The Montgomery County Inmate Population
The official Montgomery County inmate population count is reported through Kentucky Department of Corrections weekly jail data. The local facility is Montgomery County Regional Jail, 751 Chenault Lane, Mt. Sterling, KY 40353. County records identify Ian Roberts as jailer, with the jail office at 859-498-8747 and fax 859-498-8748. The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff David Charles, is at 1 Court Street, Suite 4, Mount Sterling, KY 40353, with main phone 859-498-8704, and can be relevant for arrest reports, warrants, and law-enforcement records, but the elected county jailer is the local jail contact for custody questions.
Kentucky DOC's Weekly Jail report dated June 4, 2026 listed Montgomery with 134 total jail beds and 185 people in custody. That means the facility was 51 people over rated capacity and operating at 138% capacity on that report date. The number can change with arrests, bond decisions, court releases, transfers to state prison, controlled-intake movement, parole holds, and local sentence completion. For a same-day custody question, the weekly jail report is context, not a live roster.
The Kentucky Department of Corrections weekly jail archive is the source for Montgomery's capacity trend. See the KY DOC Weekly Jail report page for the statewide report archive.
The archive matters because Montgomery's jail count is published as part of a statewide reporting system, not as a stand-alone local population dashboard.
Montgomery County Jail Population Statistics
The most concrete official snapshot in the research is the KY DOC Weekly Jail report dated June 4, 2026. It reported 185 people at Montgomery County Regional Jail against 134 rated beds. Annual bookings, average length of stay, and a jail incarceration rate per 100,000 were not located in official Montgomery County sources, so those figures should not be inferred from the weekly population count.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Date |
|---|---|---|
| Reported jail population | 185 | KY DOC Weekly Jail, 6/4/2026 |
| Rated jail capacity | 134 beds | KY DOC Weekly Jail, 6/4/2026 |
| Capacity percentage | 138% | KY DOC Weekly Jail, 6/4/2026 |
| Under / over capacity | 51 over capacity | KY DOC Weekly Jail, 6/4/2026 |
| Annual bookings | Not located in official sources | Research gap |
| Average length of stay | Not located in official sources | Research gap |
Montgomery County Inmate Population Trends
Montgomery's captured weekly jail reports show a population that remained above capacity from April 2024 through June 2026. The count declined from 202 people on April 25, 2024 to 185 people on June 4, 2026, but it did not fall below the 134-bed rated capacity in any captured trend point. That makes over-capacity conditions a central fact when reading the Montgomery County inmate population, even though the latest captured point was lower than the earlier 2024 and January 2026 levels.
| Date | Reported Population | Capacity % | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4/25/2024 | 202 | 151% | 68 over capacity; secure male 134, secure female 52, non-secure male 12, non-secure female 4. |
| 1/2/2025 | 198 | 148% | 64 over capacity; 28 Class D and 17 controlled-intake prisoners. |
| 1/8/2026 | 199 | 149% | 65 over capacity; 17 Class D and 1 controlled-intake prisoner. |
| 5/7/2026 | 187 | 140% | 53 over capacity; secure male 124 and secure female 51. |
| 6/4/2026 | 185 | 138% | 51 over capacity; latest weekly point captured in the research. |
Who Is Counted in the Montgomery County Inmate Population
The weekly jail report breaks Montgomery's June 4, 2026 population into secure and non-secure custody categories rather than a full demographic profile. It does not supply race, age, ethnicity, annual admissions, or length-of-stay statistics for Montgomery. The published categories are still useful because they separate local housing status from state-sentence and hold categories.
- Secure custody: 120 secure male inmates and 49 secure female inmates were reported on June 4, 2026.
- Non-secure custody: 9 non-secure male inmates and 7 non-secure female inmates were reported on the same date.
- State-related jail categories: Montgomery reported 12 Class D inmates, 10 community-custody eligible inmates, 3 alternative-sentence inmates, and 11 controlled-intake prisoners.
- Other holds: The same report listed 1 parole violator and 0 federal inmates for Montgomery.
Definition: A Class D inmate in this context is a Kentucky state-sentence category that may be housed in a county jail under state arrangements. Controlled intake usually signals a state-prison placement process, so a person may appear locally before moving into the broader Kentucky DOC system.
Capacity and Overcrowding at Montgomery County Regional Jail
Capacity is not the same as the daily headcount. Capacity is the rated bed figure reported for the facility, while the population is the number of people counted in custody on the weekly report date. On June 4, 2026, Montgomery County Regional Jail had 134 rated beds and 185 reported people, which placed it 51 people over capacity. Earlier captured reports showed the same over-capacity pattern at 151%, 148%, 149%, and 140% before the latest 138% figure.
No official Montgomery County jail litigation, consent decree, jail-death notice, or recent new-construction announcement was located in the research. Kentucky DOC's Division of Local Facilities still matters for conditions because it conducts biannual jail inspections for Kentucky Jail Standards compliance, provides technical assistance, reviews policies and procedures, supports staff training, approves architectural drawings, and monitors jail renovation or new construction.
