Monroe County Jail Overview
Monroe County Jail is operated by the Monroe County Sheriff's Office Jail Bureau at 130 South Plymouth Avenue, Rochester, NY 14614. The sheriff's jail system is the local custody point for people awaiting arraignment, trial, transfer, local sentence service, or other court action in Monroe County. The public records also show other categories when they apply, including federal or U.S. Marshals holds listed in the Monroe jail census. That does not make the jail a federal prison; it means a local jail bed may be used for a person held under a federal custody arrangement.
The Sheriff's Jail Bureau describes the jail as a 1,217-bed holding facility for pre-trial and sentenced incarcerated individuals. The important practical point is that Monroe County Jail is broader than a short-term police lockup. It is the county jail system's public-facing custody center, with a roster, a detailed census, a received report, and a released report published through Monroe County government PDF links. STAR Academy at the Monroe Correctional Facility is also part of the sheriff's corrections footprint, but the primary roster and jail information line are tied to the same sheriff system.
The Monroe County Sheriff's Jail Bureau page is the official public source for the jail capacity, the downtown Rochester jail address, phone numbers, roster links, visitation notes, money-deposit channels, and specialized units.
Monroe County Jail Capacity and Population
The official rated capacity published by the Sheriff's Jail Bureau is 1,217 beds for the Monroe County Sheriff's jail system. The latest visible Monroe row in the New York DCJS Jail Population by Month report showed about 753 average daily census, with the same visible row showing in-house, sentenced, civil, boarded-in, boarded-out, and other unsentenced categories. Because rated capacity and average daily census are different measurements, the comparison is best read as an approximate operating snapshot rather than a live bed count.
The DCJS and Vera figures in the research show why a single roster view is not enough for population context. Vera reported 1,342 average daily population in 2012 and 597 in June 2020, while a separate Vera trends fact sheet reported 757 people on an average day in May 2022. The latest visible DCJS number of about 753 is close to that 2022 level and is below the published 1,217-bed capacity. The Monroe jail census remains the current person-by-person public report, while DCJS and Vera reports describe broader trends.
How to Look Up an Inmate at Monroe County Jail
Monroe County does not use a typical searchable vendor roster for the jail. The county publishes static PDF reports from official Monroe County URLs. Start with the Monroe County Jail roster PDF if you need fast confirmation that a person is currently listed. Use the Monroe County Jail census PDF when you need more detail. The roster is the short list; the census is the deeper custody report.
- Open the roster PDF and search within the document for the last name, first name, or MCJ number.
- If the person appears, note the MCJ number, name spelling, and date of entry, then move to the census for detail.
- Open the census PDF to check custody date and time, classification, booking information, bail, bond, court, judge, next court date, arresting agency, arrest type, charge code, and charge description.
- If the arrest is very recent, check the received report PDF for newly booked people.
- If the person is no longer on the current roster, check the released report PDF before moving to a public-records request.
The Sheriff's page says the roster and census are updated daily Monday through Friday. Weekend activity, late-day releases, transport, name spelling issues, or court changes can make the PDFs lag behind actual custody. Call the incarcerated individual information line at 585-753-4300 if the public reports do not answer a time-sensitive question.
| Report | Best Use | Key Fields |
|---|---|---|
| Roster PDF | Fast current-custody check | MCJ number, last name, first name, date of entry |
| Census PDF | Detailed jail-record review | Classification, booking data, bail, bond, court, judge, charges |
| Received PDF | Recent booking fallback | JID, name, date of birth, book date/time, charge descriptions |
| Released PDF | Recent release fallback | Release-list information published by the sheriff/county report set |
Monroe County Jail Address and Contact
Use the jail-specific numbers when the question is about custody, visiting, jail records, or a current report. The broader Monroe County Sheriff's Office number is useful for agency routing, but the Jail Bureau publishes separate lines for administration, visitation, incarcerated individual information, and fax.
Monroe County Jail
130 South Plymouth Avenue
Rochester, NY 14614
585-753-4300
Administration and incarcerated individual information
Visiting and Sheriff Routing
Jail Visits: 585-753-4000
Sheriff main phone: 585-753-4178
Jail fax: 585-753-4051
Sheriff fax: 585-753-4524
Visiting Someone at Monroe County Jail
Social visits at Monroe County Jail are scheduled visits. The Sheriff's incarcerated-individual information page states that people housed in the Monroe County Jail and Andrew P. Meloni: STAR Academy at the Monroe Correctional Facility are allowed two one-hour visits each week by appointment. Scheduling can be handled in person or by calling Jail Visits at 585-753-4000 during posted scheduling hours. Visitors must arrive at least 30 minutes early, bring valid government-issued photo identification, and wear attire accepted by jail staff. Minors require the permission form linked by the sheriff.
The source pages create a small practical caution. The Jail Bureau page references walk-in requests during normal business hours if available, while the incarcerated-individual information page states that no walk-in visits are available. Treat scheduled appointments as the current safe procedure and call 585-753-4000 before traveling.
