The St. Mary Parish County Inmate Population
The St. Mary Parish County inmate population is not held in one simple bucket. The official sheriff jail page identifies the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center as the main parish detention facility and says it holds local detainees, Louisiana Department of Corrections prisoners, and people housed for municipal and tribal law-enforcement agencies. That local detail matters because a person arrested by a city police department, picked up on a warrant, or serving a state sentence may still be tied to the same Centerville jail system. It also means the public count changes for more reasons than new arrests.
For the most current local view, the St. Mary Parish Sheriff's Office current roster is the first public source. It showed 278 current entries when inspected on June 16, 2026. The sheriff jail page gives a rated capacity of 320 inmates for the Law Enforcement Center. Those two facts create a useful point-in-time snapshot, but they are not the same as an official annual average daily population. Releases, transfers to DPS&C custody, municipal bookings, and court orders can change the St. Mary Parish County inmate population during the same day.
St. Mary Parish County Inmate Population Statistics
Only dated, sourced figures should be used for St. Mary Parish County inmate population statistics. The strongest local figures are the sheriff's published jail capacity, the live sheriff roster count, the separate Morgan City roster count, and the parish profile data posted by the Sheriff's Office. The public roster count is useful because it shows people listed in current custody, yet it is still a roster-derived point-in-time number. It should not be treated as a census, official ADP, or multi-year jail trend.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Date |
|---|---|---|
| St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center capacity | 320 inmates | Sheriff jail page, inspected June 16, 2026 |
| Current sheriff roster entries | 278 | Sheriff current roster, inspected June 16, 2026 |
| Recent sheriff releases | 8 to 9 observed | Sheriff 48-hour release page, inspected June 16, 2026 |
| Morgan City current roster entries | 21 | Morgan City Police roster, inspected June 16, 2026 |
| Parish population | 47,000 | Sheriff home page parish profile, 2023 figure |
St. Mary Parish County Inmate Population Trends
Official sources did not publish a St. Mary Parish year-by-year jail ADP table in the materials inspected. That limits how far the St. Mary Parish County inmate population trend can be described. The best supported approach is to separate hard local facts from missing data. The sheriff current roster count gives one public custody snapshot. The sheriff's rated capacity gives the local jail's stated bed context. Morgan City adds a separate city roster count. The Louisiana DPS&C statistics page notes that state demographic dashboards were current through January 31, 2026, while admission and release dashboards were current through December 31, 2025, but those statewide dashboards do not replace a parish jail ADP table.
| Year / Date | Figure | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| June 16, 2026 | 278 | Point-in-time sheriff roster entries, not official average daily population |
| June 16, 2026 | 21 | Morgan City current roster entries, separate municipal roster |
| 2023 | 47,000 | Parish population stated on the sheriff home page |
| 2020-2025 | Not located | No official parish year-by-year jail ADP table found in inspected sources |
Using the 278 sheriff roster entries against the stated 320-inmate capacity produces an 86.9 percent point-in-time capacity calculation. That percentage is only a public roster snapshot from June 16, 2026. It should not be quoted as an official jail utilization rate or a long-term overcrowding finding.
Who Is in St. Mary Parish County Jail Custody
The St. Mary Parish County inmate population includes several legal groups. Pretrial detainees are people booked after arrest while charges and bond are being reviewed. Sentenced local inmates may serve short local terms. The sheriff jail page also says the Law Enforcement Center houses Department of Corrections prisoners and meets municipal and tribal agency housing needs. Patterson Police Department says it houses DOC and city inmates. Morgan City Police Department keeps its own current roster for the Morgan City Detention Center and shows entries tied to city-court time and parish warrants.
- Pretrial detainee
- A person held after arrest before the criminal case is resolved.
- DOC prisoner
- A person in Louisiana DPS&C custody who may be housed in a parish jail under state-local housing rules.
- Municipal detainee
- A person held through a city police or city court channel, such as Morgan City or Patterson.
- Detainer
- A hold or request from another agency that may affect release even when local bond is addressed.
St. Mary Parish County Jail Capacity
The Law Enforcement Center capacity figure is the clearest official capacity fact in the research. The St. Mary Parish Sheriff's Office jail page states that the facility houses 320 inmates and is centrally located in Centerville. The current roster count from June 16, 2026 was below that stated capacity, but the research did not locate an official crowding report, consent decree, jail-construction bond, or recent capacity litigation specific to the St. Mary Parish jail. That absence should be stated carefully. It does not prove that no issue exists. It only means no official source in the inspected set documented one.
The St. Mary Parish County inmate population can still strain different parts of the system even when a roster count is under rated capacity. DOC prisoners, municipal holds, tribal-agency housing, bond decisions, medical needs, and court delays all affect bed use. The sheriff jail page also describes medical and food service changes made in 2013 to control housing costs and reduce security risks. Those operations details are local jail facts, not trend proof.
