Autauga Temporary Jail Releases
The facility category is not a single named permanent jail in Autauga County. It covers out-of-county contract or temporary holding jails used when Autauga inmates were moved during the Metro Jail disruption. The operating agency depends on the receiving jail. A person may have an Autauga case, an Autauga booking history, and an Autauga court docket, while the physical custody or release point was a different county jail.
That distinction changes the search order. Autauga County remains the starting point because the booking, local case, bond order, sentence, or transfer record usually originates there. The receiving jail becomes important only when Autauga records show where the person was sent. A direct call to an unknown receiving jail can fail because the receiving facility may not have the case context, may use a different booking number, or may have returned the person to Autauga before release.
| Record question | Start here | Next source |
|---|---|---|
| Was the person released from Autauga custody? | Autauga sheriff or Metro Jail records | Autauga court docket |
| Where was the person held during repairs? | Autauga transfer or placement record | Receiving sheriff or jail if named |
| Did release happen outside Autauga? | Autauga release or transfer notation | Receiving jail records |
| Was the person moved to ADOC, BOP, or ICE? | Autauga release destination field | State or federal locator that matches the destination |
Autauga Jail Disruption Records
The disruption is well sourced. AP reported that Sheriff Mark Harrell evacuated the Autauga County Metro Jail in 2024 for health and safety issues and that inmates were sent to other facilities. ABC 33/40 reported that Blount County received Autauga inmates during that period. Elmore Autauga News reported in March 2026 that the jail was set to reopen after nearly two years of repairs and noted the 138-bed capacity. WSFA reported in April 2026 that 198 inmates were returning from 11 other jails after repairs.
The Elmore Autauga News report on the jail reopening is relevant because it ties the release-record problem to the repair timeline, the roster size, and the return of inmates to the Metro Jail.
The practical result is that the words "released from Autauga" may hide two separate facts: the legal release from an Autauga case and the physical release from a receiving jail. If the record spans 2024 through the 2026 return period, ask for both.
Confirm Autauga Transfer Releases
A temporary placement release should be confirmed in layers. The first layer is the Autauga booking and court record. The second layer is the transfer or placement record that names the receiving jail. The third layer is the receiving jail's own release record, if the person actually left custody from that facility. The final layer is a state or federal system only when the record shows that the person went to ADOC, BOP, ICE, or another legal authority.
- Contact Autauga County Metro Jail or the sheriff's office and ask whether the person was held outside the Metro Jail during the disruption period.
- Ask for the booking number, placement or transfer destination, release date and time, release type, and whether the release was to community or another agency.
- Check the Autauga court docket for bond, sentence, dismissal, probation, transfer, revocation, or jail-credit information.
- If Autauga records name a receiving jail, contact that facility for its physical custody and release record.
- If the record points to state, federal, or immigration custody, use the correct ADOC, BOP, or ICE route instead of treating the placement move as a normal release.
Use the Autauga County Metro Jail page for the main jail contact and local release-record fields. The temporary placement search is a supplement for cases where the Autauga record shows another jail was involved.
Autauga Holding Records Contacts
There is no single permanent public contact card for every receiving jail because the receiving agency changed by placement. The stable Autauga contacts are the Metro Jail and sheriff's office. Use those first to identify whether the person was transferred, returned, released, or moved to another authority. Once Autauga records identify a receiving jail, that jail's records office can be asked for the physical custody and release event.
| Autauga County Metro Jail | 135 North Court Street, Suite B, Prattville, AL, phone (334) 358-6700 |
|---|---|
| Autauga County Sheriff's Office | 162 W 4th St, Prattville, AL 36067, phone 334-361-2500 |
| Autauga court | 134 North Court Street, Prattville, AL 36067, phone (334) 358-6800 |
| Receiving jail | Use only after Autauga records identify the placement or release facility. |
The request should be narrow. Ask Autauga for the transfer record, placement location, release record, and any receiving-facility reference. Ask the receiving jail for the physical custody log only after the Autauga record names it. This avoids treating all nearby jails as possible release sources.
Temporary Jail Release Fields
Temporary placement records should identify both the legal case and the physical custody path. The release researcher should not rely on a missing Autauga app roster entry during the disruption period because the person may have been held elsewhere. The same person can have one Autauga case number, one Autauga booking record, and a separate receiving-jail placement record.
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Autauga booking number and case number | Ties the request to the local case that caused custody. |
| Transfer date and receiving jail | Shows where the person was held during the disruption. |
| Return-to-Autauga notation | Shows whether the person came back before release. |
| Physical release facility | Identifies which jail's custody log may confirm the release event. |
| Release type and destination | Distinguishes community release from transfer to ADOC, another county, BOP, or ICE. |
| Booking photograph availability | Shows whether the photo sits with Autauga, the receiving jail, or another agency. |
Note: A temporary placement record can explain where someone stayed, but the Autauga court record explains why custody existed.
Autauga Roster Limits
The sheriff app current roster remains useful, but it cannot carry all disruption-period release questions. The sheriff app notice says the current Jail Roster is under the Metro Jail tab. It does not publish a public retention period, released-inmate archive, 24-hour release feed, 72-hour release feed, or release-photo archive in the captured source text. During the repair period, a person could disappear from a current roster because of release, transfer, app timing, or placement outside the main jail.
If the goal is a date range, ask for records across the range instead of trying to infer status from a single app check. For example, ask for all release, transfer, and return-to-custody events for the named person between the relevant dates. If the request is for a short window, ask whether any event occurred in the last 24 or 72 hours and whether the event was release to the community or transfer to another agency.
Autauga Holds and ICE Transfers
Holds and detainers are a separate complication. Historical TRAC data showed Autauga County Jail with ICE detainers in FY 2012 and FY 2013, but the research did not confirm a current Autauga ICE detention contract. A detainer can still affect a release record because a person may leave county jail custody and move to another authority. That is not the same as walking out to the community.
If a temporary holding record mentions immigration custody, use ICE ODLS for current ICE custody and immigration court status. If the record mentions federal custody, use the BOP locator when a federal inmate record applies. If the record mentions ADOC, use the ADOC current inmate search while the person is in state custody. The receiving jail may confirm the physical handoff, but the next agency controls the next custody record.
Autauga Court Release Proof
The Autauga court docket is often the best way to interpret a temporary placement record. The court can show whether a person was released on bond, sentenced, dismissed, placed on probation, revoked, or transferred after sentencing. The court record can also show jail credit, which matters when a county-jail stay is later counted toward an ADOC sentence. If the person moved through another jail because of the Metro Jail disruption, the court case still explains the legal reason for custody.
The Autauga County Nineteenth Judicial Circuit site lists the courthouse at 134 North Court Street, Prattville, with phone (334) 358-6800, and links to docket resources and Just One Look. The Alacourt Access path is the online state trial court record route. If online access does not answer the question, the clerk and the jail records path should be used together.