The Multnomah County Inmate Population
The Multnomah County inmate population is reported through several official systems because not every person in custody is held by the same agency. The Multnomah County Sheriff's Office data reporting page posts monthly jail reports for the county jail system. Those reports count adults in custody at the Multnomah County Detention Center and Multnomah County Inverness Jail, the two adult jails run by Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O'Donnell's office. The county auditor background material adds a longer view of jail capacity, booking, classification, and earlier custody patterns.
County jail custody is not the same as state prison custody. People arrested in Multnomah County usually enter the jail at the downtown detention center for booking, health screening, classification, and release review. Some stay there because of risk, medical, mental-health, court, or discipline needs. Many lower- and medium-risk adults move to Inverness Jail. A sentenced state prisoner, including someone at Columbia River Correctional Institution in Portland, belongs in the Oregon Department of Corrections count and is searched through the state locator rather than the county roster.
Multnomah County Inmate Population Statistics
Current Multnomah County inmate population numbers are best anchored in the MCSO monthly reports. The May 2026 report listed a funded county jail capacity of 1,130 beds, an average daily population of 972, and use of 86 percent of budgeted capacity. The same report listed 1,642 standard bookings for the month, 52 average bookings per day, and an average length of stay of 18.81 days. MCSO reported no forced releases in May 2026 and none in the previous 18 months.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| Average daily population | 972 | MCSO May 2026 Monthly Jail Report |
| Countywide funded jail capacity | 1,130 beds | MCSO monthly reports, current through May 2026 |
| Combined physical capacity | 1,485 beds | Multnomah County Auditor background page |
| May 2026 standard bookings | 1,642 | MCSO May 2026 Monthly Jail Report |
| Emergency population threshold | 1,074 people, 95% of budgeted capacity | Population Emergency Release Plan and MCSO reports |
Multnomah County Inmate Population Trends
The recent Multnomah County inmate population trend moved upward from late 2025 into spring 2026, then eased in May. MCSO's monthly reports show average daily population at 907 in December 2025, 940 in January 2026, 987 in February, 997 in March, 998 in April, and 972 in May. Capacity use stayed below the emergency threshold during that span, ranging from 80 percent to 88 percent of funded capacity. This is a jail count, not a total count of all people from Multnomah County in prison, federal custody, or immigration custody.
| Month | Standard Bookings | Average Length of Stay | ADP | Capacity Use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 2025 | 1,644 | 19.61 days | 907 | 80% |
| Jan. 2026 | 1,753 | 15.23 days | 940 | 83% |
| Feb. 2026 | 1,721 | 15.73 days | 987 | 87% |
| Mar. 2026 | 1,616 | 18.08 days | 997 | 88% |
| Apr. 2026 | 1,674 | 19.39 days | 998 | 88% |
| May 2026 | 1,642 | 18.81 days | 972 | 86% |
The older county audit period gives another frame. From July 2018 through June 2021, county jails housed just over 20,000 people, excluding booked-and-released cases. The same audit window reported an average of 2.1 jail stays per person, a median length of stay of 5 days, and 54 percent of adults in custody in pretrial status. Pretrial means the person has not been convicted on the pending charge.
Who Makes Up Multnomah County Inmates
MCSO's May 2026 booking demographics describe people booked during that month, not a full average daily population demographic count. The report listed 78.0 percent male bookings and 22.0 percent female bookings. It also listed booking race and ethnicity categories as 57.4 percent White, 22.5 percent Black, 13.9 percent Hispanic, 3.7 percent Asian, 2.5 percent Native American, and 0.1 percent Other. MCSO cautions that race and ethnicity data are limited by booking-system categories and self-identification.
- Pretrial status: The county audit window found 54 percent of adults in custody were pretrial.
- Release decisions: May 2026 recognizance releases totaled 398, or 24.2 percent of standard bookings.
- Federal holds: The May 2026 report averaged nine U.S. Marshals Service adults in custody per day.
- Community context: Census QuickFacts estimated Multnomah County's 2025 population at 795,391.
Multnomah County Jail Capacity
Capacity figures differ because sources measure different things. The county auditor background page lists 448 physical maximum-security beds at the Multnomah County Detention Center and 1,037 physical beds at Inverness Jail, for 1,485 physical beds. MCSO's current monthly reports use a smaller funded or budgeted capacity of 1,130 beds. The county emergency release plan treats 95 percent of adopted budget capacity as the jail population emergency threshold. At 1,130 budgeted beds, that threshold is 1,074 people.
