St. Cloud Jail Mugshots
St. Cloud jail mugshots are booking photos taken when someone is arrested and processed into custody in this central Minnesota city. St. Cloud is the county seat of Stearns County, with a population of about 68,000 people. It serves as the regional hub for law enforcement and courts in the area. When St. Cloud Police make an arrest, the person is booked into the Stearns County Jail, which is located nearby at 807 Courthouse Square. That facility handles all intake, including the creation of booking photographs. This page explains how to search current inmate records, how to request arrest data from St. Cloud Police, and how to navigate the county jail system for historical booking information.
St. Cloud Quick Facts
Stearns County Jail and St. Cloud Booking Photos
Stearns County Jail is at 807 Courthouse Square, St. Cloud, MN 56303. The jail phone is 320-259-3750. This is where people arrested in St. Cloud are taken for booking and intake. The booking photo is captured here, making the Stearns County Sheriff's Office the record holder for mugshots tied to St. Cloud arrests. The jail sits near the center of the city, making it one of the few jails in Minnesota where the city and its county detention facility are in the same geographic area.
The Stearns County Sheriff's Office maintains jail roster and inmate information. You can access inmate details through the Sheriff's Office website at co.stearns.mn.us/Departments/Sheriff. The jail information page is at co.stearns.mn.us/Departments/Sheriff/Jail. These pages include information on contacting the jail, visiting procedures, and how to search current inmates held in custody. This is your primary resource for finding someone who was recently arrested in St. Cloud.
Minnesota's arrest data law at Minn. Stat. 13.82 spells out what must be made public when someone is arrested. The statute defines the data elements that are always public, including the full name of the person arrested, the time and date of arrest, the location where the arrest took place, and the offense charged. This law applies to both Stearns County and St. Cloud Police when they hold booking data. The overall framework for Minnesota government data is in Minn. Stat. 13.03.
VINE at vinelink.com covers Stearns County and lets you register for custody alerts. You can sign up to get notified when an inmate is released, transferred, or has another change in status. The service is free. You select your preferred contact method when you set up the alert.
The screenshot below shows the St. Cloud city website, which includes department links and city services that help residents navigate government resources including the police department.
The St. Cloud city site at ci.stcloud.mn.us links to the police department page where residents can find contact information and records request details.
St. Cloud Police Department and Arrest Records
The St. Cloud Police Department is at 101 11th Ave N, St. Cloud, MN 56303. The main phone is 320-345-4444. For non-emergency calls, use 320-251-1200. Emergencies go to 911. The department handles arrest records and law enforcement data for incidents within the St. Cloud city limits.
St. Cloud is the county seat, meaning it is also the location of the 7th Judicial District Court, the Stearns County government center, and the jail. This geographic concentration makes records coordination between city and county agencies more direct than in suburban cities that are far from their county seat. If you need arrest data from St. Cloud, you can reach both city and county offices without a long trip.
Records requests to St. Cloud PD are handled in person or by mail. You can visit the department at 101 11th Ave N during business hours or send a written request to the same address. Call 320-345-4444 to ask about specific records before coming in. Under the Minnesota Data Practices Act at Minn. Stat. 13.03, the department must respond within 10 business days. Public data is released as soon as it is ready.
St. Cloud does not currently offer an online records portal like the JustFOIA system used by some other Minnesota cities. All requests go through the department directly. The staff can tell you what data is available and what the process is for the specific type of record you need. Arrest reports are often available within a few business days for recent incidents.
The screenshot below shows the Minnesota VINE service site, which covers Stearns County and provides custody alert notifications for individuals arrested in St. Cloud.
Registering on VINE for Stearns County keeps you updated on custody changes tied to individuals booked at the St. Cloud-area jail after an arrest by city police.
How to Search St. Cloud Jail Mugshots
Start with the Stearns County Sheriff's Office website at co.stearns.mn.us/Departments/Sheriff/Jail. The Sheriff maintains the jail roster and can confirm current inmate status. Contact the jail at 320-259-3750 if you cannot find what you need through the website. The facility is right in St. Cloud, so in-person visits to the Sheriff's Office are also an option for getting inmate information.
For court records connected to a St. Cloud arrest, search the state's public court access system at publicaccess.courts.state.mn.us. St. Cloud is in the 7th Judicial District, which covers Stearns County. A search by name will turn up any active or resolved criminal case connected to an arrest in the city. You will see charges, case status, and hearing dates, which often helps piece together a fuller picture when the jail roster alone is not enough.
The Minnesota BCA maintains statewide criminal history data at chs.state.mn.us. If you want to know whether someone has arrests or convictions beyond Stearns County, this database covers the whole state. It is not a mugshot search, but it gives context when you are researching someone with a potentially broader record. You can also check the state DOC offender locator at coms.doc.state.mn.us if you think the person may have gone to a state prison after their local arrest.
The screenshot below illustrates the Minnesota DOC search system, which tracks offenders who received state sentences and may have been transferred out of Stearns County after an arrest in St. Cloud.
The DOC search tool at coms.doc.state.mn.us is a useful second step when someone arrested in St. Cloud was later convicted and sentenced to a state correctional facility.
Requesting Booking Photos from St. Cloud Arrests
Booking photos from St. Cloud arrests are taken at the Stearns County Jail. Because the photo is a county-level record, the request goes to Stearns County, not to St. Cloud Police. Contact the Stearns County Sheriff's Office to ask about their data practices request process and what information you need to include. The county processes requests under the Minnesota Data Practices Act. Under Minn. Stat. 13.82, basic arrest data is public, though the booking photo's releasability can depend on whether a case is still active.
For the written arrest report from St. Cloud PD, contact the department at 320-345-4444 or visit in person at 101 11th Ave N. Send mail requests to that same address. Identify the record you want by the person's full name, approximate date of arrest, and incident description if possible. The department has 10 business days to respond. If the data is public, you get it without providing a reason.
If the data is correctional in nature, meaning it relates to someone held at the county facility after sentencing, the relevant law is Minn. Stat. 13.85, which governs data about people in correctional facilities. Some data in that category is public, and some is not. The county will classify it when responding to your request.
For disputes or guidance on Data Practices Act compliance, the Minnesota Department of Administration's Information Policy Analysis Division is the right resource. Find them at mn.gov/admin/IPD. They advise both requestors and government agencies on how the law applies in specific situations.
Note: St. Cloud is also the site of correctional facilities run by the state, so some records searches may require distinguishing between local jail records and state facility records.