El Monte Inmate Lookup

El Monte inmate population records are handled by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. Around 113,000 people live in El Monte, which sits in the San Gabriel Valley east of downtown LA. The city has its own police department, but there is no city jail. When El Monte police arrest someone, the person transfers to an LA County Sheriff facility for booking and custody. The county runs a free online inmate search that covers all jail locations. You can look up any El Monte inmate by name and find their charges, bail, facility, and court date.

LA County Jail System for El Monte

Los Angeles County operates the largest jail system in the country. More than 12,000 inmates are housed across seven facilities on any given day. People arrested in El Monte get booked into one of these locations. The Inmate Reception Center in downtown LA handles most initial bookings for the county. From there, inmates are classified and moved to the appropriate facility. Twin Towers Correctional Facility, Men's Central Jail, and the North County Correctional Facility in Castaic are among the locations where El Monte inmates may be held.

The LA County Sheriff's Inmate Information Center is the main search tool. Go to app5.lasd.org/iic and enter a name. The results show current inmates matching that name across all LA County jails. Each listing includes the booking number, charges, bail, court date, and facility. If someone was arrested in El Monte and processed into county custody, they appear in this system. The search is free. It updates multiple times per day, but a very recent booking may take a few hours to show up.

The LA County Sheriff Inmate Information Center is shown below. This is where you search for El Monte inmates in county custody.

Call (213) 473-6100 for phone inquiries about El Monte inmates. The custody division can look up a person by name or booking number. Phone lines can be busy, so the online tool is usually the faster option for basic custody status checks.

El Monte Police Department

El Monte Police Department covers law enforcement for the city. The station is at 11333 Valley Boulevard. Call (626) 580-2100 for general inquiries. Officers patrol El Monte, respond to calls, and make arrests. But once an arrest happens, the person goes to county custody. El Monte does not have its own jail facility. The police department handles the initial arrest report and paperwork. After that, the LA County Sheriff takes over.

For copies of arrest reports from El Monte cases, contact the police department records division. Reports are available for a small copy fee during business hours. The records division handles public records requests related to El Monte incidents. If you need to know where someone was taken after arrest, call the station. Staff can sometimes tell you which county facility received the person. But for ongoing custody status, you need the sheriff's inmate search tool or the custody phone line.

El Monte sits in the San Gabriel Valley alongside cities like West Covina and Pasadena. Each has its own police force, but all use the LA County jail system. The sheriff handles inmate custody for the entire county regardless of which local department made the arrest.

Note: El Monte police handle arrests within city limits, but the LA County Sheriff manages all jail operations after booking.

Statewide Inmate Search Tools

VINELink searches across all 58 California counties. If you cannot find an El Monte inmate in the LA County system, VINE may help. It is also useful when you are not sure which county someone ended up in. VINE sends custody alerts too. Sign up to get a call, text, or email when an inmate's status changes. The phone number is 1-877-411-5588. It works 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The CIRIS inmate locator covers all 34 California state prisons. If someone from El Monte was convicted and sentenced to state prison, they leave the LA County jail system and enter CDCR custody. CIRIS shows their current prison, admission date, and parole hearing schedule. Search by name or CDCR number. The tool is free. It does not include county jail inmates though, so use the sheriff's tool for people still in LA County custody.

The BSCC Jail Profile Survey publishes monthly jail population data for every California county, including Los Angeles. This data tracks average daily population, total bookings, and jail capacity over time. It provides context for how the El Monte area jail population fits into the larger county picture.

El Monte Inmate Records Access

Basic booking data is public under California law. Government Code 6254(f) requires law enforcement agencies to release arrest and booking records. For El Monte inmates, this means names, charges, bail amounts, and booking dates are available to anyone. The LA County Sheriff posts this data through the online Inmate Information Center. No formal request is needed.

Full criminal history is restricted. Penal Code 11105 controls who can access criminal records from the California DOJ. The inmate search only shows current custody. It is not a background check. To get your own criminal record, go to a Live Scan provider in the El Monte area and pay the $25 DOJ fee. Several Live Scan locations operate in the San Gabriel Valley. Results typically take one to two weeks to arrive.

Under Penal Code 2081.5, CDCR must notify victims when certain inmates are released from state prison. If you are a registered victim in an El Monte case, you may receive automatic updates about the offender's status. This is separate from the VINE alert system, though both serve similar purposes for different types of custody.

Contacting El Monte Inmates

El Monte inmates in LA County custody can receive visits at the facility where they are housed. Each LA County jail has its own visiting schedule and rules. You need a valid photo ID. Video visits are available at some locations. Check the LA County Sheriff's website for the current schedule at the specific facility holding the person you want to visit.

Phone calls from LA County jail carry per-minute fees through the contracted phone provider. Families can deposit money into an inmate's phone account online. Mail goes to the specific facility. Include the inmate's full name and booking number on all correspondence. Electronic messaging and commissary deposits are available through approved vendors. For El Monte inmates who have moved to state prison, the CDCR ID Unit at (916) 445-6713 can help verify identification numbers for contact and visiting purposes.

Nearby Cities

These cities are near El Monte in the San Gabriel Valley and use the same LA County Sheriff jail system.

Los Angeles County

El Monte is part of Los Angeles County. See the full county page for details on all jail facilities and the sheriff's inmate search system.