The MCSO corrections recommendations project shows why capacity is not only a bed-count issue. Recent review work has focused on operations, staffing, facilities, contraband mitigation, suicide prevention, jail standards, death investigations, and inspection findings. County materials also note that judges, prosecutors, Portland Police, the Department of Community Justice, Corrections Health, and other agencies affect who enters jail, who is released, and how long a person remains in custody.
MCSO's data reporting page is the source page for monthly jail statistics, PREA reports, control-event statistics, and related dashboards. The screenshot below shows the reporting hub used to locate monthly jail population materials.
Those reports are the most local source for recent jail population, booking, release, length-of-stay, capacity, and demographic figures.
Laws Governing Multnomah County Inmate Data
Oregon law controls how jail population records, booking details, release information, and booking photos are handled. ORS chapter 192 gives every person a right to inspect non-exempt Oregon public records and also allows reasonable fees, response deadlines, and exemptions for protected material. For jail operations, ORS chapter 169 covers local correctional facility standards. Oregon's booking-photo law, passed through HB 3273, explains why MCSO no longer posts jail mugshots on its public roster.
Key Statutes:
ORS 192.314 gives access to inspect non-exempt Oregon public records.
ORS 192.324 and ORS 192.329 set request, fee, and response-deadline rules.
ORS 169.076 requires local jails to meet standards for staffing, supervision, health, safety, and policies.
HB 3273 limits routine release of booking photos and regulates publish-for-pay mugshot removals.
ORS 146.090 requires medical examiner investigation for deaths in jail or police custody.
Multnomah County and State Prison
The Multnomah County inmate population on the jail roster is only the county jail slice. People sentenced to state prison move into the Oregon Department of Corrections system, and their records are searched through Oregon Offender Search or VISOR. Columbia River Correctional Institution is physically in Portland, but it is a minimum-custody state prison, not a county jail. Its population is made up of sentenced ODOC adults in custody, primarily transition, reentry, treatment, work, and education populations.
State prison profiles differ from county booking records. ODOC profiles can show a photo, SID number, state prison location, institution admission date, earliest release date, caseload, and offense table. MCSO PAID profiles focus on county booking facts such as SWIS ID, arresting agency, booking date, assigned facility, projected release value, charges, bail, court case number, DA case number, and charge status.
Search Multnomah County Inmates
The official county jail lookup is MCSO Public Access Inmate Data, often called PAID. It covers current custody, released last seven days, emergency releases last seven days, booked last seven days, booked today, booked yesterday, and several previous-day booking windows. A public search and public booking profile were accessible without login during research, although a login link exists on the portal.
A name is enough to begin, but exact spelling helps. A broad current-custody search can return many rows. The local SWIS ID is useful once a booking profile is found because it is used for mail and money deposits. A person who was sentenced to state prison or moved into federal or immigration custody may not remain visible in the county jail roster.
- Open the MCSO Public Access Inmate Data portal.
- Enter the first name, last name, or both.
- Choose the search type, such as Now In Custody or Released Last 7 Days.
- Review the result list for name and booking date.
- Open the profile to confirm SWIS ID, facility assignment, charges, bail, court case number, DA case number, and charge status.
- If the person is no longer in county custody after sentencing, check Oregon Offender Search and VISOR.
Current Multnomah County Inmate Lookup
The PAID search form is narrower than some jail vendors but has unusually useful search-type filters. The roster does not show public booking photos because of Oregon's booking-photo restrictions, but it still provides the name, booking date, and a linked profile with custody and charge detail. For a newly arrested person not yet showing in search results, the MCSO FAQ directs callers to the jail information line at (503) 988-3689.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Name | Text | Unspecified | Optional in practice; useful for common names. |
| Last Name | Text | Unspecified | Optional in practice; use with first name when possible. |
| Search Type | Dropdown | Yes per form validation | Now in custody, released last seven days, emergency releases, recent bookings, and daily booking filters. |
| Search | Submit button | n/a | Runs the query and returns name and booking date rows. |
MCSO's PAID portal is shown below with the first-name, last-name, and search-type controls used for the county jail roster.
The portal is the first place to check for current jail custody, recent release, emergency release, and recent booking windows.
Past Multnomah County Inmate Records
PAID is strongest for current and recent records. It includes released-last-seven-days and booked-last-seven-days filters, but older jail records require another route. MCSO's public records page says jail records are available from January 1986 to the present, subject to Oregon public-records law and exemptions. Requests can be submitted online through the Multnomah County Public Records Center, by mail to the MCSO Communications Unit, or through service request forms for adults in custody.
