McLennan County Arrest Records Search | Recent Bookings

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McLennan County, Texas · Hourly inmate list, recent arrests, mugshots, bonds and court outcomes

Check a McLennan County Booking Before the Trail Goes Cold

If someone was arrested in or around Waco, the quickest first check is the McLennan County Sheriff’s Current Inmate Listing. The county says that list refreshes once every hour, so it is designed for current custody—not as a permanent history of every arrest.

Find the person, save the name and SO# or other identifying information shown, then follow the case to the correct court. Misdemeanors go through the County Clerk; felony cases go through the District Clerk. That distinction saves a lot of wasted searching.

Open current inmate list Search Sheriff mugshots Check the criminal case
Full booked name Date of birth Approximate arrest date SO# if known Cause or report number
MCLENNAN BOOKING PULSE HOURLY UPDATE
CURRENT INMATE LIST LIVE
COURT RECORD
CASE ROUTE VERIFIED
BOOKING → COURT MATCH
An arrest is not a conviction. A jail listing or mugshot reflects an arrest or custody event. It does not establish guilt, and the charge entered during booking can differ from the charge later filed or resolved in court.
Roster refresh

The Sheriff says the inmate list updates once every hour.

Jail Intake

254-757-5120 for recent booking and reception questions.

Highway 6 Jail

254-757-2555 for jail and bond-related questions.

Misdemeanor vs felony

County Clerk handles misdemeanors; District Clerk handles felonies.

Official review

County and state procedures checked August 19, 2026.

If the arrest happened today, do these four things first

1 · CHECK CUSTODY Open the hourly inmate list

Do not start with a paid background-search site.

2 · SAVE IDENTITY Write down the SO#

Use the exact booked name and identifier for jail services and mail.

3 · CHECK BOND Call the jail if unclear

Ask about every charge, bond condition and hold.

4 · FIND THE CASE Choose misdemeanor or felony

The two case systems are maintained by different clerks.

The local record map

McLennan County does not use one database for everything

SHERIFF / JAIL Who is currently in custody?

Use the hourly inmate list for current jail status and Sheriff mugshot search for available booking-photo records.

ARRESTING AGENCY What allegedly happened?

Request the offense or incident report from HCSO, Waco Police or whichever agency actually investigated the event.

COUNTY CLERK What happened to a misdemeanor?

County Courts at Law misdemeanor records and their final docket history are maintained here.

DISTRICT CLERK What happened to a felony?

Use the District Clerk criminal index for felony district-court cases and dispositions.

Best research sequence: confirm the current booking → save the SO# and arresting agency → determine misdemeanor or felony → locate the court case → obtain the final disposition → request only the police or certified court document still missing.

Go directly to the McLennan County task

Recent bookings first

How to check a new McLennan County arrest

The Sheriff’s Office links directly to a Current Inmate Listing and states that the file is updated once every hour.
Open the official current-inmate PDF Open the McLennan County Current Inmate Listing
Use your browser’s Find command On desktop press Ctrl+F or Command+F and enter the person’s last name. On a phone, use the browser menu and choose Find on Page when available.
Check more than the name Use the SO#, age or birth information, charge, arrest date or other identifying details displayed in the official record to avoid a same-name mistake.
Save the SO# immediately The Sheriff’s own inmate-mail example uses an SO number as the inmate identifier. It is useful when contacting the jail or using family services.
Look at every charge or case entry A person can have more than one charge, bond or hold. Do not stop after reading the first line.
Record the arresting or case agency when shown That agency—not necessarily the jail—may hold the offense narrative you need.
Use Online Mugshots as a separate Sheriff search Open McLennan County Online Mugshots
Finish with the court case Jail information answers the custody question. The County Clerk or District Clerk answers what happened legally afterward.
If the PDF does not open: go to the Sheriff’s official page and select Current Inmate Listing. This also lets you confirm that you are using the county’s current link rather than a copied third-party roster.
Important limitation: the hourly inmate list is a current-custody tool. Someone who was booked and released may disappear from that list. For an older arrest, move to the Sheriff mugshot search and the appropriate criminal-court index.
No result does not always mean no arrest

What to do when the person is missing from the roster

Still being booked

The person may be at Intake & Reception before the next hourly public-list update.

