Search Columbia County Prison Inmates

Columbia County Prison Overview

Columbia County Prison is the primary adult detention facility for Columbia County. The official county page lists the prison at 721 Iron Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815, with main phone 570-784-4815 and fax 570-784-8837. The site describes the prison as serving the community since 1877 and says its mission is to protect the public by safely confining people committed to its custody and care.

The prison is a county correctional institution, not a state prison. It houses male and female pretrial detainees, sentenced inmates up to one day less than five years, male and female federal inmates, and Pennsylvania Act 122 technical parole violators. The official prison page lists Warden George Nye, Deputy Warden Timothy Burns, Captain Brad Hipps, Security Lieutenant Shawn McCabe, Records Department contact Ethan Whitmire, and other facility staff. Sheriff Timothy Chamberlain's county sheriff page is separate from the prison page and should be used for sheriff office questions, while the county Right-to-Know page is the formal county records channel.

Columbia County Prison Capacity

The Columbia County Prison capacity history is unusually specific. The official county page says the original jail was built in 1877 for 50 prisoners. A major renovation and expansion completed in 1995 allowed approximately 150 prisoners. Additional beds later brought the published capacity to 250 inmates. Vera's 2020 Columbia County profile reported 101 people held on an average day and 85 pretrial detainees on a typical day, but the county page does not publish a current live daily population.

Who Columbia County Prison Holds

Columbia County Prison is the committed adult custody point for the county. Municipal police departments may temporarily hold arrestees during processing, but the county detention destination is Columbia County Prison when adult custody is committed locally. State-sentenced prisoners from Columbia County move into the Pennsylvania DOC system, while federal and immigration custody use separate federal tools.

• Pretrial detainees are people held while charges are pending.
• Local sentenced inmates can serve up to one day less than five years at the county level.
• Federal inmates may be housed at the county prison under federal authority.
• Act 122 technical parole violators are held on Pennsylvania parole-violation authority.
• State DOC inmates are searched through Pennsylvania DOC after transfer.

Look Up Columbia County Prison Inmates

No official public Columbia County Prison online roster was located. Current custody should be confirmed with the prison first. If the question is about a formal jail record instead of current custody, use the prison Records Department or the county Right-to-Know process. If the person has been sentenced to state custody, search Pennsylvania DOC. If the custody is federal or immigration-based, use BOP or ICE.

1. Call Columbia County Prison at 570-784-4815 with the person's full legal name, date of birth if known, and approximate arrest date.
2. Call the Records Department contact listed by the county, Ethan Whitmire, at 570-389-5718 for jail records questions.
3. Use Pennsylvania VINE for custody status and notification when the person appears there.
4. Search UJS Case Search for the docket, OTN, charges, bail entries, and hearings.
5. Use Pennsylvania DOC, BOP, or ICE ODLS if local custody is not the right system.

Columbia County Prison Contact

Use the Iron Street address for the jail, not the courthouse address. The courthouse and several county offices are at 35 West Main Street, but visitation, custody confirmation, mail, funds, and most jail operational questions start with the prison.

Visit Columbia County Prison

Columbia County Prison says onsite visitation is non-contact only and video visitation is available through ICSolutions. Onsite visits are one weekly 30-minute visit for residents, and the visitor must be on the resident's visitation list. Adults age 17 and over need valid photo identification. Visitors are subject to search and metal detector screening. Cell phones, electronic devices, weapons, food, beverages, outerwear, hooded sweatshirts, and hats are restricted under the local rules described in the research.

Mail Money and Phone

Personal mail for Columbia County Prison goes through TextBehind. The address format is inmate name and inmate ID number, Columbia County Prison, P.O. Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131. The county says personal mail is no longer sent to the old post office box and mail sent there after the change was returned. Confirm current content rules before sending photos, cards, books, publications, or money orders.

Bail at Columbia County Prison

Columbia County Prison publishes local bail guidance. For District Magistrate cases, the page says bail can be posted at Columbia County Prison during listed hours, but it also says that Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. bail must be posted at the Magisterial District Judge's office that set bail. On Saturdays and Sundays, the prison page says bail for District Magistrate cases can be posted at Columbia County Prison anytime. Call before travel to confirm custody, active bail, holds, and accepted payment method.

Booking and Intake Here

Columbia County Prison receives people committed under proper legal authority. State jail standards require written policies for admission and release, including verification of commitment paperwork, review of detainers, property handling, and release documentation. Intake can include identity checks, property storage, screening, classification, housing assignment, and orientation. Chapter 95 requires orientation within 14 days and requires the jail to cover rules, mail, visiting, telephone access, medical care, fees, grievances, treatment programs, and work programs.

Booking

Administrative entry into jail custody after arrest or commitment.

Classification

The process used to assign housing, custody level, and program eligibility.

Detainer

A hold or notice from another agency that may block release.

Act 122 technical parole violator

A Pennsylvania parole-violation custody category identified on the county prison page.

Columbia County Prison Programs

The official prison page lists programs offered based on classification, including Drug and Alcohol Counseling, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, Life Skills, Parenting Classes, GED, and religious classes. The page also links PREA policy, audit report, and yearly report materials. Columbia County Prison states it has zero tolerance for institutional sexual harassment, assault, or abuse, and the research identified reporting paths through the PREA Coordinator by email or mail.

Directions should use 721 Iron Street, Bloomsburg, PA 17815. Visitor parking, public transit, and accessibility details were not described in detail on the official prison pages reviewed, so confirm current entry procedures with the prison before traveling.