The Livingston County Inmate Population
The Livingston County inmate population is not one number. It splits across two very different systems. The county jail in Pontiac holds people arrested in the county, and a large state prison on the same street holds sentenced men from across Illinois. The sheriff runs the jail. The Illinois Department of Corrections runs the prison. A person counted in one is not counted in the other.
Day to day, the count rises and falls with arrests, court decisions, and transfers. A new booking adds to the jail. A release, a bond hearing, or a move to state prison takes a name off the local count. The most recent official jail figure comes from a state inspection, and the prison numbers come from a state annual report. Both are public, and both are explained further down this page.
The Livingston County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff Ryan Bohm, operates the jail at the Public Safety Complex in Pontiac. The official jail page describes its job as holding people committed to custody in a secure and cost effective way while it follows state jail standards.
The county jail page is the clearest starting point for the local side of the inmate population. The screenshot below comes from the official Livingston County Jail page.
That page links to detainee contact rules, mail, visitation, and the state inmate search, which together frame how the local inmate population is held and looked up.
Livingston County Inmate Population Statistics
The hard numbers for the Livingston County jail population come from the state. The Illinois Department of Corrections inspected the jail on November 7, 2023 and recorded the bed capacity and the day's head count. The sheriff's own pages give the same rated capacity. These are the strongest sourced figures for the local inmate population.
The table below gathers the official jail figures with a source and year for each. Numbers without a public source are left out on purpose, because a sourced data page should never guess at a count.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| Rated bed capacity | 179 beds | Sheriff About Us; IDOC inspection, 2023 |
| Male capacity | 145 beds | IDOC 2023 jail inspection |
| Female capacity | 34 beds | IDOC 2023 jail inspection |
| Inspection-day population | 168 total | IDOC inspection, Nov. 7, 2023 |
| Capacity used that day | About 94% | Derived from IDOC 2023 inspection |
| Full-time jail staff | 29 officers | IDOC 2023 jail inspection |
Note: The 2023 inspection figure is a single-day count, not a yearly average, so it marks one point in time rather than a trend.
Livingston County Inmate Population Trends
A clean multi-year trend line for the county jail is hard to publish, because the state collects monthly jail counts in a database that is not posted as an easy public download for each county. The Department of Corrections Jail and Detention Standards Unit gathers those monthly reports and sends them to a state research agency once a year. For the jail itself, the 2023 inspection number is the firm public marker.
The prison side has fresher figures. The points below mix the county jail and the state prison on purpose, and the dates differ, so they should be read as separate markers and not added into one current total.
| Date | Population / ADP | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 7, 2023 | 168 jail detainees | IDOC jail inspection; 179 capacity, about 94% full |
| June 30, 2024 | 0 at Medium Security Unit | IDOC facility page; unit listed with zero population |
| FY25 / June 30, 2025 | 514 at Pontiac prison; 558 ADP | IDOC FY25 Annual Report |
Who Makes Up the Livingston County Inmate Population
The jail count breaks down by sex in the 2023 inspection. On the inspection day the jail held 152 men and 16 women, against 145 male beds and 34 female beds. That means the male side ran slightly above its own rated capacity while the female side sat well under. The jail lists no juvenile beds at all.
- Pre-trial and short-sentence - the jail holds people awaiting court and those serving local terms, plus people awaiting transfer to another agency.
- Men and women - 152 male and 16 female on the 2023 inspection day, per the state inspection.
- Federal holds - the jail says it houses and transports U.S. Marshal detainees under an intergovernmental agreement.
- Medical and mental-health needs - the county jail page notes a mental-health provider inside its medical group.
A full race or charge-level breakdown for the jail is not posted in the official sources, so those splits are left out rather than estimated.
Livingston County Jail Capacity and Crowding
The jail was built in 2005 on one detention floor. Its housing mix includes six eight-person dorms, two twelve-person dorms, 17 single rooms, and 45 double rooms. Total rated capacity is 179 beds.
On the 2023 inspection day the jail held 168 of those 179 beds, about 94 percent. The pressure was not even, though. The male side held 152 against 145 male beds, so it ran over its own rated male capacity, while the female side held 16 of 34. No consent decree, jail-death finding, or new-jail construction project appeared in the official county pages reviewed, so the crowding picture is best read as tight on the male side rather than a facility in crisis.
