Owyhee County Jail Overview
Owyhee County Jail is operated by the Owyhee County Sheriff's Office. The facility is the only official detention facility located in Owyhee County that was found in county, IDOC, BOP, and ICE sources. No separate city jail, regional jail, work-release annex, state prison, federal prison, or ICE detention center physically in Owyhee County was located in the research. Homedale appears in court and warrant-list context, but the research did not identify a separate Homedale jail.
The jail holds pretrial detainees, sentenced county inmates, court commits, and rented beds for other counties or the State of Idaho when space is available. That scope matters for inmate lookup. A person arrested in Owyhee County may appear on the county jail roster while in local custody. A person sentenced to state prison moves to Idaho Department of Correction jurisdiction and should be searched through IDOC instead. Federal sentenced prisoners and immigration detainees have separate federal locator paths.
The official Owyhee County Jail page is the local source for the jail roster link, warrant list, visitation, CTEL/InmateSales communication, JAILATM commissary, mail rules, court-commit instructions, jail history, and facility statistics. Sheriff Larry Kendrick is listed on the sheriff and jail pages, and Sgt. James Vincent is listed as Jail Administrator. The same sheriff page states that the office runs a 24-hour dispatch center and divides county patrol between west and east areas across a large rural county.
Owyhee County Jail Population
The county publishes several useful population and operation figures for the Owyhee County Jail, but it does not publish a live daily population dashboard. The jail page says the current jail was built in 1992 and has room for 40 bunks. The inspected roster PDF dated 09/29/25 listed 31 current inmates when reviewed in the research. The county's 2019 jail history figure reported 540 people arrested in Owyhee County and incarcerated for 11,857 prisoner days, which implies about 32.5 people per day for that year.
Those figures should be read with care. The 31-person roster count is from one inspected PDF, not a live capacity report. The 2019 average is calculated from county-published prisoner days, not a separate county dashboard. Historical Vera data also shows different Owyhee County jail population values in some years, including figures above the 40-bed mark in 2017 and 2018. That may reflect different data definitions, crowding, or rented-bed accounting, so formal overcrowding should not be claimed without direct county confirmation.
Lookup Owyhee County Jail Inmates
The correct lookup path for Owyhee County Jail starts with the county roster PDF linked from the sheriff jail page. The inspected roster is a static Current Inmate Booking and Release List, not an online form. It shows names, booking numbers, Next Release, and Final Release fields. It does not show mugshots, charges, bond, housing unit, arresting agency, court date, demographics, or offense details. For a deeper custody record, use the sheriff records process or call the jail.
- Open the official Owyhee County Jail page and use the jail roster link.
- Search the PDF by last name using the browser or PDF viewer find command.
- Write down the booking number if the person is listed, because that is the most specific public roster identifier.
- Call 208-495-1154 if the roster is unclear, out of date, or does not list the person.
- Use a sheriff public records request for booking records not shown in the public PDF.
For sentenced Idaho prison custody, use the IDOC Resident/Client Search. For federal sentenced custody, use the BOP inmate locator. For immigration detention, use ICE ODLS. VINELink can help with custody notification, but it is not a substitute for the county roster or the IDOC locator. The broader Owyhee County inmate population search also appears on the Owyhee County inmate population home page.
Owyhee County Jail Contact
Contact the jail or sheriff's office for current custody questions, roster issues, visitation questions, money deposits, and public-record routing. The public records form gives a separate records contact extension for written requests. The research did not locate a separate public lobby-hours schedule for jail visitors, so confirm access and arrival rules before traveling to Murphy.
Owyhee County Jail
20381 State Highway 78
Murphy, ID 83650
208-495-1154
Operator: Owyhee County Sheriff's Office
Sheriff Records Requests
Owyhee County Sheriff's Office
Attn: Tabetha Bailey, P.O. Box 128
Murphy, ID 83650
208-495-1154 ext. 1104
Owyhee County Jail Visits
Owyhee County Jail uses video visitation through CTEL/InmateSales. Visits may be completed from lobby kiosks at the sheriff's office or remotely by computer or smartphone. Visitors must create an account before visiting. Visits must be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance and cannot be scheduled more than one week in advance. People assigned to Disciplinary Segregation are not permitted visits except attorney and clergy visits.
