Reviewed and updated October 9, 2026 by the SearchSystems.net editorial team. 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.
Decatur County, Iowa, has about 7,700 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Decatur County is held at the county jail, run by the Decatur 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: Decatur County public records, Decatur County arrest records, Decatur County warrants, Decatur County criminal records, Decatur County court records, Iowa arrest records and Iowa inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Decatur County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Decatur County is held at the county jail, run by the Decatur County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Decatur County Sheriff's Office at decaturcountyiowa.gov/news/2588 (page title: The Sheriff's Office has moved! | - Decatur County, IA), a site that blocks automated checks (HTTP 403), so open it in a browser.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster.
The Decatur County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2019 the jail held about 8 people. Its rated capacity in 2019 was 21 beds, and it ran at 38 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Decatur County has about 7,700 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 10 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Decatur County Jail
The Decatur County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Leon make the arrests that end in a booking in Decatur County.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Decatur County arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
The jail holds people awaiting trial and people serving short sentences. A person sentenced to prison in Decatur County serves the sentence in a facility of the Iowa Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at doc.iowa.gov/inmate-family-services.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Decatur County?
Ask the Decatur County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at decaturcountyiowa.gov/news/2588.
How many people are in the Decatur County jail?
About 8 on an average day in 2019, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 21 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Decatur 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 Decatur 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.