Santa Barbara County Main Jail

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Santa Barbara County Main Jail basic information to help guide you through what you can do for your inmate while they are incarcerated. The facility's direct contact number: 805-681-4260

This facility is for adult inmates.

The Santa Barbara County Main Jail is a medium-security detention center located at 4436 Calle Real in Santa Barbara, CA. This county jail is operated locally by the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office and holds inmates awaiting trial or sentencing. Most of the sentenced inmates are here for less than two years. Santa Barbara County accepts inmates from surrounding towns, municipalities, the US Marshal's Service and the Santa Barbara Police Department who do not have their own long-term lock-up.

There are new detainees delivered to the jail daily, you can see arrest records here. Some are released after putting up bail, are released to a pretrial services caseload, are placed under supervision by a probation agency, or are released on their own recognizance with an agreement to appear in court. If there is no release, the inmate must wait here at the jail for their court appearance as a guest of the County, getting a bed and three square meals.

Trustees are inmates who work in the jail as cooks, as orderlies for the staff, in the laundry or in the commissary. The trustees are paid a very small amount for their time and some jail gives the trustees a few days off their sentence in exchange for their work.

When an inmate arrives in jail they are put together in a large holding cell with other inmates in the intake. While in intake they are under heightened observation. Violent and out of control inmates are segregated.

Can I Get Work Release?

Work release is when you are released from jail during the day so that you can go to work. At the end of the day, you return to jail for the night. There are a number of requirements to be able to get into the work-release program. Most programs require your employer to fill out some paperwork. If you want to get into the work release program then apply prior to being sentenced to jail. This will minimize the amount of time you spend in jail waiting to get into the program.

Can I call my family in Jail?

Santa Barbara County Main Jail has a phone program where inmates make outbound calls only, you cannot call into jail. Since you are paying for those calls don't make it a habit of accepting collect-calls, they are over $15 each. The alternative is to set up an account through their third-party phone company which charges steep fees for each minute used. You are paying for them to call you. Click here if you are going to speak a lot and need a discount on the calls.

Remember – These phone calls are recorded and conversations can be used against you or the inmate so do not discuss your case over these phone lines.

visitation Info

Santa Barbara County Main Jail – Visitation

Visiting Hours – Saturday & Sunday

Registration – 12:00 pm – 12:30 pm
Visitation – 1:00 pm – 1:45 pm
- Cells – MBD-1, MBD-2, MBD-3, E-23, E-24, El-11 thru El-22, Sl-13 thru Sl-17
Registration – 1:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Visitation – 2:00 pm – 2:45 pm
- W-06, W-08, BC-01, BC-04, S-Tank, S-Dorm, WI-18 thru WI-29, SI-20 & SI-21

Registration – 2:00 pm – 2:30 pm
Visitation – 3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
- E-01, E-04, E-06, E-08, W-13, W-16, BC-17, EI-25 thru EI-38, SI-01 thru SI-12

Cells

MSF
- Registration – 7:00 am – 7:30 am
- Visitation – 8:00 am – 8:45 am
West 1,4,10
- Registration – 7:00 am – 7:30 am
- Visitation – 8:00 am – 8:45 am
C-07, C-08
- Registration – 3:45 pm – 4:00 pm
- Visitation – 4:00 pm – 4:45 pm

Required Identification – Only those visitors with the following types of valid photo identification shall be allowed to visit inmates in the custody of the Sheriff:

Driver’s license
DMV Identification Card
Federal, state, local government identification card (any state)
Military or U.S. Government identification card
Valid Passport
U.S. Immigration identification (including visas)
Border crossing card issued by the United States Department of Justice
Current high school identification for children who do not possess a current California driver’s license or California I.D. card
Matricula Consular ID card issued after April 22, 2002 by the Consul General of Mexico

A maximum of 2 visitors (including children) may visit an inmate at any one time. Minors must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian. When preparing to schedule a visit, please have the following information ready for all visitors.

Full name
Identification number
Current home address

While we attempt to honor all visit reservations, visits may be changed or cancelled without notice. Also, changes in the inmate’s housing assignments may automatically cancel a scheduled visit.

General Rules for Visiting Inmates

All visitors must check-in together one hour before the scheduled visit and are required to present valid photo identification. If a visitor is late, the visit may be cancelled.
Walk-in visitors, that are on the inmates' pre-assigned visitation list, will be accepted on a space-available basis as long as the visitor's check-in one hour before the visit time.
Visitors must be placed on a visitation list which the inmate provides. 4 visitors can be on the list. the list can be updated the last 3 days of the month and the first 3 days the inmate is in custody.
Inmates have the right to refuse visits at any time.
There is no expectation of privacy in a jail facility. Social visits may be monitored or recorded.
Visitors who have been incarcerated within the last 12 month or on felony probation will not be permitted to visit.
If you have previously been convicted of a felony and served time in state prison, you may not enter the grounds of a county jail without the permission of the Facility Commander. That permission should be obtained in writing before attempting to schedule a visit. Entry to the facility grounds without such permission is a felony (California Penal Code §4571).
Visitors may be subject to a search of their person and belongings by deputies and are subject to warrant checks and arrest.
Visitors must be 18 years or older to visit. Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. Children may not be left unattended, in parked vehicles or on the facility premises, at any time.
No smoking or vaping is allowed in any part of the jail including the lobby.
All visitors must dress in appropriate attire. Visitors who fail to comply with the dress code will be denied their visit. Please see below more information about the Visitor’s Apparel.
Visitors are only allowed to visit with the inmate they signed up to visit. You may not change or trade inmates with another visitor. Once a visitor departs the visitation area, the visit with the inmate is terminated.
Covertly communicating with an inmate by using notes, letters, hand gestures associated with gang affiliation, etc. is strictly prohibited.
Any visitor committing a criminal act anywhere on jail property is subject to arrest.
Any visitor bringing illegal contraband into the visiting area is subject to arrest.
Violation of any of the rules by a visitor may subject him/her to loss of visiting privileges.

The following items are not permitted in the visiting area:

Purses / bags / backpacks
Firearms, knives or other weapons
Alcohol / Drugs
Cigarettes / E-cigarette or Vaping device
Pets
Food / Drinks
Cameras / Photography
Cell phones / Computers / Laptops or Electronic devices capable of recording
A citation will be issued for cell phones and the offender will be rejected from visitation for one year.

Visitor’s Apparel – Visitors are expected to dress to meet the constraints of the institutional setting. Attire should be conservative and not revealing. Lobby staff has final determination of acceptable clothing

Visitors shall be fully clothed
Visitors shall wear shoes or sandals
Visitors will not be permitted to remove clothing items such as sweaters, jackets, etc. Which would violate the dress code standards.
Visitors’ clothing must not refer to gang affiliation, display sexual or lewd comments or pictures, or have the potential for being offensive to others.
Visitors must not display articles of clothing that could deemed “gang” colors, such as hats, belts, bandanas, shoes, sportswear, etc.
Visitors must not display tattoos or other body art that is gang or hate related.
Clothing must cover the upper torso and lower/midbody parts.
Shorts or skirts must be at least to mid-thigh length.
Undergarments must not be visible.
Visitors must not wear sleeveless, strapless, halter, spaghetti straps, swimsuits, or bare midriff clothing.
No sheer or “see-through” clothing.
No pajamas (top and/or bottom)
No cigarette packs, loose cigarettes, cigarette lighter or cigars