Released quickly

A person who posted bond or was otherwise released may no longer appear on a current-inmate list.

Name entered differently

Check middle names, suffixes, hyphenation, maiden names and alternate spellings.

Citation instead of jail

A criminal or Class C case can exist without a lengthy stay in the county jail.

Booked outside McLennan County

The alleged offense can involve McLennan County even when another jurisdiction handled the actual booking.

Transferred to another system

After later transfer, check TDCJ or the appropriate federal or outside-county facility.

Recent-arrest call script
I am trying to confirm the booking or custody status of [full legal name], date of birth [date]. The arrest may have happened on [date] through [agency]. Can you tell me whether the person is still being processed, currently in custody, released, transferred, or listed under another spelling or SO number?
Jail Intake / Reception: 254-757-5120
Highway 6 Jail: 254-757-2555
Sheriff Dispatch: 254-757-5222
Know which jail number to call

Intake in downtown Waco and the Highway 6 Jail serve different purposes

Jail Intake & Reception
901 Washington Avenue
Waco, TX 76701

Phone: 254-757-5120

Use this number when the arrest is extremely recent and the person may still be in intake or reception.

Highway 6 Jail
3201 Marlin Highway
Waco, TX 76705

Phone: 254-757-2555

Use this number for jail, housing and bond-office questions after booking.

Local shortcut: if an arrest happened only a short time ago, calling Intake at 254-757-5120 can make more sense than repeatedly refreshing an hourly roster.
The arresting agency owns the story

Request the police report separately from the jail record

McLennan County Sheriff arrest

Use the Sheriff’s Open Records Request Portal for records created or maintained by HCSO.

  1. Open the official request portal.
  2. Select the option to submit an open-records request.
  3. Ask for the specific offense, incident, arrest or identified related record.
  4. Provide the name, DOB, date, location and report or case number when available.
  5. Use the portal account to track the request and download records when released electronically.
Open HCSO Open Records Request Portal

Waco Police arrest

When Waco Police made the arrest, do not ask the county jail to produce the police investigative narrative.

  • Waco Police headquarters is at 3115 Pine Avenue.
  • Waco Police Forms & Reports provides current records-related routes.
  • Have the incident number, date, location and names ready.
  • For another city police agency, use that city’s records office instead.
Open Waco Police Forms & Reports
McLennan County Sheriff Records
901 Washington Avenue, Waco, TX 76701
Phone: 254-757-5108
Copy-ready open-records wording
Under the Texas Public Information Act, I request the releasable arrest, offense or incident report concerning [full legal name] for the event on or about [date/time] at [location]. Known identifiers include SO# [number], report or incident number [number], cause number [number], and arresting agency [agency]. Please provide the responsive record electronically when available and notify me before processing if a substantial charge will apply.
This is the McLennan County split that matters

Search misdemeanors and felonies in the correct clerk’s system

Misdemeanor → County Clerk

The McLennan County Clerk serves the County Courts at Law and maintains misdemeanor criminal records.

Online criminal index: 1993 to the present.

Open County Clerk Court Index
Criminal Division
215 N. 5th Street, Room 201
Waco, TX 76701

Phone: 254-757-5185

Felony → District Clerk

Felony cases filed in McLennan County district courts are maintained by the District Clerk.

Online criminal index: 1984 to the present, with limited information for earlier cases.

Open District Clerk Criminal Records
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 300
Courthouse Annex
Waco, TX 76701

Criminal Division: 254-757-5054

County Clerk misdemeanor search

Accept the public-record disclaimer The County Clerk portal explains that online information is an index and is not a certified court document.
Search the criminal index Use the party information and available date or case information to narrow the result.
Match the case to the arrest Compare the name, filing timing, offense and available cause information.
Read the court history Look for filing, settings, plea, dismissal, judgment and other disposition information.
Request the actual document when needed The County Clerk states that only index information is available through the website; court documents can be viewed through the office.