Requestable corrections records include persons in custody, custody status, charges, booking photos subject to law, intake forms, adult-in-custody property, classification information, jail phone calls, jail video calls, and jail or courthouse exterior video. MCSO does not provide Multnomah Circuit Court records, medical and mental-health jail records, 911 audio/CAD, or police reports from other agencies through its corrections records process.
What a Multnomah County Inmate Record Shows
The inspected PAID sample profile showed a practical custody record. It did not show a mugshot, date of birth, cell or pod, court date, or warrant number. It did show the local identifiers and case bridges that help match jail custody to court records after a jail arrest. The SWIS ID is especially important because it is the local custody identifier used for mail and money deposits.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| SWIS ID | Local MCSO custody identifier used in PAID, mail, and money deposits. |
| Booking Date | Date and time the person entered county jail booking. |
| Assigned Facility | MCDC or MCIJ; no public pod or cell detail was observed. |
| Charges | Charge groups tied to court or case sections. |
| Court Case No. / DA Case No. | Identifiers that help connect the jail booking to court and prosecutor records. |
| Bail | Per-charge bail field with caution that some bail requires full amount or 10 percent. |
| Mugshot | Not shown on the public roster after Oregon HB 3273. |
County Jail vs State Prison Search
The lookup path depends on who holds the person. A county jail record follows arrest, booking, pretrial custody, a short local sentence, or a local hold. A state prison record follows an ODOC sentence after transfer. Federal and immigration custody use separate tools. Using the wrong locator can make a person look missing when the issue is only jurisdiction.
| Question | County Jail | State Prison | Federal / ICE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who is held | Arrestees, pretrial adults, short local sentences, local holds. | Sentenced ODOC adults in custody. | Federal inmates, USMS detainees, or immigration detainees. |
| Run by | Multnomah County Sheriff's Office. | Oregon Department of Corrections. | BOP, USMS, or ICE, depending on custody. |
| Where to look | MCSO PAID and jail information line. | Oregon Offender Search and VISOR. | BOP inmate locator, USMS District of Oregon, or ICE ODLS. |
| Photo access | No public roster mugshot. | ODOC profiles can show a DOC photo. | No public federal mugshot gallery. |
State and Federal Inmate Search
For sentenced Oregon prisoners, use Oregon Offender Search. It accepts first, middle, last, and SID number fields and can show DOC profile data when results are narrow enough. VISOR is Oregon's statewide custody and supervision search and notification system, replacing VINELink for Oregon custody notification. VISOR can help track county or state release and transfer events.
For federal custody, use the BOP inmate locator for federal inmates from 1982 to present. FCI Sheridan is the Oregon BOP institution, but it is not in Multnomah County. For federal pretrial custody or transport, the U.S. Marshals Service District of Oregon handles custody context. For immigration custody, use ICE Online Detainee Locator; Portland has an ICE processing and field-office location, but no official long-term ICE detention facility was confirmed inside Multnomah County.
Multnomah County Detention Facilities
The adult facility map has two county jail buildings and one state prison physically in Portland. The county jail buildings share one MCSO jail system but do different work. MCDC is the booking, release, maximum-security, and high-need hub. Inverness is larger, dorm-oriented, and also serves as the mail hub for all county adults in custody. Columbia River Correctional Institution is a state prison searched through ODOC, not PAID.
- Multnomah County Detention Center holds booking, release, high-risk, medical, mental-health, discipline, and court-movement populations.
- Multnomah County Inverness Jail holds many lower- and medium-risk pretrial adults, local sentenced adults, dorm populations, and special management units.
- Columbia River Correctional Institution holds sentenced ODOC adults in custody in a minimum-custody state prison setting.
Multnomah County Inmate Population FAQ
How large is the Multnomah County inmate population?
MCSO's May 2026 Monthly Jail Report listed a county jail average daily population of 972, which was 86 percent of the funded capacity of 1,130 beds. That figure counts county jail custody, not all state, federal, or immigration custody tied to Multnomah County.
How do I search the Multnomah County inmate population?
Use MCSO Public Access Inmate Data for current custody and recent county jail bookings. Search by first name, last name, and search type. If the person was sentenced to state prison, use Oregon Offender Search or VISOR instead.
Are Multnomah County jail mugshots online?
No. MCSO states that it no longer posts booking photos on the public jail information website because of Oregon House Bill 3273. Names, charges, booking dates, facility assignment, and other booking details can still appear.
What if the county roster does not show the person?
Call the jail information line for newly arrested or current jail custody questions. For older records, submit an MCSO public-records request. For state prison, federal custody, or immigration custody, use the proper ODOC, VISOR, BOP, USMS, or ICE channel.