Reviewed and updated October 7, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. The arrest counts are the ones each agency reported to the FBI, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026. The jail figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data. Every office link was opened and checked against the office's own site between September 23, 2026 and September 25, 2026.
Santa Maria, California, in Santa Barbara County, has about 111,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Santa Maria is held at the county jail, run by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office, and the jail's record of each person held is a public record. This guide says where to look for someone in custody, what the jail holds and who books people into it.
This guide covers the search, the jail, who books people, state prison and common questions.
Related guides: Santa Maria public records, Santa Barbara County inmate search, Santa Maria warrants, Santa Maria criminal records, Santa Maria court records, Santa Maria police reports, California arrest records and California inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Santa Maria
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Santa Maria is held at the county jail, run by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office at sbsheriff.org/command-and-divisions/custody-operations/south-county... (page title: Jail Information | Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office), phone 805-683-2724, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster, so a search for a particular person goes through the office at 805-683-2724.
The jail's own lines are (805) 681-4260 (Main Jail, Santa Barbara) or (805) 554-3100 (Northern Branch Jail, Santa Maria).
The Santa Barbara County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2025 the jail held about 770 people, down from about 950 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 915 beds, and it ran at 86 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Santa Barbara County has about 444,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 17 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Santa Barbara County Jail
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Santa Maria (filed by the FBI as Santa Maria Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Santa Maria.
The FBI's agency list also places one other agency, two campus police departments and three state police units in Santa Barbara County.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Santa Barbara's 4,505 for 2025, Santa Maria's 2,960 for 2025 and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office's 2,465 for 2023.
Together, the three agencies in Santa Barbara County with all twelve months of 2024 on file reported 8,240 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the county jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation lists its inmates at cdcr.ca.gov/search.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Santa Maria?
Ask the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office at 805-683-2724; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at sbsheriff.org.
How many people are in the Santa Barbara County jail?
About 770 on an average day in 2025, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 915 beds.
What is the phone number for the Santa Barbara County jail?
(805) 681-4260 (Main Jail, Santa Barbara) or (805) 554-3100 (Northern Branch Jail, Santa Maria).
Where do people sentenced to prison in Santa Barbara County go?
To a facility of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; its inmate locator is at cdcr.ca.gov/search.
Is this the official Santa Maria website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official city, county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.