District Clerk felony search

Open the Criminal Records search The search includes date-from/date-to, style, cause number, last name, first name and offense fields.
Use the cause number first when known It is safer than a broad name-only search.
Use last name, first name and dates when necessary Add the offense or filing range when common names produce many results.
Check every count separately One count may be dismissed while another ends in a plea, deferred adjudication or conviction.
Request a certified disposition when proof matters A screenshot of an index result is not the same thing as a certified court record.
Older felony case? The District Clerk states that its records begin in 1850, although only limited information for earlier cases is available online. Contact the office when the case predates the normal electronic index.
Do not overpay for the wrong clerk

McLennan County criminal search and copy fees

County Clerk — misdemeanor records
Service
Published fee
Use it for
Criminal search
$5 per name
McLennan County misdemeanor name research.
Criminal search letter
$5
Written search result from the County Clerk.
Court copies
$1 per page
Copies of misdemeanor case documents.
Certified copies
Additional $5 per case
When official certification is required.
District Clerk — felony records
Service
Published fee
Practical detail
Name + DOB telephone search
$5
Call 254-757-5054 when you have only a name and DOB.
Criminal research letter
$5
Available through Customer Service.
Certified criminal research letter
$10
Use when certification of the search is required.
Court-document copies
$1 per page
County states this rate applies whether certified or not.
Specific case summary by phone
No charge
County FAQ states summary information is available when you already have the case number.
District Clerk Customer Service
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 300, Courthouse Annex
Waco, TX 76701
Phone: 254-757-5054
Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Local courthouse tip: the District Clerk says the Courthouse Annex can be entered through the main courthouse at 501 Washington Avenue on the ground floor or through the Jury Entrance in the alleyway. Visitors pass through a metal detector and carried items go through X-ray screening.
Do not rely on a random warrant page

How to verify a McLennan County warrant

McLennan County Sheriff Warrant Division

Phone: 254-757-5107

Use the Warrant Division for county-warrant questions rather than trusting an unverified third-party name match.

Check the matching court case

A current docket can help show whether a warrant was issued, served, recalled or followed by later court activity.

Use the County Clerk for misdemeanors and District Clerk for felonies.

Safety rule: never confront, detain or threaten someone based on an online warrant or arrest-record match. Similar names and outdated information can lead to serious mistakes.
Bond office vs personal bond office

McLennan County has two bond-related routes readers often confuse

Jail Bond Office

For a defendant who is currently in jail, start with the Highway 6 Jail and Bond Office.

3201 Marlin Highway
Waco, TX 76705

Phone: 254-757-2555

The county’s bond rules state that charge and bond information may be provided by phone or in person.

Personal / PR Bond Office

501 Washington Avenue, Suite 110
Waco, TX 76701

Phone: 254-757-5004

Weekly call-in line: 254-757-5177

This office handles personal-bond supervision and is not the same thing as a commercial bail-bond company.

Before anyone pays a surety bond

Confirm the exact inmate name and SO#
Ask for every charge and bond amount
Ask whether any 24-hour or 48-hour hold exists
Ask about bond conditions
Check for another cause or warrant
Use an active McLennan County bonding agency
Keep the bond and payment documents
Do not assume posting one bond means immediate release
McLennan County’s published bail-bond rules say the arrest-information printout used by active bonding agencies or attorneys can include the inmate’s name, bond amount, offense level, offense, warrant or cause number, case agency, case number, bond condition and a 24-hour or 48-hour hold.
Read Sheriff bond rules Check active bail-bond agencies Open PR Bond Office

If the defendant receives a personal bond

The PR Bond Office currently publishes a one-time $20 personal-bond fee and requires weekly call-in reports until the case is disposed. Failure to report or pay the required fee is listed as a bond-condition violation that can result in an arrest warrant.
PR Bond Office hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Closed for lunch: noon–1:00 p.m.
Payment methods currently listed for the personal-bond fee: cash or money order payable to McLennan County.
Major 2026 visitation change

