Caribou County Inmate Population Overview
The Caribou County inmate population centers on one official jail facility: Caribou County Jail in Soda Springs. The sheriff's detention page describes the jail as a county facility for male and female inmates in minimum, medium, and maximum security settings. It also states that the jail houses Caribou County inmates, contract inmates from other Idaho counties, and Idaho Department of Correction inmates. That mix is important. A person held in the building may be a new local arrestee, a defendant waiting for court, a short-sentence inmate, an IDOC-related hold, or a contract placement from another Idaho county.
Because the jail population is mixed, one lookup tool does not cover every person. County jail questions begin with the booking desk and sheriff records process. Filed charges move through Idaho iCourt. Sentenced prison, probation, and parole records move to the IDOC Resident/Client Search. Federal and immigration custody use separate federal systems. The Caribou County inmate population is small, but its record path is layered.
Caribou County Inmate Population Statistics
Local and high-authority data sources give several useful measures. The sheriff's jail page and the Idaho Sheriffs' Association jail directory both list Caribou County Jail as a 49-bed facility in sources inspected for this project. The same directory lists an average daily population of 33. The Vera Institute county dataset gives a 2023 jail population of 42 and a dataset capacity of 51, which differs from the current local 49-bed figure. For current local capacity, the sheriff and sheriff-association values carry the most direct local weight.
The Census QuickFacts July 1, 2025 estimate lists Caribou County at 7,252 residents. In a county that size, small changes in the jail count can make the jail-population rate move sharply. Vera's 2023 rate of 976.97 per 100,000 should be read as a dataset rate, not a real-time local daily count. It also should not be read as only Caribou County residents, since the jail holds IDOC and other-county contract inmates.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| Official jail rated capacity | 49 beds | Caribou County Sheriff's Office detention page, inspected 2026 |
| Jail directory average daily population | 33 | Idaho Sheriffs' Association jail directory, inspected 2026 |
| Vera jail population | 42 | Vera Incarceration Trends, 2023 row |
| Vera occupancy | 82.4% | Vera Incarceration Trends, 2023 row |
| County population estimate | 7,252 | Census QuickFacts, July 1, 2025 estimate |
The screenshot below comes from the Idaho Sheriffs' Association jail directory, which lists Caribou County Jail capacity and average daily population data used in the table.
The directory data supports the local capacity picture while the longer Vera dataset gives trend context across many years.
Caribou County Inmate Population Trends
Vera's county trend file shows the Caribou County inmate population changing from very low historical counts to a modern jail count in the 40s. The recent sampled high was 46 in 2017 against a 49-bed capacity, or 93.9% occupancy. The 2021 row fell to 25, then 2022 and 2023 rebounded to 43 and 42. No official source in the research tied those changes to a specific reform, construction event, or emergency policy, so the trend should be described without assigning a cause.
| Year | Jail Population | Rated Capacity | Occupancy | Pretrial / Sentenced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 42 | 51 | 82.4% | 35 / 7 |
| 2022 | 43 | 52 | 82.7% | 22 / 21 |
| 2021 | 25 | 49 | 51.0% | 13 / 12 |
| 2019 | 41 | 49 | 83.7% | 14 / 27 |
| 2017 | 46 | 49 | 93.9% | 14 / 32 |
| 2000 | 15 | 12.5 | 120.0% | 2.34 / 12.66 |
The dataset's 2000 capacity value is historical and should not be treated as the current jail size. For present Caribou County jail capacity, use the sheriff and Idaho Sheriffs' Association 49-bed statements.
Caribou County Inmate Population Makeup
The Vera 2023 row gives the most detailed population mix found in the research. It lists 35 pretrial inmates and 7 sentenced inmates in the Caribou County jail population. It also reports 40 male and 2 female inmates. Race and ethnicity counts in the same row include 28 White, 6 Latinx, 7 Native, 1 AAPI, and no Black or Other count. Those are jail dataset counts and may include rounding or imputation.
Agency-hold data matters as much as demographics. Vera's 2023 row lists 26 people held from state prison authorities and 7 from other jails. That matches the sheriff's statement that the facility can hold IDOC inmates and contract inmates from other Idaho counties. A Caribou County inmate population search may therefore start with the jail, then need IDOC or another county once custody status is clarified.
