Alameda County Booking Records
Alameda County 72 hour booking records are kept by the sheriff's office at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin. This is one of the largest jails in Northern California. The county posts booking data through an online inmate search tool that is free to use. You can look up who has been booked in the past 72 hours, check charges, and find bail amounts. The Alameda County Sheriff runs the Citizen RIMS system for public access to jail data. California law says this data must be public. Anyone can search it at any time, and no fee is charged for online lookups.
Alameda County Booking Quick Facts
Alameda County Booking Law
California requires all booking records to be public. Government Code §7923.610 spells out what must be shared when someone is booked into jail. The law covers the full name of the person, their date of birth, a physical description, the time and date of arrest, and the time and date of booking. It also includes the location of the arrest, the bail amount set, all charges filed, and where the person is held. No agency can refuse to share this. The Alameda County Sheriff must follow this law just like every other sheriff in California.
The booking data is part of the California Public Records Act. While some law enforcement files can stay sealed, booking records are a clear exception. If the sheriff's office denies a booking records request, the person asking can file a complaint or take legal action. In practice, Alameda County makes this easy by posting the data on its website.
Arrested people in Alameda County also have rights at the time of booking. Penal Code §851.5 gives every person booked into jail the right to at least three phone calls within three hours. Those calls can go to a lawyer, bail agent, or family. The jail cannot charge for them.
Alameda Inmate Search Tool
The main way to search Alameda County booking records online is through the sheriff's Inmate Locator. You can find this tool at the Alameda County Sheriff Inmate Locator page. It uses the Citizen RIMS system, which is a platform used by several California counties for jail data. Just type in a first or last name and hit search. The results will show who is in custody at Santa Rita Jail right now.
The Alameda County inmate search tool at the sheriff's website lets you look up booking records and check jail status for people held at Santa Rita.
Results from the locator show the person's name, booking number, charges, and bail amount. You can also see the date they were booked. This helps confirm if someone was arrested recently. The tool is free and works on any device. You do not need to create an account or log in.
The Citizen RIMS system behind the Alameda County search tool is cloud-based. It pulls live data from the jail management system at Santa Rita. Updates happen throughout the day as new bookings come in and people are released. If a person was just booked in the last few hours, there may be a short delay before they show up in search results. Give it some time, then try the search again.
Note: Alameda County booking records shown online reflect current custody status and may not include people who have already been released.
Santa Rita Jail Booking Process
Santa Rita Jail in Dublin is where all Alameda County bookings take place. It is the main detention facility for the county. Law enforcement from Oakland, Fremont, Hayward, Berkeley, and other Alameda County cities bring arrested people here. The jail handles thousands of bookings each year. During the booking process, staff record the person's name, date of birth, height, weight, and other details. They take a photo and collect fingerprints. Charges are logged, and bail is set based on the county bail schedule.
The jail sits at 5325 Broder Boulevard in Dublin. It is open for visits and inquiries at set times during the week. If you need to visit someone in custody or drop off property, check the sheriff's website for current hours. The main phone line for Santa Rita Jail is (925) 551-6500. You can call to ask about a recent booking or check on an inmate's status.
Alameda County also uses VINELink for victim notification. This free service lets people track the custody status of someone in jail and get alerts if the person is released or moved. You can sign up on the VINELink website using the inmate's name or booking number.
Alameda County Arrest Records
Booking records and arrest records are closely tied but not the same thing. A booking record is what gets created when the jail processes someone. An arrest record is broader and may include the police report, incident details, and case information. In Alameda County, the sheriff handles jail booking records. City police departments handle arrest reports for incidents in their jurisdictions. For a full arrest report in Oakland, you would contact the Oakland Police Department. For arrests in Fremont, you go to the Fremont Police Department.
But here is the key point. The 72 hour booking record is always public in Alameda County. Arrest reports can have more restrictions. Some parts of an arrest report may be sealed or redacted if there is an active investigation. The booking record itself cannot be held back. It is covered by state law, and Alameda County posts it freely online through the inmate locator tool.
Alameda Booking Records by Mail
If you want a printed copy of a booking record from Alameda County, you can request one from the sheriff's office. Send a written request to the Alameda County Sheriff's Office, Records Division, at 1401 Lakeside Drive, Oakland, CA 94612. Include the full name of the person, an approximate date of booking, and any other details you have. The office may charge a small fee for copies. Response times vary but typically fall within 10 business days as required by the California Public Records Act.
Phone requests are another option. Call the records division to ask about a specific booking. They can confirm basic details over the phone in most cases. For certified copies or records needed for court, a formal written request is usually needed.
Note: Online searches through the Alameda County inmate locator are the fastest way to check recent bookings and cost nothing.
Cities in Alameda County
Alameda County is home to several large cities. Oakland is the county seat and the biggest city. Other cities with populations over 100,000 include Fremont, Hayward, and Berkeley. Each of these cities has its own police department, but all jail bookings go through the Alameda County Sheriff at Santa Rita Jail. If someone is arrested in any Alameda County city, the booking record ends up in the same county system.
Smaller cities in Alameda County like Pleasanton, Livermore, Union City, and Newark also route bookings through Santa Rita Jail. The same search tool covers all of them.
Nearby County Booking Records
Looking for booking records in a county near Alameda? These adjacent counties also have jail search tools and booking logs.