On-site visitation moved to the McLennan County Jail Bond Office Lobby

The Sheriff announced that beginning April 5, 2026, visitation moved from the Shepherd Mullens Correctional Visitation Center to the McLennan County Jail – Bond Office Lobby.
Current McLennan County inmate visitation schedule
Visit type
Day
Hours
Important cutoff
On-site
Sunday
8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Registration ends 4:30 p.m.
On-site
Monday
12:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m.
Registration ends 7:30 p.m.
Remote
Tuesday–Saturday
1:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m.
Use GettingOut / Go Visit
Confirm the inmate is still in county custody Check the hourly roster before travelling.
Confirm you are on the inmate’s visitation list The Sheriff requires on-site visitors to be on the approved list.
Create your GettingOut account The county specifically requires a GettingOut account for facility visitation. Open GettingOut
Choose on-site or remote On-site visiting is Sunday and Monday; remote visiting is Tuesday through Saturday.
Do not arrive after registration closes The published cutoff is 30 minutes before the on-site visiting period ends.
Visit allowance: the Sheriff currently states that inmates are allowed two visits of 30 minutes each.
Personal mail is digitally delivered

Do not send ordinary family letters to the jail street address

McLennan County moved ordinary personal mail to digital delivery through the inmate’s GettingOut tablet. Physical personal correspondence is sent to a Phoenix, Maryland processing address.

Personal mail format

McLennan County Jail, TX
[Inmate’s full booked name]
SO#[inmate identifier]
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

What the Sheriff says must be on personal mail

Complete facility name with no abbreviation
State
Inmate’s complete name
Inmate identifier / SO#
Sender’s complete name
Sender’s physical return address
The county says the Phoenix address is for ordinary personal material such as letters, pictures and drawings. Attorney-client privileged mail, checks or money-order procedures, packages and parcels follow different instructions and should not simply be mailed to the Phoenix personal-mail address.
Verify current mail instructions
Calls, messages and deposits

Use the facility’s GettingOut account instead of guessing a vendor

Video visits

McLennan County specifically directs visitors to GettingOut and the Go Visit apps.

Tablet communication

The Sheriff states that personal mail is digitally delivered through the incarcerated person’s GettingOut tablet.

Deposits and communication funding

GettingOut supports account funding and deposits, but available account types can vary by facility. Select McLennan County inside the provider before paying.

Verify the inmate’s exact name and SO# Do not fund an account based only on a similar name.
Open GettingOut directly Go to GettingOut
Select the correct Texas facility Confirm McLennan County before creating or funding an inmate or friends-and-family account.
Review the account type before paying Communication funding and inmate trust/commissary funding can be separate account categories.
Save the confirmation number Keep the resident name, SO#, amount, account type and transaction receipt.
GettingOut Customer Care: 866-516-0115
Case privacy warning: normal jail calls, video visits and electronic messages should not be treated as confidential attorney-client communication. Avoid discussing evidence, witnesses, alibis, passwords or defense strategy.
Court-appointed counsel

McLennan County requires an in-person indigent-defense interview

Office for Appointed Criminal Attorney
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 109
Waco, TX 76701
Phone: 254-759-7540
Fax: 254-759-5611
Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Closed for lunch noon–1:00 p.m.
Call 254-759-7540 The county instructs applicants to call the Indigent Defense Coordinator office to schedule an appointment.
Expect an in-person interview McLennan County specifically states that the appointed-attorney application process requires an in-person interview.
Have the case information ready Bring or know the defendant’s booked name, cause number, court and next setting when available.
Do not assume appointment is automatic Eligibility and appointment are part of the county’s indigent-defense process.
Open appointed-attorney information Find private Texas counsel
Victim and survivor assistance

Do not rely on the inmate roster for victim case updates

The McLennan County District Attorney’s Victim Assistance Coordinators help victims understand pending cases and court proceedings. They can also provide information related to victim services and the status of a prosecution.

McLennan County District Attorney / Victim Services
219 N. 6th Street, Suite 200
Waco, TX 76701
Phone: 254-757-5084
Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Closed for lunch noon–1:00 p.m.
Victim Assistance Coordinators can help explain what to expect as a case moves through court and may accompany victims during court proceedings.
Open District Attorney resources
When one county search is not enough

Use Texas DPS or TDCJ for a different question

Texas DPS criminal history

Use Texas DPS when you need broader Texas public criminal-history information rather than one McLennan County custody event.

