Washoe County Detention Overview
Washoe County Sheriff's Office Detention Bureau operates the Washoe County Detention Facility in Reno. WCSO describes the building as a direct-supervision detention facility and says it receives detainees from more than thirty law-enforcement agencies at local, state, and federal levels. It is the main local custody point for adults arrested by WCSO, Reno Police, Sparks Police, state officers, tribal authorities, or federal partners when they are booked into Washoe County jail custody.
The facility is a county jail, not a Nevada prison. WCSO's Detention Operations Division says it operates the only adult detention facility for pretrial detainees within Washoe County. The same building also appears on the ICE Washoe County Jail facility page, so immigration custody may run through this jail as a custody channel rather than a separate Washoe County ICE building.
WCSO notes that the jail has special-needs housing units for inmates who cannot or should not be housed in general population. Those units are staffed by mental-health workers and deputies with Crisis Intervention Training. The Detention Bureau also includes court transportation, District Court operations, the Inmate Management Unit, Detention Services Unit, booking and central control, food services, property, work program services, education and counseling programs, and religious services.
Washoe County Detention Stats
Available public figures are not current daily counts. A 2016 Washoe County jail analysis described the facility as having 1,351 beds and 1,265 functional capacity, with 20,822 annual bookings. WCSO's Detention Operations page reported a 2017 average daily inmate population of 1,085. Current official capacity and current average daily population were not located on public WCSO pages in the research file, so older sourced figures should be treated as context rather than a live head count.
| Measure | Figure | Source Context |
|---|---|---|
| Jail rated beds | 1,351 | Washoe County 2016 jail analysis |
| Functional capacity | 1,265 | Washoe County 2016 jail analysis |
| Annual bookings | 20,822 | Washoe County 2016 jail analysis |
| Average daily population | 1,085 | WCSO Detention Operations page, 2017 |
Washoe County Jail Lookup
The correct current-custody search for this facility is the WCSO inmate search disclaimer page, followed by the WCSO last-name search. The roster covers current in-custody inmates and updates every 15 minutes. It is not a statewide prison search, a federal prison search, or a permanent booking archive. If the roster does not locate the person, WCSO tells searchers to call the Washoe County Detention Facility booking and inmate information line at 775-328-3062.
- Open the WCSO inmate search disclaimer and read the current-custody and bail notices.
- Select the option to accept the terms and continue to the last-name search form.
- Enter at least the first three letters of the person's last name.
- Open any matching result and confirm the booking or inmate number before acting on bail, visitation, or mail information.
- Use the jail phone fallback if the person is not listed, because WCSO says the online roster may not be complete.
For a broader search across custody systems, use Washoe County jail inmate records for county custody, the Nevada Department of Corrections offender search for sentenced state prisoners, the BOP inmate locator for sentenced federal prisoners, and the ICE detainee locator for immigration custody.
Washoe County Detention Contact
The main public contact point is the detention facility on Parr Boulevard in north Reno. Use the main number for general sheriff or jail contact, the booking line for custody lookup, and the Detention Services number for detention services questions. Records requests for case, detention, or FOIA matters use WCSO's request portal rather than a visit without an appointment.
Washoe County Detention Facility
911 Parr Blvd.
Reno, NV 89512
775-328-3001 main
Booking/inmate information: 775-328-3062
Detention Services: 775-328-2971
WCSO Records Section
911 Parr Blvd.
Reno, NV 89512
775-328-3023
Appointment services Monday-Thursday, 7:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; closed 12:00-1:00 and holidays.
Washoe County Detention Visits
WCSO uses Smart Communications video visitation for the Washoe County Detention Facility. Visitors must create an account, be at least 18 to create that account, submit a government ID photo and a current face photo, and wait for approval by email. Visits must be scheduled 24 hours in advance. On-site video visiting is in the public lobby; remote video visiting may be done from home, work, or another internet location.
| Visit Item | Schedule or Rule | Channel |
|---|---|---|
| On-site video visiting | Monday-Friday, 8:00 a.m.-9:30 p.m. | Smart Communications public lobby kiosks |
| Remote video visiting | Scheduled online after account approval | Smart Communications / smartinmate.com |
| Scheduling | Must be scheduled 24 hours in advance | smartinmate.com or on-site kiosks |
| Account setup | Must include ID photo and current face photo | Smart Communications |
| Dress rules | Stomach covered, no sleepwear, footwear required, and no excessive exposure | WCSO visiting rules |
The WCSO visiting page also lists attire rules for video visits. Shorts and skirts must be at least mid-thigh, stomachs must be covered, strapless and spaghetti-strap tops are not allowed, and footwear is required. WCSO says no warnings are given for dress-code violations.