The online jail visitation form asks for the incarcerated person's name, ID number, date of birth, visitor name, visitor email, phone number, and requested time slot.
| Visit Type | Schedule | Rules |
|---|---|---|
| Social visits | Monday-Friday at 8:15 a.m., 9:15 a.m., 10:15 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 1:15 p.m., and 2:15 p.m. | Two one-hour visits each week by appointment; arrive 30 minutes early with photo ID. |
| Professional visits | Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. and 1:15 p.m.-3:45 p.m. | Call Jail Visits at 585-753-4000 for professional visiting procedures. |
| Video visits | Scheduled online through SecurusTech.net | The sheriff links Securus for video visitation; fees were not located in the captured official text. |
Mail, Phone, and Money at Monroe County Jail
Money deposits for Monroe County Jail use Access Corrections. The sheriff lists online and mobile deposits, a toll-free phone channel, and lobby kiosks. Kiosks are identified in the jail visits lobby and jail property lobby, and the Sheriff's information also references kiosks at both Monroe County Jail and STAR Academy/MCF. Use the person's correct name and jail ID details from the roster or census before making a deposit.
| Deposit Channel | Provider / Method | Payment Details |
|---|---|---|
| Online or mobile | Access Corrections | Visa and Mastercard credit/debit cards; mobile app available through Apple and Google app stores. |
| Phone | Access Corrections, 1-866-345-1884 | Spanish/English agents available 24/7; IVR available; accepts Visa/Mastercard credit/debit. |
| Kiosk | Jail visits lobby and jail property lobby | Cash or Visa/Mastercard credit/debit cards. |
Photo mail has a specific Monroe rule. Effective September 3, 2021, photographs received through the incarcerated individual mail system are photocopied; the copy is given to the incarcerated individual and the original is stored in property. Photos sent by approved third-party vendors such as FreePrints, Walmart, Inmate Photos, or Shutterfly can be delivered to the property room, inspected by a Property deputy, and distributed without photocopying. Full general mail formatting and a banned-item list were not located in the captured official text, so confirm the current address format and restrictions with jail staff before mailing anything important.
Booking, Intake, and Records Fallback
A Monroe County Jail booking can follow an arrest by the Sheriff's Office, Rochester Police, town or village police, or another agency whose case enters Monroe County courts. The available research describes the public custody result more clearly than every internal intake step. The jail census and received report show that booking records can include JID, date of birth, booking date and time, custody classification, arresting agency, court, judge, bail, bond, and charge information.
New York Criminal Procedure Law section 160.10 allows fingerprints and photographs after qualifying arrests. The jail's public census may show current charges and court information, but it is not a complete criminal-history report and it is not a promise that a booking photo will be publicly available. New York FOIL can provide a records-request path, but Public Officers Law section 89 includes privacy limits, including booking-photo privacy language. If a case was dismissed or otherwise terminated in favor of the accused, sealing under CPL section 160.50 may limit public release.
If the roster, census, received report, and released report do not answer the question, use a staged fallback. First call 585-753-4300 for jail information. If the question is a public-records request rather than immediate custody confirmation, use Monroe County's online FOIL request form. The county notes that FOIL requests may take 20 days or longer. For court-file questions after a jail arrest, the Monroe County Clerk's court-filings page explains that only felony convictions are filed in the County Clerk's Office; federal, city, and town proceedings belong to those bodies.
When the Monroe County Jail Roster Is the Wrong System
A person sentenced to New York state prison after a Monroe County case should be searched in the New York State DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup, not the county jail PDFs. DOCCS searches can use DIN, NYSID, or last name with birth year. No active DOCCS prison was located in Monroe County, although DOCCS parole offices operate in Rochester at 350 South Avenue.
Federal custody is also separate. The Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator covers federal inmates from 1982 to the present. The ICE Online Detainee Locator System covers adults in ICE custody or CBP custody more than 48 hours. Monroe County does not have a BOP institution or permanent ICE detention center in the official facility research, but the local jail census can show federal classifications and U.S. Marshals-related language when a federal detainee is held locally.
Programs and Conditions at Monroe County Jail
The Sheriff's Jail Bureau Department of Incarcerated Individual Rehabilitation and Programs coordinates counseling, treatment, educational, recreational, religious, and reentry programs. The official program leadership named in the research includes Director of Rehabilitation Jennifer Rivers, Director of Incarcerated Individual Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Joel Yager, Director of Religious Programs Josh Lynd, and Supervisor of Rehabilitation Services Melissa Arena.
Education includes Rochester City School District services for incarcerated youth under 21, with GED, life skills, ESOL, and high school instruction for students returning to regular school after release. RCSD also provides adult GED education for male and female incarcerated individuals, and GED and Regents exams are administered in the jail. The law library provides required criminal and civil legal-reference materials, notary services, and legal-reference support. In 2020, the law library moved to a web-based research engine on tablets used in housing areas, with extra requests researched by law library staff and delivered in print.
The Chemical Dependency Program has operated since 1994 and serves sentenced and unsentenced people. Program topics include chemical dependency, group counseling, chemical dependency and mental health, AA/NA, individual counseling, anger management, parenting, coping skills, relapse prevention, healthy relationships, medication-assisted-treatment awareness, and trauma awareness or healing. Community providers enter the jail daily to connect people with post-release care and services.
New York Correction Law section 45 gives the State Commission of Correction inspection and standard-setting authority over local jails. Correction Law section 47 governs death-in-custody investigation by the Board of Correction. Third-party PREA reports can be made 24 hours a day to Monroe County Jail Administration at 585-753-4178.
Before traveling: Confirm custody, visit approval, report timing, and facility instructions with Monroe County Jail because PDF updates and visit availability can change.