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 23, 2026 and September 30, 2026.
Olney, Illinois, in Richland County, has about 8,400 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Olney is held at the county jail, run by the Richland 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: Olney public records, Richland County inmate search, Olney arrest records, Olney warrants, Olney criminal records, Olney court records, Illinois arrest records and Illinois inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Olney
The county jail, run by the Richland County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Olney, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Richland County Sheriff's Office at richlandcso.com/inmateSearch (page title: Richland County Sheriff’s Office IL), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 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 Richland County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2021 the jail held about 21 people, down from about 32 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 60 beds, and it ran at 53 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Richland County has about 15,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 13 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Richland County Jail
The Richland County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Olney (filed by the FBI as Olney Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Olney.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Olney's 392 for 2025 and the Richland County Sheriff's Office's 127 for 2025.
Together, the two agencies in Richland County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 519 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 Olney 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 Richland County serves the sentence in a facility of the Illinois Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Olney?
Look on the custody page of the Richland County Sheriff's Office at richlandcso.com/inmateSearch. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Richland County jail?
About 21 on an average day in 2021, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 60 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Richland County go?
To a facility of the Illinois Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.
Is this the official Olney 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.