The Broward County jail roster is a publicly accessible record of individuals currently held in county detention facilities in Florida. BrowardCourt.us can help you find publicly available information about current and recent inmates. You can also access jail roster information through the Broward Sheriff's Office website, by calling the jail directly, or by visiting in person. A jail roster search lets the public confirm whether someone is in custody, view current charges, and find booking details. The Broward Sheriff's Office (BSO) Department of Detention maintains the roster, which is updated regularly and hosted on the BSO website. Under the Florida Public Records Act, this information serves as a transparency tool so residents can verify who is being held in county facilities.
Search Current Inmates in Broward Jail
There are several ways to look up someone currently held in a Broward County jail facility.
Online Search
- Visit the Broward Sheriff's Office inmate search page at sheriff.org. The BSO provides a searchable database of current inmates held in its detention facilities.
- Enter the individual's last name and first name, or use a booking number if you have one.
- Review the results, which typically display the inmate's full legal name, date of birth, booking date, charges, bond amount, and housing facility.
You can also use BrowardCourt.us to search for publicly available court record information tied to a specific case or individual. For related criminal case details, the Broward County Clerk of Courts case search lets you look up warrants, misdemeanors, felonies, and traffic criminal cases.
The Florida Department of State's county jail directory also links to Broward County's inmate search tools.
By Phone
Call the Broward Sheriff's Office main jail to ask about a specific inmate's custody status. You will need the person's full legal name and date of birth.
In Person
You can visit the main jail facility and inquire at the public information window during lobby hours.
Broward County Main Jail
What you need to search:
- Full legal name (first and last) of the individual
- Booking number, if known
- Date of birth can help narrow results for common names
Juvenile offenders are excluded from the public roster. Records for individuals under 18 are confidential under Florida law and will not appear in any public search tool.
Find Broward Jail Booking Records Online
A booking record is created each time an individual is processed into a Broward County detention facility. During booking, jail staff record key details that become part of the public record:
- Booking number — a unique identifier assigned at intake
- Booking date and time
- Charges — the specific offenses listed at the time of arrest
- Arresting agency — which law enforcement agency made the arrest (BSO, Fort Lauderdale PD, municipal police, etc.)
- Bond amount, if applicable
- Mugshot
The primary way to access booking records online is through the BSO inmate search on the sheriff's website. This tool displays booking details for individuals currently in custody.
For court-side records tied to a booking — such as charging documents, arraignment dates, or case dispositions — use the Broward County Clerk of Courts public case search. If you need certified copies of court documents, the Clerk's office provides an online records request option.
If the person has been transferred to state prison, use the Florida Department of Corrections inmate locator instead. The county jail roster only covers individuals in BSO custody — not those serving state sentences.
Search the Broward Jail Roster by Last Name or Booking Number
The BSO inmate search supports two primary search methods:
Search by Last Name
- Enter the individual's last name in the surname field.
- Optionally add a first name to narrow results. This is especially helpful for common surnames.
- Review the list of matching results. Each entry shows the inmate's name, booking number, charges, and facility location.
Tips for name searches:
- Use the person's full legal name, not a nickname or alias.
- Double-check spelling — a single wrong letter can cause the search to return no results.
- If the system supports partial name searches, try entering just the first few letters of the last name to broaden results.
- Hyphenated or compound last names may be entered differently than expected. Try variations.
Search by Booking Number
If you already have a booking number (from a bond receipt, attorney, or prior search), enter it directly. This returns the exact record without needing to sort through multiple results.
No Results?
If your search returns nothing, consider these possibilities:
- The person may not yet be fully processed into the system — there is often a delay between arrest and roster appearance.
- The individual may have already been released on bond or transferred.
- The name may be spelled differently in the system than you expect.
- The person may be held in a municipal lockup rather than a BSO facility.
- If you believe someone has an active Florida warrant, check the FDLE Wanted Persons search.
Jail Roster Updates and Search Limitations in Broward
The Broward Sheriff's Office updates its online inmate roster frequently throughout the day. However, the roster is not perfectly real-time. There are practical limitations users should understand:
- Processing delays: After an arrest, it can take several hours for an individual to appear on the roster. Booking involves intake paperwork, fingerprinting, medical screening, and data entry — all of which must be completed before the record goes live.
- Release lag: When an inmate posts bond or is otherwise released, the record may remain visible for a short period before being removed.
- Data entry variations: Names, charges, or booking details may be updated or corrected after initial entry. What you see at one point may differ slightly from what appears later.
- Current custody only: The public roster reflects who is in BSO custody right now. It is not an archive. Once someone is released or transferred, their record is typically removed from the searchable roster.
For historical booking records or records of individuals no longer in custody, you may need to submit a public records request to the Broward Sheriff's Office. Florida's public records law generally requires government agencies to provide access to non-exempt records upon request, though processing times and copy fees may apply.
If you are looking for someone who may have been transferred to a state correctional facility, the Florida Department of Corrections inmate search covers individuals serving state prison sentences. For federal cases in South Florida, check the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida or the federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator.