferred, or escapes. Choose phone, email, or text. This is separate from the sheriff's website. VINE tracks custody changes over time, while the sheriff's portal shows you who is in custody right now.

Statewide Resources for Santa Barbara County

If someone booked in Santa Barbara County gets sentenced to state prison, their records move to the CDCR system. The California Incarcerated Records and Information Search tracks state prison inmates and shows which county they were committed from. The California State Sheriffs' Association also provides links to sheriff offices statewide, including Santa Barbara County.

Nearby County Booking Reports

Santa Barbara County borders three other California counties. If the arrest may have taken place outside Santa Barbara County, try these neighbors.