Laws for St. Mary Parish County Inmate Records
Louisiana law supplies the public-record framework behind St. Mary Parish County inmate population and booking information. Louisiana R.S. 44:1 defines public records and public bodies. Louisiana R.S. 44:31 gives adults the right to inspect, copy, or reproduce public records unless an exception applies. For jail booking records, Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure art. 228 is especially important because it requires booking and says jail and police booking books and booking summaries are open for public inspection.
Key Statutes:
Louisiana CCP art. 228 requires booking after arrest and supports public inspection of booking books and summaries.
Louisiana CCP art. 230.1 requires a first judicial appearance within 72 hours, excluding weekends and legal holidays.
Louisiana R.S. 15:824 explains why state prisoners may be housed in parish jails after sentence.
Federal Death in Custody Reporting Act requires reporting of deaths in local or state correctional custody by covered states.
St. Mary Parish County and State Prison Custody
The Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections directory did not show a state prison physically located in St. Mary Parish. It did identify local jail and program channels in the parish, including St. Mary Parish Correctional Center, the St. Mary Parish Transitional Work Program, and Patterson City Jail. The result is a state-local custody mix. A sentenced person may be committed to DPS&C but remain in or pass through a parish jail or program, so the St. Mary Parish County inmate population can include people with state custody status.
For sentenced state custody, the Louisiana VINE/LAVNS locator is the right lookup path. DPS&C says the locator is updated every 24 hours and can be searched by location, name, and ID or case number. DPS&C also publishes a phone locator at 225-383-4580. Callers need the person's DPS&C number or the person's name and date of birth to obtain housing assignment, facility address, facility phone, and projected release date when available.
How to Search St. Mary Parish County Inmates
The quickest St. Mary Parish County inmate search starts at the sheriff roster disclaimer, then moves to current inmates or the 48-hour release view. The roster is free and does not require a login. It has a search box for first or last name, Name and Date sorting, Current and Released tabs, newest-to-oldest and oldest-to-newest sorting, and pagination. The research captured 20 items per page and 14 pages of current entries when inspected on June 16, 2026.
- Open the sheriff roster disclaimer and choose the current-inmate or 48-hour release option.
- Use the Search By Name box. The field accepts either first name or last name.
- Sort by Name or Date when the result set is too large.
- Read the list entry for mugshot, name, booking number, age, booking date, charges, bond, and release date if shown.
- Call 337-836-9509 or check state, city, BOP, or ICE locators if the person is not on the sheriff roster.
The sheriff also promotes an official mobile app at stmaryso.com/app. The app page links to Google Play and the Apple App Store, but the captured app page did not list specific roster or warrant features. Check the store listing for current alert, tip, and roster tools before relying on it.
Current St. Mary Parish County Roster Lookup
The current sheriff roster is the main St. Mary Parish County jail roster for people held in the sheriff-run system. It is most useful for recent arrests, local jail custody, bond checks, and booking charges. It is not the final court record, and it does not replace the state locator for sentenced DPS&C custody. The roster does show enough list-entry detail to confirm that a person is likely the right match before calling the jail information system or checking court records.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Search By Name | Text box | No | Search by either first or last name; no wildcard rule was published. |
| Search | Button | No | Runs a name search through the roster search path. |
| Show All | Button | No | Returns the full roster view. |
| Name | Sort link | No | Sorts the current roster by name. |
| Date | Sort link | No | Sorts by booking or release date depending on view. |
| Current / Released | Tab | No | Switches between current custody and the recent release list. |
The sheriff current roster screenshot shows the active search box, roster controls, mugshots, booking numbers, charges, and bond amounts.
Use the visible booking number and charge list as a starting point, then verify bond or court status with the jail information line or court record.
Past St. Mary Parish County Inmate Records
The sheriff publishes a 48-hour release view for people recently released from the parish jail roster. The roster disclaimer says that view shows all persons released within the last 48 hours. That is useful when a person disappeared from current custody after bond, sentence service, transfer, or another release event. It is not a full archive of all past St. Mary Parish County inmate population records.
If an older booking is not in the current or 48-hour release view, use the public-record route. The sheriff FAQ says incident or crime reports can be requested through the Franklin or Morgan City offices for $5. Crash reports cost $5 in office or $15 online. The research did not locate a separate sheriff-published booking-photo or historical roster fee. Louisiana CCP art. 228 supports public inspection of booking information, but local copy steps and redaction decisions still belong to the custodian.
