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.
Chautauqua County, New York, has about 124,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Chautauqua County is held at the county jail, run by the Chautauqua 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: Chautauqua County public records, Chautauqua County arrest records, Chautauqua County warrants, Chautauqua County criminal records, Chautauqua County court records, New York arrest records and New York inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Chautauqua County
A person kept in custody after an arrest in Chautauqua County is held at the county jail, run by the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office, whichever agency made the arrest.
SearchSystems opened and checked the jail page of the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office at sheriff.us/corrections (page title: Corrections), which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the office's jail information page rather than a roster.
The Chautauqua County Jail by the Numbers
So far in 2026 the jail has held about 180 people on an average day, down from about 240 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023, the last year with a capacity figure, was 303 beds, and it ran at 55 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Chautauqua County has about 124,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 15 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Chautauqua County Jail
The Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office and the agencies that report for Jamestown, Dunkirk, Fredonia, Lakewood and Westfield make the arrests that end in a booking in Chautauqua County.
The FBI's agency list also places one more agency in Chautauqua County: the Fredonia State University of New York Police (campus police).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Jamestown's 2,046 for 2023, the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office's 516 for 2025 and Dunkirk's 258 for 2025.
Together, the seven agencies in Chautauqua County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 1,397 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 Chautauqua County 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 Chautauqua County serves the sentence in a facility of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, whose inmate locator is at nysdoccslookup.doccs.ny.gov.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Chautauqua County?
Ask the Chautauqua County Sheriff's Office; its jail page SearchSystems verified is at sheriff.us/corrections.
How many people are in the Chautauqua County jail?
About 180 on an average day so far in 2026, against a rated capacity of 303 beds.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Chautauqua County go?
To a facility of the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision; its inmate locator is at nysdoccslookup.doccs.ny.gov.
Is this the official Chautauqua 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.