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.
Oceana County, Michigan, has about 27,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Oceana County is held at the county jail, run by the Oceana 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: Oceana County public records, Oceana County arrest records, Oceana County warrants, Oceana County criminal records, Oceana County court records, Michigan arrest records and Michigan inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Oceana County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Oceana County is held at the county jail, run by the Oceana County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Oceana County Sheriff's Office at oceana.mi.us/courts-sheriff/sheriff (page title: Sheriff’s Office | Oceana County Michigan), phone (231) 873-2121, 216 Lincoln Street Hart, MI 49420, Monday - Friday: 8 AM - 4 PM, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 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 (231) 873-2121.
The Oceana County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2020 the jail held about 24 people, down from about 67 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2019, the last year with a capacity figure, was 66 beds, and it ran at 102 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Oceana County has about 27,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 9 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Oceana County Jail
The Oceana County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Shelby, Hart, Hesperia, Pentwater, New Era, Rothbury and one more cities make the arrests that end in a booking in Oceana County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Oceana County: the Oceana County State Police (state police).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Walkerville's 1,159 for 2025, the Oceana County Sheriff's Office's 580 for 2025 and Hart's 77 for 2025.
Together, the seven agencies in Oceana County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,842 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 Oceana 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 Michigan Department of Corrections lists its inmates at mdocweb.state.mi.us/otis2.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Oceana County?
Ask the Oceana County Sheriff's Office at (231) 873-2121; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at oceana.mi.us/courts-sheriff/sheriff.
How many people are in the Oceana County jail?
About 24 on an average day in 2020, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 66 beds.
What is the phone number for the Oceana County jail?
(231) 873-2121, the number on the page of the Oceana County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Oceana County go?
To a facility of the Michigan Department of Corrections; its inmate locator is at mdocweb.state.mi.us/otis2.
Is this the official Oceana 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.