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KY · Find someone in custody

How do I find someone in jail or prison in Kentucky?

Take a breath. You can find where your person is being held in Kentucky using official sources — here is exactly where to look and what to have ready.

State locator
Kentucky DOC KOOL
VINELink
Covers Kentucky
Last verified
2026-07-23
Jurisdiction
Kentucky

Which system is holding them in Kentucky?

There is no single search that covers everyone. Match the situation to the right official locator — most families start with the first one.

If the arrest was recent

Start with the county jail

Someone who was just arrested in Kentucky is almost always in a COUNTY JAIL, not in a state prison, so KOOL will not show them.

Kentucky has 120 counties, and most county jails are run by an elected county jailer, with no single statewide jail roster.

Some jails publish an online roster (larger jurisdictions such as Louisville Metro Department of Corrections in Jefferson County, and Fayette County, Lexington), but coverage varies and many smaller jails have nothing online.

The reliable paths for a recent arrest are the county jail's online roster, VINELink, or calling the jail's booking desk.

Kentucky has 120 counties, with jails run by elected county jailers; some post an online roster and many do not, and there is no unified statewide county-jail search, so use VINELink or the county jail where the arrest happened.

Search VINELink (choose Kentucky)

If they were sentenced to prison

Use the state prison locator

KOOL (Kentucky Online Offender Lookup) is the Kentucky Department of Corrections' public offender search.

Search by last and first name or by PID number for people in Kentucky DOC custody or under DOC supervision.

It covers the state prison population, not people in county jails or people just arrested.

The KY DOC hosts an information page about KOOL and links out to the KOOL search application.

Open the Kentucky inmate locator

If the charge is federal

Search the Federal Bureau of Prisons

A federal charge means the person is in the federal system, not a Kentucky state or county facility. Search the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator by name or register number — it is separate from every state and county tool.

Search the Federal BOP locator

Find your county in Kentucky

A recent arrest is handled at the county jail. Open the county where the arrest happened for its facilities, phone numbers, and the exact locators to search — all 120 Kentucky jurisdictions are here.

120 counties

Finding your person in Kentucky, step by step

Work through these in order. Each step points to an official source — you do the searching there, on the government site.

  1. Step 1

    Figure out which system is likely holding them

    A person arrested in the last hours or days is almost always in the county jail where the arrest happened. A person already sentenced and transferred is in a state prison (Kentucky DOC). A person facing federal charges is in federal custody. Match the situation to the right official locator below.

    Official source

  2. Step 2

    For a recent arrest, check the county jail roster or search VINELink

    Look up the jail for the county where the arrest happened and check its online roster if it has one (for example, Louisville Metro Corrections for Jefferson County arrests). Or use VINELink, the national custody-status system, which pulls near-real-time booking information from participating Kentucky jails and prisons and lets you register free for alerts when custody status changes.

    Official source

  3. Step 3

    For a sentenced person, search Kentucky DOC KOOL

    Open KOOL (Kentucky Online Offender Lookup) and search by full name or PID number. It covers people in Kentucky state prison custody or under DOC supervision, not county jails or brand-new arrests.

    Official source

  4. Step 4

    If the charge is federal, use the Federal Bureau of Prisons locator

    The federal BOP inmate locator at bop.gov covers people held in federal custody and is separate from state and county systems.

    Official source

  5. Step 5

    If no online roster shows them, call the jail's booking or records line

    Smaller Kentucky jails may not post inmates online, and someone booked in the last few hours may not appear yet. Call the county jail's booking or records desk and ask whether the person was booked, their booking number, any bond amount, and the next court date.

What you’ll need to search

You can start with just a name, but these make a match faster and surer.

  • The person's full legal name, plus any middle name, maiden name, alias, or spelling variations (common names return many results).
  • Their date of birth, which official locators use to tell apart people with similar names.
  • If you have it, the assigned booking number (county jail) or PID number (state prison), which returns the most exact match, though a name search is enough to start.

Use official, free sources — and a few things to watch for

  • Use only official government sources: KOOL, the county jail's own roster, VINELink, or the Federal Bureau of Prisons. All are free.
  • Be wary of paid 'inmate search' and mugshot websites that rank high in search results. They often charge fees for information the official sites provide free and may show stale, incomplete, or already-expunged records.
  • Custody information changes constantly. A person booked in the last few hours may not appear online yet; if you cannot find them, call the jail's booking or records line directly.
  • This tool only links to official sources. It does not store, search, or republish any inmate records itself.

How release works in Kentucky

Finding the person comes first. Once you know where they are, this is how getting them out works in Kentucky.

No commercial bail

In Kentucky, there is no commercial bail-bond industry — there is no bondsman to hire and no premium to pay. A judge decides whether the person is released, often on their own recognizance or on set conditions, and any money bail the court orders is paid directly to the court.

Kentucky does not have commercial bail bondsmen.

Since 1976, Kentucky law (KRS 431.510) has made it unlawful for anyone to engage in the business of bail bonding for compensation, so there is no private, for-profit bail-bond industry to hire.

Instead, Kentucky uses a public pretrial system: after arrest, Pretrial Services (a division of the Kentucky Court of Justice / Administrative Office of the Courts) interviews the person and reports to a judge, who sets conditions of release.

A person may be released on their own recognizance or on nonfinancial conditions, or a judge may set money bail.

Where money bail is set, it is posted directly with the court, commonly by depositing 10 percent of the bail amount with the circuit court clerk, rather than by paying a bondsman.

Most of that deposit is returned when the case concludes.

The person’s rights. The person in custody has the right to talk to a lawyer about their case, and if they cannot afford one, the court can appoint a public defender.

Other official Kentucky contacts

County jails are run by the sheriff where the arrest happened — call that jail’s booking or records line for a very recent booking or the bail amount. These statewide sources can also help.

Common questions about finding someone in Kentucky

How do I find someone who was just arrested in Kentucky?

Someone who was just arrested in Kentucky is almost always in a COUNTY JAIL, not in a state prison, so KOOL will not show them. Kentucky has 120 counties, and most county jails are run by an elected county jailer, with no single statewide jail roster. Some jails publish an online roster (larger jurisdictions such as Louisville Metro Department of Corrections in Jefferson County, and Fayette County, Lexington), but coverage varies and many smaller jails have nothing online. The reliable paths for a recent arrest are the county jail's online roster, VINELink, or calling the jail's booking desk.

How do I find someone in state prison in Kentucky?

KOOL (Kentucky Online Offender Lookup) is the Kentucky Department of Corrections' public offender search. Search by last and first name or by PID number for people in Kentucky DOC custody or under DOC supervision. It covers the state prison population, not people in county jails or people just arrested. The KY DOC hosts an information page about KOOL and links out to the KOOL search application.

Is there a free way to check if someone is in custody in Kentucky?

Yes. VINELink (the free national custody service) covers Kentucky. Search by name for custody status and register for free alerts. County jail rosters and the state locator are also free and official.

What do I need to look someone up in Kentucky?

The person's full legal name, plus any middle name, maiden name, alias, or spelling variations (common names return many results). Their date of birth, which official locators use to tell apart people with similar names. If you have it, the assigned booking number (county jail) or PID number (state prison), which returns the most exact match, though a name search is enough to start.

Does Kentucky have commercial bail bondsmen?

No. Kentucky has no commercial bail-bond industry, so there is no bondsman to hire and no premium to pay. A judge decides release, commonly on recognizance or on conditions, and any money bail is paid directly to the court.

Sources & last verified

Everything here links out to official government or public-safety sources. We don’t store, search, or republish records.

Last verified 2026-07-23 · 9 sources