Laws Governing the Livingston County Inmate Population
Several Illinois laws make the inmate population a matter of public record and set the rules the jail must follow. The state open-records law gives the public a right to inspect jail and sheriff records. Other laws name the sheriff as the jail's warden, let the state set jail standards, require annual inspections that are open to the public, and force custody deaths to be reported. Pretrial release rules shape who stays in the jail at all.
Key Statutes:
5 ILCS 140 - the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, which makes jail and sheriff records public unless an exemption applies.
730 ILCS 125 - the County Jail Act, which makes the sheriff the warden of the county jail and keeper of those committed to it.
730 ILCS 5/3-15-2 - gives the state authority to set jail standards for health, safety, medical care, and mental health.
730 ILCS 5/3-15-3 - requires an annual jail inspection whose results are open for public review.
730 ILCS 210/3-5 - the Reporting of Deaths in Custody Act, which sends custody-death data to a state research agency.
The state Jail and Detention Standards Unit collects detainee population counts from county jails each month and inspects each jail at least once a year. Serious problems can be referred up to the state Attorney General. That oversight is why a firm 2023 jail figure exists at all.
Livingston County and the State Prison Population
Pontiac Correctional Center is a maximum-security state prison in Pontiac, on the same street as the jail. It is run by the Illinois Department of Corrections, not the sheriff, and it holds sentenced adult men from across the state, not local pre-trial detainees. Its FY25 annual report listed 514 people on June 30, 2025 and an average daily population of 558.
Because the prison is so much larger than the jail, it can confuse a Livingston County inmate search. A sentenced man at Pontiac is in state custody and is found through the state locator, even though he sits inside county lines. When a person is sentenced and moves from the jail to a state prison, the search system changes from the sheriff to the state.
The official Pontiac Correctional Center page describes the campus and its units. The screenshot below shows that state facility page.
That page is the right reference for the prison side of the county's inmate count, and it is separate from anything the sheriff publishes.
How to Search the Livingston County Inmate Population
Here is the part that surprises many searchers. Livingston County does not publish a current online jail roster. The official county and sheriff sites link to detainee mail, visitation, deposits, and the state inmate search, but not to a searchable list of who is in the jail right now. So a Livingston County inmate search runs on a chain of fallbacks, not one web form.
Before you start, gather the person's full name, date of birth if you have it, the rough arrest date, and the arresting agency if known. Then work the steps in order.
- Call the jail's general information line at 815-844-5774 to ask whether the person is in county custody now.
- If a local police department made the arrest, ask which agency booked the person and whether they went to the county jail.
- File a written public-records request with the sheriff for a booking sheet, custody dates, or a booking photo that is not online.
- Search the court case portal once charges are filed, and check the state locator if the person was sentenced to prison.
- For a federal or immigration hold, use the federal Bureau of Prisons or ICE locator instead of the county jail.
Note: A "Livingston County jail roster" search online may return rosters from other Livingston counties in Missouri or Michigan, which are not this Illinois jail.
Current Inmate Lookup in Livingston County
With no public roster, the live lookup is mostly a phone call and a records request. The table below sets out the working channels for a current Livingston County inmate search, since there is no portal search form to fill in. The jail line is the fastest way to confirm someone is in custody today.
| Channel | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jail information line | Phone | n/a | 815-844-5774 for current custody; 815-842-8079 for jail administration |
| Sheriff's Office | Phone | n/a | 815-844-2774, or non-emergency dispatch 815-844-0911 |
| Written FOIA request | Written | n/a | Booking sheet, custody dates, charges; by mail, fax, email, or in person |
| State inmate locator | Online | n/a | Use IDOC once a person is sentenced and moved to prison |
Past and Released Inmate Records
There is no county release list or searchable booking archive online. To confirm that someone was released, transferred, or never booked, the jail phone line is again the first stop. For written proof of custody dates, a public-records request to the sheriff is the official route, and the county answers records requests within five business days.
If the person reached the court stage, the formal case record lives with the Circuit Clerk and the Judici case portal, which keep charges, hearings, and dispositions long after a jail stay ends. If the person was sentenced to prison, the state locator becomes the active custody source once the jail record stops at transfer.
