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 26, 2026.
Amherst, Ohio, in Lorain County, has about 13,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate). A person kept in custody after an arrest in Amherst is held at the county jail, run by the Lorain 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: Amherst public records, Lorain County inmate search, Amherst arrest records, Amherst warrants, Amherst criminal records, Amherst court records, Ohio arrest records and Ohio inmate search.
Finding Someone in Custody in Amherst
The county jail, run by the Lorain County Sheriff's Office, holds everyone kept in custody after an arrest in Amherst, from every agency.
SearchSystems opened and checked the custody page of the Lorain County Sheriff's Office at loraincountysheriff.com/inmates-jail/self-booking (page title: Self Booking | The Lorain County Sheriff’s Office), phone 440-329-3709, which answered when SearchSystems opened it on September 23, 2026.
That page is the place to look for someone booked recently. A person cited and released at the scene, or held only a few hours by a city department, will not be on it.
The Lorain County Jail by the Numbers
On an average day in 2023 the jail held about 390 people, down from about 420 in 2019. Its rated capacity in 2023 was 422 beds, and it ran at 92 percent of it that year. The figures are from the Vera Institute of Justice's Incarceration Trends data.
Lorain County has about 322,000 residents (2024 Census Bureau estimate), so the jail holds about 12 people for every 10,000 residents.
Who Books People Into the Lorain County Jail
The Lorain County Sheriff's Office and the agency that reports for Amherst (filed by the FBI as Amherst Police Department) make the arrests that end in a booking in and around Amherst.
The FBI's agency list also places these agencies in Lorain County: the Lorain County Metropolitan Park District and Lorain County Drug Task Force (other agency).
The largest arrest counts reported to the FBI were Lorain's 1,651 for 2025, Elyria's 1,544 for 2025 and LaGrange's 1,152 for 2025.
Together, the 12 agencies in Lorain County with all twelve months of 2025 on file reported 5,669 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 Amherst 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 Lorain County serves the sentence in a facility of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, whose inmate locator is at appgateway.drc.ohio.gov/OffenderSearch.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find an inmate in Amherst?
Look on the custody page of the Lorain County Sheriff's Office at loraincountysheriff.com, or call 440-329-3709. It covers people booked into the county jail.
How many people are in the Lorain County jail?
About 390 on an average day in 2023, the latest year in the Vera Institute's jail data, against a rated capacity of 422 beds.
What is the phone number for the Lorain County jail?
440-329-3709, the number on the page of the Lorain County Sheriff's Office SearchSystems verified.
Where do people sentenced to prison in Lorain County go?
To a facility of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction; its inmate locator is at appgateway.drc.ohio.gov/OffenderSearch.
Is this the official Amherst 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.