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 on September 23, 2026.
Lee County, Illinois, has about 34,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Lee County is held at the county jail, run by the Lee 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: Lee County public records, Lee County arrest records, Lee County warrants, Lee County criminal records, Lee County court records, Illinois arrest records and Illinois inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Lee County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Lee County is held at the county jail, run by the Lee County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Lee County Sheriff's Office at leecountyil.com/DocumentCenter/View/2814/Jail-List?bidId= (page title: rpjlcil.x2 09/19/26 LEE COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
Someone booked recently shows on that page; someone cited and released at the scene, or held a few hours at a city station, does not.
The Lee County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 29 people, down from about 33 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 42 beds, and it ran at 79 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Lee County has about 34,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 9 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Lee County Jail
The Lee County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Dixon, Amboy and Franklin Grove make the arrests that end in a booking in Lee County.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Dixon's 259 for 2025, the Lee County Sheriff's Office's 188 for 2025 and Amboy's 4 for 2024.
Together, the two agencies in Lee County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 447 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 Lee 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 Illinois Department of Corrections lists its inmates at idoc.illinois.gov/offender/inmatesearch.html.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Lee County?
Look on the custody page of the Lee County Sheriff's Office at leecountyil.com. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Lee County jail?
About 29 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 42 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Lee 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 Lee 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.