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 October 4, 2026.
Clay County, Alabama, has about 14,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Clay County is held at the county jail, run by the Clay 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: Clay County public records, Clay County arrest records, Clay County warrants, Clay County criminal records, Clay County court records, Alabama arrest records and Alabama inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Clay County
The county jail, run by the Clay County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Clay County, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Clay County Sheriff's Office at claycountysheriff.org/cur_inmates_sorted.html (page title: Clay County Jail | Inmates), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster.
The Clay County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2021 the jail held about 51 people, down from about 76 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 150 beds, and it ran at 51 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Clay County has about 14,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 36 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Clay County Jail
The Clay County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Lineville and Ashland make the arrests that end in a booking in Clay County.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Lineville's 114 for 2025, Ashland's 40 for 2025 and the Clay County Sheriff's Office's 39 for 2025.
Together, the three agencies in Clay County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 193 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 Clay County arrest records.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Clay County?
Ask the Clay County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at claycountysheriff.org/cur_inmates_sorted.html.
How many people are in the Clay County jail?
About 51 on an average day in 2021, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 150 beds.
Is this the official Clay County website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official county, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.