  • Public name searches require an account.
  • Search credits currently cost $1 each.
  • Entering a complete date of birth narrows results.
  • Name searches can produce possible matches.
  • DPS states that fingerprint identification is the reliable way to positively link a person to a criminal record.
Open Texas DPS Criminal History Search

Texas Department of Criminal Justice

Use TDCJ after the person has moved into Texas state-prison custody or when you need a TDCJ location, offense or projected release date.

  • Search by name, SID or TDCJ number.
  • Do not use TDCJ as the first search for a fresh McLennan County arrest.
  • The McLennan County jail roster remains the correct starting point while the person is held locally.
Open TDCJ Inmate Information
Incorrect record or old arrest

First identify the record owner—then correct or clear it

Compare the Sheriff and court records Determine whether the error appears in the booking information, police report, misdemeanor case, felony case or Texas DPS history.
Save the incorrect entry Record the SO#, cause number, arrest date and exact field that is wrong.
Obtain the final disposition A certified dismissal, judgment or other court disposition is useful when disputing outdated downstream data.
Contact the office that owns the error The Sheriff cannot rewrite a Waco Police investigative report, and the clerk cannot independently rewrite a Sheriff booking record.
Check DPS separately DPS provides an error-resolution process for inaccurate criminal-history information.
Evaluate expunction or nondisclosure separately Removing or restricting an accurate record is a different legal process from correcting an error.

Expunction

Eligible Texas arrests can sometimes be cleared through an expunction. Eligibility depends heavily on the exact arrest and disposition.

Read current Texas expunction guidance

Nondisclosure

A qualifying nondisclosure can restrict public access to certain records without destroying every government copy.

Check Texas court forms
McLennan County’s own expunction agency list shows why these cases can involve several record holders: the District Attorney, County Clerk, Sheriff/Jail, District Clerk, Waco Police or another arresting agency, DPS and other entities may all need to be addressed depending on the case.
Local numbers worth saving

McLennan County arrest, jail and court contacts

McLennan County Sheriff
901 Washington Avenue
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5095

Monday–Friday, 8:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

Jail Intake / Reception
901 Washington Avenue
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5120

Highway 6 Jail
3201 Marlin Highway
Waco, TX 76705

254-757-2555

Sheriff Records
901 Washington Avenue
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5108

Warrant Division
901 Washington Avenue
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5107

County Clerk Criminal
215 N. 5th Street, Room 201
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5185

District Clerk Criminal
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 300
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5054

Court Administrator

254-757-5030

County-court-date questions.

Appointed Criminal Attorney Office
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 109
Waco, TX 76701

254-759-7540

Bail Bond / PR Bond Office
501 Washington Avenue, Suite 110
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5004

District Attorney / Victim Services
219 N. 6th Street, Suite 200
Waco, TX 76701

254-757-5084

Waco Police
3115 Pine Avenue
Waco, TX 76708

Non-emergency: 254-750-7500

Map: Jail Intake and Sheriff Headquarters

Map: Highway 6 Jail

Map: Courthouse and District Clerk

Local mistakes that cost time

Six McLennan County errors to avoid

Treating the hourly list as arrest history

It is primarily a current-inmate list. A released person may require a mugshot or court-record search.

Searching felonies in the County Clerk portal

Felonies belong with the District Clerk. County Clerk criminal records are for misdemeanor courts.

Searching misdemeanors only with the District Clerk

County Courts at Law misdemeanor cases are maintained by the County Clerk.

Sending personal mail to 901 Washington

Ordinary personal mail is digitally routed through the Phoenix, Maryland address.

Going to the old visitation center

On-site visitation moved to the Jail Bond Office Lobby beginning April 5, 2026.

Confusing a PR bond with a bail-bond company

The Personal Bond Office at 501 Washington handles a separate pretrial-supervision process.

