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 27, 2026 and October 4, 2026.
Powder River County, Montana, has about 1,700 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), and arrests there are reported to the FBI by the Powder River County Sheriff's Office. An arrest leaves the same records whoever makes it: the arresting agency's report, the record of anyone held at the county jail, and, if the County Attorney files charges, a case in the Powder River County District Court. This guide says who keeps each one, what it costs and who may see it, with the arrest counts each agency reported.
This guide covers who makes arrests, how many arrests, booking and the jail, finding an arrest, copies, cities and common questions.
Related guides: Powder River County public records, Montana arrest records, Montana inmate search and Montana criminal records.
Who Makes Arrests in Powder River County
The Powder River County Sheriff's Office is the county agency that reports arrests to the FBI for Powder River County. It reported 6 arrests for 2025.
How Many Arrests The Powder River County Sheriff's Office Reports
Each agency reports its arrests to the FBI by month, and the FBI publishes them on the Crime Data Explorer. These are the full-year totals, all offenses, as the FBI held them on October 8, 2026; a year with months missing or not reported is left out.
- Powder River County Sheriff's Office: 6 for 2025, 1 for 2024, 0 for 2023, 2 for 2022, 2 for 2021 and 2 for 2020.
Through August 2026, Powder River County Sheriff's Office reported 2 arrests, against 5 in the same months of 2025.
Booking: Where People Arrested in Powder River County Are Held
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Powder River County is held at the county jail, whichever agency made the arrest, apart from the short stay some city departments' own holding cells allow; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked at all. The jail's record of each person held, with the charges, is a public record of the arrest, and the court file takes over from there.
On an average day in 2019 the jail held about 2 people. Its rated capacity in 2019 was 16 beds, and it ran at 12 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Powder River County Sheriff's Office at prco.mt.gov/Sheriff-Office (page title: Powder River County Sheriff's Office), phone (406) 436-2333, Monday, Wednesday, & Friday: 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on October 4, 2026.
A person sentenced to prison serves the sentence in a facility of the Montana Department of Corrections, whose inmate locator is at offendersearch.mt.gov/conweb.
How to Find Out About an Arrest in Powder River County
An arrest in Powder River County can be traced in two places, depending on where the case stands: the case index of the Powder River County District Court, which shows whether charges were filed and the next court date (the court records page SearchSystems verified is at prco.mt.gov/District-Court, phone (406) 436-2320); the County Attorney, which decides whether an arrest becomes a charge (its page is at prco.mt.gov/County-Attorney, phone (406) 436-2365).
Montana is one of the states that lets anyone look up another person's statewide criminal history: the CHOPRS service lets anyone search public criminal history online by name, through the Montana Department of Justice. That record shows what agencies reported to the state, which is wider than one county's court index but can lag it.
Getting a Copy of an Arrest Record in Powder River County
The report of an arrest is released by the agency that made it; the jail and the court hold their own records of the same event, but not the report. Under the Montana Public Records Act the agency must answer in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days, and it may charge the actual cost of fulfilling the request.
- An arrest by the Powder River County Sheriff's Office: ask its records unit, reached through the office at (406) 436-2333.
- A defendant who has been charged gets the report through the case: the County Attorney, (406) 436-2365, handles discovery for pending cases.
- The court file of a case that was filed: the Powder River County District Court, through the court records page at prco.mt.gov/District-Court, phone (406) 436-2320.
- Your own statewide record: the same request described above, for your own name.
Cities in Powder River County: Who Reports the Arrests
The FBI lists no city in Powder River County with an arrest reporting agency of its own; the counts above are the county agencies'.
Wherever in the county the arrest happens, a person kept in custody goes to the county jail and the case goes to the Powder River County District Court.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many arrests are made in Powder River County each year?
The Powder River County Sheriff's Office reported 6 arrests to the FBI for 2025, its latest full year.
How do I find out if someone is in jail in Powder River County?
Ask the Powder River County Sheriff's Office at (406) 436-2333; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at prco.mt.gov/Sheriff-Office.
Where are people arrested in Powder River County booked?
Those kept in custody go to the county jail, run by the Powder River County Sheriff's Office; a person cited and released at the scene is not booked.
Are arrest records public in Powder River County?
The court files of criminal cases are public, and so is the statewide criminal history kept by the Montana Department of Justice: the CHOPRS service lets anyone search public criminal history online by name. The arrest report itself is released by the agency that made the arrest, under the Montana Public Records Act.
How do I get a copy of an arrest report in Powder River County?
From the agency that made the arrest: the Powder River County Sheriff's Office for its own arrests, or the agency that reports for the city where it happened. Under the Montana Public Records Act the answer is due in a timely manner; the statute sets no number of days.
Is this the official Powder River 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.