Washoe County Mail and Money
Mail, phone, and commissary rules are split by channel. Personal mail and photos use Smart Communications MailGuard in Seminole, Florida, while legal, court, business mail, and publications go to the jail address in Reno. Inmates receive telephone access after booking is complete, phones are located in housing areas, and WCSO says each inmate receives one free 15-minute phone call per week, not including international calls.
| Service | Provider or Address | Key Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Personal letters and photos | Smart Communications / Washoe County Detention Facility, Inmate Name (# Inmate Number), PO Box 9163, Seminole, FL 33775-9137 | Personal postal mail is scanned and made available on inmate kiosks. |
| Legal, court, and business mail | WCSO, Inmate Name (# Inmate Number), 911 Parr Blvd., Reno, NV 89512 | Use the inmate name and booking or ID number. |
| Books and publications | WCSO address at 911 Parr Blvd. | Must come directly from an online vendor. |
| Phone and email | Smart Communications / smartinmate.com | No incoming calls except voicemail messages to approved inmates. |
| Money deposits | jailatm.com or Smart Communications account | Official fee table was not located in the WCSO text reviewed. |
| Commissary | In-house weekly order | Items include snacks, stamped envelopes, toiletries, OTC medication, and art materials. |
The WCSO mail and phone rules are shown on the official inmate mail and phone page.
The mailing split matters because personal mail sent to the Reno jail after the MailGuard change may be returned rather than scanned.
Washoe County Booking and Release
Booking is managed by Detention Services and central control. After arrest, the person is brought to the Washoe County Detention Facility if they will be held in county custody. Intake creates the custody record, documents property, starts phone access after booking, and routes the person through medical, mental-health, and classification steps. WCSO says the roster updates every 15 minutes, but it also warns that online results may not be a complete list of inmates in custody.
Release depends on court action, bail, own-recognizance review, and holds. WCSO's release procedures say all inmates are interviewed by Pretrial Services within 24 hours for possible OR release. If OR is not granted, bail is set or the person remains held without bail until seen by the court. WCSO states that bail is no longer automatically set based on new charges and is updated after a judge promptly sets it.
WCSO accepts U.S. currency, qualifying certified or cashier's checks, postal money orders, accepted bail-agent bonds, and online GovPayNow payments for cash bail where eligible. Release can take up to eight hours after bail is posted. WCSO also warns that staff will not request bail through Venmo, Cash App, Bitcoin, gift cards, or similar digital methods. Verify suspicious calls through the main WCSO number.
Washoe County Medical Programs
WCSO names NaphCare as the medical contractor for the detention facility. The Medical Unit provides 24-hour health care, prescription medication as medically necessary, and dental care by appointment. Former inmates, representatives, attorneys, and health-care providers can request medical records through the NaphCare process listed by WCSO, which may require authorization forms and identity verification.
The Detention Services Unit is described by WCSO as a team focused on reducing recidivism and bridging inmates preparing for release with community resources. Other services include exercise yards for each housing unit, library services, legal forms and reference materials, Washoe Legal Services material, chaplain services, religious materials on request, and faith-based study groups on evenings and weekends. Food services, property services, work programs, and education or counseling services are also housed under the detention structure.
WCSO's inmate service information is published on the official services for inmates page.
Those services explain why a simple roster result does not show the full management record for a person in custody.
Washoe County ICE Notes
ICE calls the same facility Washoe County Jail. The ICE facility page says callers looking for information about an immigration detainee housed at this facility should call 775-328-3001 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. That does not make the jail a separate ICE-only facility, and it does not make WCSO the federal case record source. It means the county jail can hold an ICE detainee or other federal-level detainee under the right authority.
NRS 211.060 authorizes federal prisoners in county jails under contract or authority, and WCSO says the detention facility accepts detainees from federal levels as well as local and state agencies. For a federal pretrial defendant temporarily housed in Washoe County jail, the WCSO roster or phone line may help confirm local custody. For a sentenced federal prisoner, use BOP. For immigration custody, use ICE ODLS and the ICE-listed facility phone process.
Note: Confirm custody, visit approval, and mail rules with the facility before traveling or sending money, because holds and transfers can change quickly.
Washoe County Jail Context
The Washoe County Detention Facility is locally distinctive because WCSO presents it as one of the first direct-supervision detention facilities in the nation. The agency says the jail has served as a model for other governmental agencies planning new jails and notes its proximity to the National Judicial College on the University of Nevada, Reno campus. That local context matters when reading WCSO material: the detention facility is not just a holding room behind a courthouse, but the central adult custody building for a large regional justice system.
After release, WCSO says it does not provide transportation from the Detention Facility. The release page notes Citi-Fare buses run a regular schedule between the facility and downtown Reno, but official WCSO pages did not publish route numbers, parking rules, or visitor entrance details in the research reviewed. Visitors with scheduled video visits, records appointments, or release pickups should confirm current entrance and parking instructions with the jail before arrival.
For the broader population and custody landscape, the Washoe County inmate population page separates county jail custody from state prison, federal prison, and ICE detention paths.