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 1, 2026.
Butler County, Iowa, has about 14,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Butler County is held at the county jail, run by the Butler 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: Butler County public records, Butler County arrest records, Butler County warrants, Butler County criminal records, Butler County court records, Iowa arrest records and Iowa inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Butler County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Butler County is held at the county jail, run by the Butler County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Butler County Sheriff's Office at butlersheriff.org/jail-facilities (page title: Jail Facilities | Butler County Sheriff’s Office), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 24, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster.
The Butler County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2019 the jail held about 4 people. Its rated capacity in 2019 was 12 beds, and it ran at 33 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Butler County has about 14,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 3 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Butler County Jail
The Butler County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Parkersburg make the arrests that end in a booking in Butler County.
The Butler County Sheriff's Office reported 54 arrests to the FBI for 2025. 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 Butler County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the Iowa Department of Corrections lists its inmates at doc.iowa.gov/inmate-family-services.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Butler County?
Ask the Butler County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at butlersheriff.org/jail-facilities.
How many people are in the Butler County jail?
About 4 on an average day in 2019, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 12 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Butler County go?
To a facility of the Iowa Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at doc.iowa.gov/inmate-family-services.
Is this the official Butler 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.