| Visit Type | Scheduling Rule | Location or Device |
|---|---|---|
| Video visit | Create account, schedule 24 hours ahead, no more than one week ahead | Lobby kiosk, computer, or smartphone |
| Attorney or clergy visit | Exception category for Disciplinary Segregation | Confirm with jail staff |
| Vendor help | Contact CTEL at 877-998-5678 or use inmatesales.com | Phone or online account support |
The county did not publish visit length, remote-video fees, lobby kiosk hours, child-visitor rules, holiday limits, or a full dress code in the reviewed jail page. Confirm the visit and custody status before traveling to Murphy, especially because Owyhee County covers long rural distances and the jail is part of a government complex rather than a city downtown.
Owyhee County Jail Mail and Money
Owyhee County Jail allows written letters and standard photographs, but mail is scanned and sent to a video kiosk for inmate viewing. The physical mail is then placed in inmate property. The jail page does not allow Polaroids, stamps, envelopes, forwarded items, sexual or nude content, intimidation or harassment, gang material, plans that violate law or jail rules, or letters from other incarcerated inmates unless jail administration approves those inmate-to-inmate letters in advance. Books must be new and shipped directly from a retailer.
| Service | Provider / Detail | Published Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mail Address | (Inmate Name), P.O. Box 128, Murphy, ID 83650 | Mail is scanned to a video kiosk |
| Phone / Video | CTEL / InmateSales | Call 877-998-5678 or use inmatesales.com |
| Text / communication device | CTEL | Inmate completes a contract before device assignment |
| In-person deposits | Kiosk at Owyhee County Sheriff's Office | Accepts cash and Visa/debit cards |
| Money order | Brought or mailed | Checks not accepted; cash by mail not recommended |
| Commissary | JAILATM | Use jailatm.com for commissary accounts |
Accepted items at the jail are limited. The official list includes prescribed medications, reading or prescription glasses, money orders, attorney legal papers, and approved religious items. Inmates can buy commissary items if they have money, but the county did not publish commissary pricing, JAILATM fees, spending limits, or tablet pricing in the reviewed source.
Owyhee County Jail Booking
Owyhee County Jail receives people arrested in Owyhee County and people reporting for court-ordered jail time. Idaho Code 20-601 requires an arrested person taken to county jail to submit to the full booking process, including a photograph and fingerprints. The public roster creates a booking number, but the inspected PDF did not show booking date, booking photo, charges, bond, or court date. Use the Owyhee County jail inmate records process when a roster listing needs more detail.
Court commits have local instructions. The jail page says court commits must bring valid picture ID and a copy of court-commit paperwork. For Owyhee County charges involving Owyhee County residents, jail fees are listed as $25 per day with a $500 limit, and the jail asks court commits to bring fees when checking in. Out-of-county court commits are at the jail commander's discretion, and callers are told to call ahead to schedule.
Idaho Code 20-602 also matters inside the facility. It requires county jails to separate male and female prisoners, separate juveniles processed as adults, and use an objective inmate classification system documented through the Idaho Sheriffs' Association jail inspection program. Owyhee County does not publish housing-unit names or pod maps in the public jail page.
About Owyhee County Jail
The county says the first jail was in Silver City and later moved to Murphy when the courthouse moved. The current jail was built in 1992 with room for 40 bunks. The county also reports that because Owyhee County does not always fill all beds, it rents unused beds to other counties and the State of Idaho. In 2019, rented-bed revenue was reported as more than $284,000 into the county general fund.
Jail operations include meals three times daily, with inmates required to be offered 2,500 calories per day. Inmates may clean, cook, and do minor maintenance, which the county describes as reducing the need for a cook or custodian. The jail page says the facility has passed State of Idaho jail inspection requirements every year since the new jail was built. No recent official county jail reform notice, litigation notice, consent decree, closure, or new jail construction announcement was located in the reviewed county sources.
The official jail page is also the source for the facility screenshot used here. The Owyhee County Sheriff's jail page shows the local roster, warrant, visitation, mail, commissary, and jail history sections in one place.
The screenshot reflects the official county source used for the jail roster path and the facility rules summarized above.
Note: Confirm custody, visit status, and accepted items with Owyhee County Jail before traveling or sending money.