- Pretrial count: Vera lists 35 pretrial inmates in 2023.
- Sentenced count: Vera lists 7 sentenced inmates in 2023.
- Sex breakdown: Vera lists 40 male and 2 female inmates in 2023.
- Contract and IDOC role: Vera lists state-prison-authority and other-jail holds in the 2023 row.
Caribou County Jail Capacity
Current official and high-authority sources do not support saying Caribou County Jail is overcrowded today. The sheriff page and Idaho Sheriffs' Association directory list a 49-bed capacity, and the directory's average daily population is 33. Vera's 2023 row shows 42 people and 82.4% occupancy. The recent trend row closest to capacity was 2017, when Vera listed 46 people against 49 beds. The older 2000 row showed 120.0% occupancy, but that is historical and should not be framed as a present jail condition.
No official source located in the research showed a recent jail construction bond, consent decree, major jail litigation, or federal investigation tied to Caribou County Jail. The strongest local capacity fact is simpler: one small 49-bed jail serves a large rural county and also handles IDOC and other-county contract roles.
Caribou County Inmate Population Laws
Idaho public-records law and county jail statutes shape what can be viewed, requested, or withheld. Booking and jail records can be public records, but the sheriff's office may use correctional, investigatory, privacy, safety, and sealing exemptions. Jail operations are also governed by classification, visitor contraband, housing-cost, and death-in-custody rules. These laws explain why a Caribou County inmate population lookup may be public in part, restricted in part, and split among jail, court, coroner, IDOC, and state reporting systems.
Key statutes and rules:
Idaho Code § 74-102 gives the public a right to inspect and copy Idaho public records unless another law limits release.
Idaho Code § 20-602 covers jail separation and classification duties tied to Idaho detention standards.
Idaho Code § 20-607 allows county jail housing-cost collection, which the Caribou handbook applies locally.
Idaho Code § 19-4301 includes coroner investigation of deaths in jail or correctional custody.
Caribou County State Prison Records
No IDOC state prison is physically listed in Caribou County on the IDOC prison locations page. Once a Caribou County case becomes a state-prison sentence, the lookup shifts to the statewide IDOC system. IDOC says its Resident/Client Search covers people incarcerated, on probation, or on parole under IDOC jurisdiction. It is updated daily, but IDOC warns that location, status, termination date, and other details can change quickly.
IDOC statewide FY24 figures belong to the state-prison context, not the county jail population. IDOC reported county jails holding IDOC categories statewide, including parole violators, riders, and termers. Caribou County Jail also states that it holds IDOC inmates, so a person may be physically in the county jail while still connected to the state correction system. For sentence terms, jail credit, retained jurisdiction, parole, and state custody location, use IDOC and iCourt together.
Search Caribou County Inmate Population
Caribou County did not publish an official searchable jail roster in the sources reviewed. For current custody, start with the Caribou County Jail booking desk at (208) 547-3094, then use the sheriff public-records form for documents and iCourt for filed charges. VINELink can help with custody notifications where available, but it is not a substitute for a direct jail confirmation when timing matters.
Use the person's full legal name and an approximate arrest, booking, or court date if known. A phone call may answer a custody question, but it does not produce a booking report, arrest report, mugshot, or bond document. For copies, use the Caribou County Sheriff public-records request form and describe the record sought with enough detail for staff to locate it.
- Call the jail booking desk for current Caribou County custody or release status.
- Use VINELink for custody-status notification when the person is searchable there.
- Submit the sheriff records form for booking records, arrest reports, release records, or booking-photo requests.
- Search iCourt after charges are filed and a public court case exists.
- Check IDOC, BOP, or ICE if the person is no longer in local county custody.
