Reviewed and updated October 9, 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 24, 2026 and September 26, 2026.
Phenix City, Alabama, in Russell County, has about 39,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Phenix City is held at the county jail, run by the Russell 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 and common questions.
Related guides: Phenix City public records, Russell County inmate search, Phenix City arrest records, Phenix City warrants, Phenix City criminal records, Phenix City court records, Alabama arrest records and Alabama inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Phenix City
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Phenix City is held at the county jail, run by the Russell County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Russell County Sheriff's Office at rcso.org/inCustodySearchFeed/95993e28b03bc264981509975a6e7269 (page title: Russell County Sheriff’s Office AL), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone booked recently. A person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
The Russell County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2021 the jail held about 280 people, up from about 260 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2020, the last year with a capacity figure, was 455 beds, and it ran at 56 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Russell County has about 59,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 48 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Russell County Jail
The Russell County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Phenix City (filed by the FBI as Phenix City Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Phenix City.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Russell County: Chattahoochee Valley Community College (campus police).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Phenix City's 1,077 for 2025 and the Russell County Sheriff's Office's 825 for 2025.
Together, the two agencies in Russell County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,902 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.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Phenix City arrest records.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Phenix City?
Look on the custody page of the Russell County Sheriff's Office at rcso.org. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Russell County jail?
About 280 on an average day in 2021, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 455 beds.
Is this the official Phenix City 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.