What a Livingston County Inmate Record Shows
Because no roster profile is posted online, the public cannot rely on an official web field set for the jail. Still, the state inspection checklist and the detainee handbook show what the jail itself records on each person. The fields below are jail-record categories, not a public web display, so any request should ask for the part that is releasable.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Name and identity | Verified at admission, with a record opened for each detainee. |
| Booking date and authority | Receiving officers confirm the legal basis for the hold. |
| Fingerprints and photo | Taken at intake in line with current law. |
| Classification and housing | Security level set at intake and reviewed at least every 60 days. |
| Court and disposition | Case, judge, and court outcome kept in the jail file. |
| Release or transfer | Date, time, and authority of release, including any move to state prison. |
County Jail vs. State Prison: Where to Look
Sorting the jail from the prison is the single most useful step in any Livingston County inmate search. Pre-trial detainees and people with short county sentences are in the jail. Sentenced felons are in a state prison and use a separate locator. The comparison below makes the split plain.
| County Jail | State Prison (IDOC) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who Is Held | Pre-trial and short sentences | Sentenced felons |
| Run By | Livingston County Sheriff | Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) |
| Where to Look | Jail phone line and FOIA, no public roster | State individual in custody search |
| Stays Listed | No online list; records by request | Listed while in state custody |
State and Federal Inmate Search
Three outside locators round out a Livingston County inmate search when the jail is not the right place to look. The state runs a sentenced-prisoner search, and two federal systems cover federal and immigration custody. Each one covers a different slice of the broader inmate population.
- Illinois Department of Corrections - the statewide search for people sentenced to state prison, including those at Pontiac.
- Federal Bureau of Prisons - federal inmates from 1982 to the present, by name or register number.
- ICE Online Detainee Locator - people in immigration custody, by A-number or by name with country and date of birth.
- VINELink - custody and release notifications, useful when a victim or family member needs an alert.
The state search page is the one most county searchers end up needing after a sentencing. The screenshot below shows the official state individual in custody search.
It is a free public tool, and it is the correct stop once a person leaves the county jail for a state prison.
Livingston County Detention Facilities
Three detention facilities make up the formal Livingston County inmate population, one county jail and two state-prison listings on the Pontiac campus. Each holds a different group, and each has its own page on this site.
- Livingston County Jail - the sheriff's jail in Pontiac for pre-trial detainees and short county sentences.
- Pontiac Correctional Center - a maximum-security state prison for sentenced adult men, run by the state.
- Pontiac Medium Security Unit - a state-listed medium unit on the Pontiac campus, shown with zero current population.
Livingston County Inmate Population FAQ
How big is the Livingston County inmate population?
The county jail held 168 people on its 2023 state inspection, against a rated capacity of 179. The state prison in Pontiac is far larger, with 514 people on June 30, 2025 per the state annual report. The two are counted by different agencies and should not be added into one current total, since the dates differ.
How do I search the Livingston County inmate population?
There is no public online jail roster. Start with the jail information line at 815-844-5774 to ask about current custody. For written records, file a public-records request with the sheriff. For a sentenced prisoner, use the state locator, and for court charges, use the Judici case portal.
Can I look up a released or past inmate?
No county archive is posted online. The jail can say whether a person was released or transferred, and a records request to the sheriff gives written proof of custody dates. Court cases stay searchable through the Circuit Clerk and Judici long after a jail stay ends.
Is Pontiac Correctional Center part of the county jail?
No. Pontiac Correctional Center is a state prison run by the Illinois Department of Corrections. It holds sentenced men from across the state, not local pre-trial detainees, and it is searched through the state locator rather than the sheriff.
Does the jail hold federal inmates?
The jail says it houses and transports U.S. Marshal detainees under an intergovernmental agreement. A federal defendant may pass through the local jail, but sentenced federal custody is searched through the federal Bureau of Prisons.
Why can I not find a Livingston County mugshot online?
No official county booking-photo gallery was located. A booking photo is taken at intake, but seeing it usually means a public-records request to the sheriff. Commercial mugshot sites are not official and are not used here.
Quick Definitions
- Pre-trial detainee
- A person held before a case is decided, the largest group in most county jails.
- Sentenced misdemeanant
- A person serving a short local term in the county jail rather than a state prison.
- Classification
- The jail's review of charges and history that sets a person's security level and housing.
- Detainer
- A hold placed by another agency, such as the state, the U.S. Marshals, or ICE.
- IDOC
- The Illinois Department of Corrections, the state prison system for sentenced people.