Current Caribou County Inmate Lookup
The official county path is a fallback chain, not a roster search box. The sheriff's site lists the booking desk and front office and links jail services, VINELink, public records, MyCourts, visitation, and vendor systems. It does not expose an official live inmate table in the research reviewed. That absence should be treated as a fact, not a gap to fill with a third-party roster.
| Channel | Covers | Use It When | Limits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking desk | Current county jail custody | A person may be newly booked or released | Staff may limit details by phone |
| VINELink | Custody status and victim notice | Notification is the goal | May not show every jail record |
| Sheriff records request | Booking and jail documents | A copy or historical record is needed | Exemptions and fees may apply |
| iCourt | Filed court charges | The case has reached court filing | Sealed or exempt records do not show |
| IDOC Resident/Client Search | State prison, probation, parole | The person is sentenced or under IDOC | Updated daily, not real time |
Caribou County Inmate Record Fields
No live county roster profile was available to inspect, so county inmate record content should be described as requested records and separate official systems. A sheriff booking record may include intake and custody facts, but the public source reviewed did not show online fields such as booking number, housing unit, or mugshot. IDOC and iCourt do have observed public field sets. The record source controls what appears.
| Field | What It Means in Caribou County |
|---|---|
| Name | Use full legal name for phone checks, iCourt searches, and sheriff records requests. |
| Booking date | May be available through jail records, but no public roster field was found. |
| Charges | Booking allegations can differ from filed iCourt charge details. |
| Bond | Ask the jail for custody bond status and check iCourt for public court bond information. |
| Mugshot | No public county mugshot gallery was found; request booking photos through records law. |
| IDOC status | IDOC profiles can show state correction status, IDOC number, offense, sentencing county, and facility address when available. |
Caribou County Jail vs IDOC
County jail custody and state correction custody answer different questions. Caribou County Jail handles arrest intake, pretrial custody, local jail sentences, other-county contract inmates, and some IDOC inmates. IDOC handles state prison, probation, parole, sentence calculation, transport, retained jurisdiction, and state facility placement. A person can move through both systems during one case.
| County Jail | State Prison / IDOC | |
|---|---|---|
| Run By | Caribou County Sheriff's Office | Idaho Department of Correction |
| Common Status | New arrest, pretrial, local sentence, contract hold | Sentenced prison, rider, probation, parole |
| Lookup Path | Booking desk, records form, VINELink | IDOC Resident/Client Search |
| Case Detail | Booking and release facts | Sentence, status, facility, supervision fields |
State Federal ICE Searches
The BOP Inmate Locator covers federal prisoners from 1982 to present. It does not replace county jail booking checks and may not show every federal pretrial detainee. The ICE Online Detainee Locator covers people in ICE custody and CBP custody over 48 hours, with A-number and biographical search options. ICE does not allow searches for people under 18. The U.S. Marshals Service has a District of Idaho contact page, but no public USMS inmate locator was found.
The screenshot below shows the IDOC Resident/Client Search, the statewide lookup used after a Caribou County case enters state correction jurisdiction.
IDOC search results should be checked with iCourt when the question is about the criminal case, not just current custody.
Caribou County Detention Facilities
The official detention map contains one county facility. No separate city jail, regional jail, state prison, BOP facility, or ICE detention center was identified in Caribou County sources. The sheriff's patrol page says the office serves unincorporated Caribou County and also provides services to Bancroft, Grace, and Soda Springs, which supports routing local bookings through the county jail rather than separate municipal jail pages.
- Caribou County Jail - the 49-bed sheriff-operated county jail for local inmates, other Idaho county contract inmates, and IDOC inmates.
Caribou County Inmate Population FAQ
How large is the Caribou County inmate population?
The Idaho Sheriffs' Association directory lists average daily population at 33, and Vera's 2023 row lists 42 people. The sheriff and jail directory list the current local capacity as 49 beds.
Does Caribou County publish a jail roster?
No official searchable Caribou County jail roster was found in sheriff or county sources reviewed. Current custody checks start with the jail booking desk and move to records requests, VINELink, iCourt, or IDOC as needed.
Are all people in the jail Caribou County residents?
No. The sheriff says the jail can hold contract inmates from other Idaho counties and IDOC inmates. Vera's 2023 row also lists state-prison-authority and other-jail holds.
Where do filed charges appear?
Filed charges appear in Idaho iCourt when a public case exists. Booking allegations at the jail can differ from the charges a prosecutor files in court.