Laws Governing Montgomery County Inmate Population Records
Kentucky law controls both access to records and the jail standards behind the population count. For a Montgomery County jail booking, a requester may start informally with the jail, then use the Kentucky Open Records Act if a written request is needed. Some records can be withheld or redacted for privacy, law-enforcement, criminal litigation, security, or other statutory reasons, so a public-records request does not guarantee every item in a jail file.
Key Statutes:
KRS 61.872 gives Kentucky residents the right to inspect public records and allows agencies to require a written application by hand delivery, mail, fax, or email.
KRS 61.874 covers copies of nonexempt records, reproduction costs, media costs, and electronic access by agreement.
KRS 61.878 lists exemptions, including privacy, law-enforcement, criminal litigation, and security-sensitive records.
KRS 441.055 directs Kentucky DOC to adopt jail standards and classify jails.
KRS 441.105 requires jailer reports to fiscal court and the Department of Corrections.
501 KAR 3:090 covers jail medical services and includes coroner notification if a prisoner dies in jail custody.
Booking, Intake, and Jail Classification
Official Montgomery booking-step details were not published in the reviewed local sources, but the research identifies the lawful Kentucky framework. Arresting agencies can include the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, Mt. Sterling Police, Kentucky State Police, and other agencies operating in the county. After a local arrest, the custody destination documented by official sources is Montgomery County Regional Jail. Intake commonly involves identification, search, property handling, fingerprinting, screening, classification, and housing assignment, but exact local timing and visitor rules should be confirmed with the jail.
KRS 441.046 supports fingerprinting persons in adult or juvenile detention facilities. KRS 441.048 covers screening for mental-health risk issues upon admittance to detention. The weekly jail report's secure male, secure female, non-secure male, and non-secure female columns are not the same as a public housing-unit roster, but they show how Montgomery's population is grouped for state reporting.
How to Search the Montgomery County Inmate Population
No official Montgomery County-only jail roster page was found in the research. The reliable access chain is direct jail contact for immediate local custody, Kentucky Offender Online Lookup for state and some county-custody records, VINELink for notifications, and written public-records requests when a record is not posted online. Because a new booking may not appear in KOOL immediately, same-day arrest questions should start with Montgomery County Regional Jail at 859-498-8747.
- Call Montgomery County Regional Jail at 859-498-8747 with the person's full name and date of birth if the question is urgent or same-day.
- Search Kentucky Offender Online Lookup for state or county-custody records that have reached the DOC system.
- Use as little search information as needed, then narrow by first name, middle name, alias, gender, photo availability, offender type, or location if results are broad.
- Check VINELink or call Kentucky VINE at 1-800-511-1670 for custody notifications about release, transfer, escape, or parole-hearing events.
- If the person was sentenced to state prison, keep searching KOOL rather than expecting a county-only jail roster to keep the record current.
- For federal or immigration custody, use the BOP locator, the U.S. Marshals Eastern District of Kentucky path, or ICE ODLS instead of the county jail.
KY DOC explains KOOL, daily update language, the 120-day warning, and VINE on its public information page. Review the Kentucky DOC KOOL information page before treating a locator result as final.
The disclaimer is especially important in Montgomery because the county does not publish a separate official roster, and newer custody data may be incomplete or not finalized.
Current Inmate Lookup in Montgomery County
For a current local inmate, the jail phone line is the most direct verification point. KOOL can show a person housed in a county jail, prison, mental-health facility, juvenile detention facility, or state custody location, depending on record availability. VINELink can help with notification, but it is not a substitute for calling the jail when bond, release, visitation eligibility, or a same-day booking is at issue.
| KOOL Field | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Last name | Text | Unspecified | Official snippets say users may enter as little information as needed. |
| First name | Text | Unspecified | Narrows a name search. |
| Middle name | Text | No | Helpful when several people share a name. |
| Photos only | Checkbox | No | Limits results to records where an offender photo is available. |
| Search aliases | Checkbox | No | Includes alias names in the search. |
| Location / location type | Dropdown or query filter | No | Can help distinguish Montgomery County Jail from state-prison locations. |
| Page size / page number | Pagination | No | Used after search results are returned. |
Past and Released Inmate Records
A person who has been released from Montgomery County Regional Jail may not remain visible through the same access channel used for current custody. KOOL warns that offender data newer than 120 days may not be finalized, and the research did not locate a county archive of released inmates. For historical booking details, start with the jailer or jail, then submit a focused written request under KRS 61.872 if informal access is not enough.
For DOC offender records, Kentucky DOC open-records instructions say requests may be emailed to correctionsopenrecords@ky.gov and should include the person's full name plus date of birth or offender identification number when available. For court charges after an arrest, the Montgomery Circuit Clerk controls case records, not the jail or DOC. The clerk's office is at One Court St., P.O. Box 327, Mt. Sterling, KY 40353, with phone numbers 859-498-5966 and 859-498-5991.