10 McLennan County questions

Recent booking and arrest-record questions answered

How do I find recent McLennan County arrests and bookings?

Start with the McLennan County Sheriff’s Current Inmate Listing. The Sheriff’s Office states that this official list is updated once every hour. It is most useful for people who are still in county custody. For a person who has already been released, also check the Sheriff’s Online Mugshots search and the appropriate McLennan County criminal court index.

How often is the McLennan County inmate list updated?

The McLennan County Sheriff’s Office states that its Current Inmate Listing is updated once every hour. Because an arrest can still be processing and a release can occur between updates, call Jail Intake at 254-757-5120 or the Highway 6 Jail at 254-757-2555 when an urgent custody answer is not clear online.

Why can I not find someone who was just arrested in McLennan County?

A new arrest may still be going through intake, identification, magistrate review or data entry. The person may also have been released quickly, booked under a different spelling or suffix, cited without a county-jail stay, or booked in another county. Recheck the hourly inmate list and call Jail Intake at 254-757-5120 when necessary.

What is the difference between the McLennan County inmate list and mugshot search?

The Current Inmate Listing is the Sheriff’s frequently updated custody list and is best for determining who is presently listed in the jail system. Online Mugshots is a separate Sheriff search. Neither should be treated as the final court disposition. Use County Clerk records for misdemeanor cases and District Clerk records for felony cases.

Where do I search McLennan County misdemeanor and felony cases?

Misdemeanor criminal cases handled by the County Courts at Law are maintained by the McLennan County Clerk. Its online criminal index covers 1993 to the present. Felony district-court cases are maintained by the McLennan County District Clerk, whose online criminal index covers 1984 to the present with limited earlier information.

How much does a McLennan County criminal record search cost?

The County Clerk lists criminal searches at $5 per name, criminal search letters at $5, copies at $1 per page and certification at an additional $5 per case. The District Clerk lists a $5 name-and-date-of-birth criminal search, a $5 criminal research letter, a $10 certified criminal research letter and copies at $1 per page.

How do I request a McLennan County Sheriff’s arrest or offense report?

Use the McLennan County Sheriff’s Open Records Request Portal for records created by the Sheriff’s Office. Provide the person’s full name, date of birth, arrest or incident date, location, report or case number and the specific record you need. If another police department made the arrest, request its investigative report from that agency instead.

What are the McLennan County Jail visitation hours?

Current on-site visitation is Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Monday from noon to 8:00 p.m. Registration ends at 4:30 p.m. Sunday and 7:30 p.m. Monday. The Sheriff states that inmates are allowed two 30-minute visits and visitors must be on the visitation list and have a GettingOut account. Remote visitation is Tuesday through Saturday from 1:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

What is the McLennan County inmate mailing address?

For ordinary personal mail, the Sheriff’s current instructions direct mail to McLennan County Jail, TX, followed by the inmate’s full booked name and SO number, P.O. Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131. Include the complete facility name and state, inmate identifier, and the sender’s full name and physical return address. Attorney-client mail and packages follow separate facility procedures.

How do I get a court-appointed lawyer in McLennan County?

Call the McLennan County Office for Appointed Criminal Attorney at 254-759-7540 to schedule an appointment. The county states that the application process requires an in-person interview. The office is at 501 Washington Avenue, Suite 109, Waco, Texas 76701.

Primary official sources

Where this McLennan County information was verified

Sheriff and jail
McLennan County courts
Bond, legal and Texas records
Accuracy, identity and legal-use notice

Texas-arrest.org is an independent informational resource. It is not the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office, McLennan County Clerk, McLennan County District Clerk, District Attorney, City of Waco, Texas DPS, TDCJ or a law firm.

Current custody, booking, mugshot, bond, visitation, mail, provider, fee and court information can change. Verify a person with more than one identifier and check the live official source before travelling, sending money, mailing correspondence or making a legal or publication decision.

Every accused person is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. A booking record is not evidence of a conviction.

Official-source review completed August 19, 2026. No unsupported historical-arrest coverage, booking delay, parking fee, phone-call rate or release-time estimate has been intentionally added.

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