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 October 2, 2026.
Mishawaka, Indiana, in St. Joseph County, has about 51,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Mishawaka is held at the county jail, run by the St. Joseph 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: Mishawaka public records, St. Joseph County inmate search, Mishawaka arrest records, Mishawaka warrants, Mishawaka criminal records, Mishawaka court records, Indiana arrest records and Indiana inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Mishawaka
The county jail, run by the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Mishawaka, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office at sjcpd.org/inmate-search (page title: Inmate Search | St. Joseph County Police Department), phone 574-235-9611, 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 St. Joseph County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2024 the jail held about 670 people, up from about 630 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 829 beds, and it ran at 87 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
St. Joseph County has about 274,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 24 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the St. Joseph County Jail
The St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Mishawaka (filed by the FBI as Mishawaka Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Mishawaka.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in St. Joseph County: Indiana University at South Bend and the University of Notre Dame (campus police); the St. Joseph County Airport Authority (other agency).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were South Bend's 2,766 for 2023, Mishawaka's 904 for 2025 and the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office's 589 for 2025.
Together, the five agencies in St. Joseph County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,582 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 Mishawaka 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 St. Joseph County serves the sentence in a facility of the Indiana Department of Correction, whose inmate locator is at offenderlocator.idoc.in.gov/idoc-ofs-1.0.2/ofs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Mishawaka?
Look on the custody page of the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office at sjcpd.org/inmate-search, or call 574-235-9611. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the St. Joseph County jail?
About 670 on an average day in 2024, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 829 beds.
What is the phone number for the St. Joseph County jail?
574-235-9611, the number on the page of the St. Joseph County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in St. Joseph County go?
To a facility of the Indiana Department of Correction; its inmate locator is at offenderlocator.idoc.in.gov.
Is this the official Mishawaka 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.