What a Montgomery County Inmate Record May Show
The research did not locate an official county-only roster sample for Montgomery County. KOOL and jail phone verification are the practical official paths. Depending on the system and timing, a record may show name, current location, photo availability, PID or DOC identifiers, offense counts, and custody status. For local jail details such as booking number, charges, bond, housing, release, or visitation eligibility, confirm directly with Montgomery County Regional Jail.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Offender name | Name used in the locator or jail record. |
| Current location | May show a prison or county jail location, including Montgomery County Jail when available. |
| PID / DOC number | Kentucky offender identifiers used to distinguish similar names. |
| Offense counts | Summary offense categories in KOOL search results. |
| Photo available | Whether KOOL identifies an offender photo as available. |
| Data status warning | DOC states entries are updated daily but newer data may not be finalized for 120 days. |
County Jail vs. State Prison: Where to Look
Montgomery County Regional Jail handles the local custody point after arrest, while the Kentucky Department of Corrections manages the statewide prison system and KOOL. A sentenced felony prisoner from Montgomery County may move from local jail status to a state prison location or a DOC-managed placement. The June 4, 2026 weekly jail report also shows overlap inside the local jail, with 12 Class D inmates and 11 controlled-intake prisoners counted in Montgomery.
| County Jail | State Prison / DOC | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is held | Pretrial detainees, local sentences, holds, some state-related jail categories | Sentenced state prisoners and DOC-managed custody |
| Run by | Montgomery County Jailer / Montgomery County, Kentucky | Kentucky Department of Corrections |
| Where to look | Call 859-498-8747, use jail records requests, and check KOOL when available | Search KOOL and use DOC open records |
| Local facility | Montgomery County Regional Jail | No adult state prison was located in Montgomery County |
State, Federal, and ICE Inmate Search
Kentucky Offender Online Lookup is the statewide DOC locator and should be searched when a person may have moved beyond local jail status. Kentucky DOC says KOOL is provided as a public service, entries are updated daily, accuracy is not guaranteed, and newer-than-120-day data may not be finalized. VINE covers county jails, prisons, mental-health facilities, and juvenile detention centers for notification purposes.
Federal custody follows a different path. The BOP inmate locator covers federal inmates incarcerated from 1982 to present, but it is mainly for sentenced federal custody. Federal pretrial detainees may be in contract custody and may require the U.S. Marshals Eastern District of Kentucky route. Immigration custody is searched through ICE Online Detainee Locator System by A-number or by name, country of birth, and date of birth. No ICE detention center, BOP institution, state prison, work-release annex, or separate municipal jail was located inside Montgomery County during the research pass.
Mugshots, Photos, and Record Limits
No official Montgomery County jail booking-photo gallery was located. The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office does publish a Most Wanted page with wanted-person photographs, but that is a warrant and fugitive source, not a jail roster mugshot feed. KOOL may display offender photos, and its search controls include a photo-only option. For a county booking photo that is not online, the fallback is direct jail contact or a Kentucky Open Records Act request to the proper custodian.
KRS 61.8746 is also relevant. It prohibits commercial use of a booking photograph or official inmate photograph originally obtained from a public agency when the photograph is posted in a publication or website and removal requires payment. That statute does not mean every booking photo is automatically available in every circumstance. KRS 61.878 exemptions can still affect records tied to privacy, law enforcement, criminal litigation, or security.
Montgomery County Detention Facilities
The facility map for this project contains one local detention facility. Mt. Sterling Police and the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office make arrests and perform law-enforcement duties, but the documented local custody destination is Montgomery County Regional Jail. Sentenced state custody, federal custody, and immigration custody use separate state or federal systems.
The county elected-officials page is the source for the jailer and jail contact details. See the Montgomery County elected officials page for the local office listing.
That distinction is useful because the sheriff's courthouse address and the jail's Chenault Lane address are different record and visit destinations.
Montgomery County Inmate Population FAQ
How big is the Montgomery County inmate population?
Kentucky DOC's Weekly Jail report dated June 4, 2026 listed Montgomery with 185 people in custody and 134 rated beds. That placed the jail at 138% capacity, or 51 people over capacity. Captured trend reports from April 2024 through June 2026 all showed the facility above rated capacity.
How do I search for a current Montgomery County inmate?
For immediate custody, call Montgomery County Regional Jail at 859-498-8747. For online searching, use KOOL at https://kool.corrections.ky.gov/ and VINELink at https://www.vinelink.com/. No official Montgomery County-only roster page was found, so direct jail verification is important for same-day arrests, release, bond, or visitation questions.
Can I look up a released or past inmate?
There was no official county archive of released inmates located in the research. Start with the jail for local booking records, use KOOL for DOC-related custody, and submit a focused Kentucky Open Records Act request when a record is not posted online. Court charges and case outcomes should be requested from the Montgomery Circuit Clerk.
Does Montgomery County have more than one jail?
The official facility map found one detention facility for this project: Montgomery County Regional Jail. No separate city jail, state prison, BOP institution, ICE facility, or work-release annex was located inside Montgomery County during the research pass.