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 September 30, 2026.
Rapides Parish, Louisiana, has about 126,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Rapides Parish is held at the parish jail, run by the Rapides Parish 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: Rapides Parish public records, Rapides Parish arrest records, Rapides Parish warrants, Rapides Parish criminal records, Rapides Parish court records, Louisiana arrest records and Louisiana inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Rapides Parish
The parish jail, run by the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Rapides Parish, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office at t4c.nicic.gov/rapides-parish-sheriffs-office (page title: Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office | Thinking for a Change), phone 318-473-6700, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 30, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster, so a search for a particular person goes through the office at 318-473-6700.
The Rapides Parish Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 990 people, down from about 1,040 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023 was 1,225 beds, and it ran at 80 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Rapides Parish has about 126,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 78 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Rapides Parish Jail
The Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Alexandria, Pineville, Ball and Woodworth make the arrests that end in a booking in Rapides Parish.
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Alexandria's 1,538 for 2025, the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office's 1,491 for 2025 and Pineville's 1,368 for 2020.
Together, the four agencies in Rapides Parish with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 5,333 arrests to the FBI that year. Those kept in custody were booked into the parish jail; a person cited and released at the scene was not.
The counts, agency by agency and year by year, are in Rapides Parish arrest records.
From the Jail to State Prison
A sentence of more than a year is served in state prison, not the jail; the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections lists its inmates at doc.la.gov.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Rapides Parish?
Ask the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office at 318-473-6700; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at t4c.nicic.gov/rapides-parish-sheriffs-office.
How many people are in the Rapides Parish jail?
About 990 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 1,225 beds.
What is the phone number for the Rapides Parish jail?
318-473-6700, the number on the page of the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Rapides Parish go?
To a facility of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections; its inmate locator is at doc.la.gov.
Is this the official Rapides Parish website?
No. SearchSystems.net is an independent public records guide, online since 1997. It links to the official parish, court and state offices described above and does not hold records, charge for them or take requests.