What a St. Mary Parish County Inmate Record Shows
Confirmed sheriff roster list entries show a narrow but useful custody record. The list view gives quick identifying and charge information, and the released view adds release date. A sample profile was opened during research, but the public text did not expose more fields than the roster shell. Do not assume the public profile contains housing unit, height, weight, race, sex, date of birth, court date, arresting agency, or release reason unless visible on the live record.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Mugshot | Booking photo thumbnail on current and released list entries. |
| Name | Last name, first name, and middle initial or name when shown. |
| Booking Number | Observed format uses an LEC prefix plus year and sequence. |
| Booking Date | Date and time the person was booked into the jail roster system. |
| Charges | Plain-language charge names, often with multiple lines. |
| Bond | Dollar amount shown on the list entry; bond type is not labeled. |
| Release Date | Shown only on the 48-hour release roster. |
St. Mary Parish County Jail vs State Prison Search
Readers often search the wrong system because Louisiana allows state prisoners to be housed in parish jails. The sheriff roster is still the first stop for St. Mary Parish County jail custody. VINE/LAVNS is the better path after a person is assigned to DPS&C custody or supervision. BOP and ICE are separate federal systems and should not be used as substitutes for the parish roster.
| Parish Jail or City Jail | State Prison / DPS&C | Federal or ICE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who Is Listed | Recent arrests, local detainees, municipal custody | Sentenced state custody and supervision records | Federal BOP custody or immigration detention |
| Where to Look | Sheriff, Morgan City, or Patterson roster | Louisiana VINE/LAVNS and DPS&C phone locator | BOP inmate locator or ICE ODLS |
| Mugshots | Shown on sheriff and Morgan City roster entries | Not a public mugshot gallery | BOP and ICE do not publish public mugshot galleries |
State and Federal Inmate Search
Use Louisiana VINE/LAVNS for sentenced state custody and victim-notification lookup. Use the BOP inmate locator for federal inmates from 1982 to present. Use ICE ODLS for immigration detainees. No BOP prison or ICE detention facility was found physically in St. Mary Parish, but holds and transfers can still move a local detainee into those systems.
The BOP locator page allows number-based search by BOP Register Number, DCDC Number, FBI Number, or INS Number, and name search by first, middle, last, race, age, and sex.
BOP also warns that a person marked released or not in BOP custody may still be held by another criminal-justice system.
St. Mary Parish County Detention Facilities
Four local detention channels shape the St. Mary Parish County inmate population. The primary jail comes first because it is the parish sheriff facility. The work program has a separate DPS&C listing and employer phone line. Patterson and Morgan City each matter because city custody can be separate from the sheriff roster and can include DOC or city-court inmates.
- St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center - sheriff-run parish jail for local detainees, DOC prisoners, and municipal or tribal-agency housing needs.
- St. Mary Parish Transitional Work Program - work-program custody tied to the Law Enforcement Center and DPS&C local program listing.
- Patterson City Jail - Patterson Police Department channel that houses DOC and city inmates.
- Morgan City Detention Center - municipal detention center with its own current and released roster views.
Booking, Bond, and Court Records
Louisiana CCP art. 228 requires an arrested person to be booked and defines the booking entry. The public sheriff roster then gives the local booking view. Bond is a separate court or magistrate issue. The roster shows bond amounts, but the research warns not to infer bond type from amount alone. A $0.00 bond entry may mean no bond, a hold, a sentence status, a court order, or another reason. Call the jail information system or check the issuing court before paying money.
After booking, the 16th Judicial District Attorney decides what formal charges to file, amend, reduce, or decline. The court records after jail arrest page explains why a jail charge and a court charge can differ. Louisiana CCP art. 230.1 also matters because it requires a person in custody to be brought before a judge within 72 hours, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, for appointment of counsel. Bail may be determined or reviewed at that appearance.
Programs in St. Mary Parish County Custody
The sheriff jail page identifies GED programming and the Transitional Work Program as local jail services. The work program offers people with criminal records a route back into the workforce while helping businesses find dependable workers. Employers are directed to call 337-836-5520, and the sheriff page says tax credits may be available for hiring qualified offenders. DPS&C separately lists the St. Mary Parish TWP with Director Lt. Kevin Toups.
State-level rules apply when a person is in DPS&C custody, even if housed through a local channel. DPS&C publishes guidance on visits, Securus calls, JPay email and deposits, canteen packages, emergency notifications, PREA, and contraband reporting. Local St. Mary Parish visitation schedules, mail rules, commissary vendors, and deposit fees were not posted in the sheriff pages inspected, so call the jail information system before travel or payment.
St. Mary Parish County Inmate Population FAQ
How large is the St. Mary Parish County inmate population?
The sheriff current roster showed 278 entries on June 16, 2026. The Law Enforcement Center capacity was listed as 320 inmates. Treat the 278 figure as a point-in-time public roster count, not an official average daily population.
Where does a St. Mary Parish County inmate search start?
Start with the sheriff roster for current custody and the 48-hour release view for recent releases. If the person is not listed, check Morgan City, Patterson, Louisiana VINE/LAVNS, BOP, or ICE depending on the custody path.
Does St. Mary Parish publish booking photos?
Yes, the sheriff roster list entries show booking photo thumbnails for current entries and the 48-hour release list. Morgan City roster entries also show mugshots. No official source found says historical mugshots stay online after the release window.
Can a sentenced state prisoner stay in a parish jail?
Yes. Louisiana R.S. 15:824 explains state custody and parish jail housing reimbursement. The sheriff jail page also says the Law Enforcement Center houses DOC prisoners.