Somerset County Inmate Population
Somerset County has two very different detention populations on Revells Neck Road in Westover. The Somerset County Detention Center is the local jail. It holds adults arrested in Somerset County before trial, people serving local sentences, people held without bond, and people held for another jurisdiction. The 2024 Maryland Commission on Correctional Standards audit says daily management was handled by Warden Keith Muir at the time of review, under the administrative authority of the County Commissioners.
Eastern Correctional Institution is also in Somerset County, but it is not part of the county jail roster. The Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services facility page for ECI lists it as a state prison, with ECI-Annex serving minimum and pre-release custody. A Somerset County arrest normally begins with county jail custody. After conviction and commitment to state custody, the correct search shifts to the DPSCS locator.
The Somerset County inmate population changes when courts set bond, when the jail receives a hold from another jurisdiction, when a sentenced person transfers to DPSCS, or when release occurs after court action. That is why one lookup channel is not enough. The county roster, the jail phone line, Maryland VINE, Maryland Judiciary Case Search, the Sheriff Public Information Act process, DPSCS, BOP, ICE, and the U.S. Marshals each cover a different slice of custody.
Somerset County Inmate Statistics
The local jail count was modest in the January 2023 audit, while the state prison population at ECI was far larger. The MCCS audit reported 47 people in the Somerset County Detention Center against an operating capacity of 120. The ECI PREA audit, finalized in 2025, reported a designed capacity of 3,499 and a current population and average daily population of 3,080. Those figures should not be combined as if they were one jail. They describe separate custody systems.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| SCDC operating capacity | 120 | MCCS audit, January 2023 count, approved 2024 |
| SCDC total population | 47 | MCCS audit, January 2023 |
| SCDC male/female | 42 male, 5 female | MCCS audit, January 2023 |
| SCDC locally sentenced | 16 | MCCS audit, January 2023 |
| SCDC awaiting trial | 30 | MCCS audit, January 2023 |
| ECI designed capacity | 3,499 | ECI PREA audit, 2025 |
| ECI current population and ADP | 3,080 | ECI PREA audit, 2025 |
Somerset County Jail Population Trends
The county jail history explains why capacity numbers can look different across older and current sources. Somerset County says the current jail was built in 1987 with 40 beds, then double-celled to 80 beds in 1989. A 42-bed work-release unit was completed in 2008 for minimum-security inmates. The 2023 audit counted 120 as the operating capacity and also noted that the jail population had fallen because of COVID and court use of electronic monitoring.
| Year or Date | Population / Capacity | Local Note |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 40-bed original SCDC | Current Westover jail opened |
| 1989 | 80-bed double-celled capacity | County history reports double-celling |
| 2008 | 42-bed work-release unit | Unit completed for minimum-security custody |
| January 2023 | 47 population / 120 capacity | MCCS audit snapshot |
| 2025 | 3,080 ECI population / 3,499 capacity | ECI PREA audit reported no overcapacity |
Somerset County Inmate Makeup
The January 2023 SCDC snapshot shows the jail's pretrial role clearly. Thirty people were awaiting trial, while 16 were locally sentenced. One person was awaiting transfer to the Maryland Division of Correction, five were held for other jurisdictions, and 13 were out to other jurisdictions. The audit listed an average age of 30, a minority percentage of 58 percent, predominant offenses of CDS possession and DWI, and an average sentence length of 18 months.
- Pretrial custody: More people were awaiting trial than serving local sentences in the January 2023 count.
- Sex breakdown: The SCDC count was 42 male and 5 female, while the facility houses both men and women.
- Transfer status: One person awaited transfer to Maryland Division of Correction.
- Other jurisdiction holds: Five people were held for other jurisdictions, a key reason bond may not end custody.
- State prison count: ECI held sentenced adult men in pre-release, minimum, and medium custody levels.
Special confinement was also reported. The audit counted two people in disciplinary detention and two in administrative segregation, with no protective custody or medical isolation in that snapshot. These categories do not mean the person is outside the jail population. They describe housing or status inside the facility.
Somerset County Jail Capacity
The 2024 MCCS audit did not report an overcrowding problem at the county jail. It found total compliance with Adult Detention Center standards and recommended the Recognition of Achievement Award. Auditors also noted high sanitation and maintenance standards, with minor issues corrected before the review ended. For the state prison next door, the 2025 ECI PREA audit reported a designed capacity of 3,499, a population of 3,080, and no over-capacity in the prior 12 months.
The difference between SCDC and ECI matters for any Somerset County inmate population search. The county jail can be under capacity while the state prison count remains large because they answer to separate systems. A person arrested in Somerset County is not searched as an ECI inmate unless the court has sentenced and committed that person to state custody.
Somerset County Jail Record Laws
Maryland public-record law gives the public a route to ask for existing jail and sheriff records, but it does not make every record public in full. The Sheriff's Public Information Act page says the office can provide copies of disclosable records, may deny or redact protected material, and does not have to answer questions or create new records. A narrow request with names, dates, case numbers, and the record type is the best fit for jail population or booking records not visible online.
Key Statutes and Rules:
General Provisions Section 4-101 defines public records, custodians, and persons in interest under the Maryland Public Information Act.
General Provisions Section 4-201 sets the general right to inspect public records unless another law restricts access.
General Provisions Section 4-206 supports reasonable search, preparation, and copy fees after the first two free search and preparation hours noted by the Sheriff.
COMAR Subtitle 12.14 contains Maryland correctional standards rules that frame local detention audits.
Somerset County State Prison Population
Eastern Correctional Institution is the large state-custody population in Somerset County. It is operated by Maryland DPSCS, not by the county jail. The state locator covers people committed to the Commissioner of Correction and currently housed at covered DPSCS facilities, including Division of Correction facilities and Patuxent Institution. It may not list every DPSCS person, some short-sentenced people, or anyone no longer in custody.
The practical rule is simple. Use SCDC and the county inmate lookup for a recent Somerset County arrest or local jail hold. Use DPSCS when the person has been sentenced and committed to state custody. Use federal and immigration locators only when the custody is federal, immigration, or U.S. Marshals related.
Search Somerset County Inmates
The county Detention Center page links its official inmate lookup to the BlueHorse roster. Research found that command-line inspection of the BlueHorse host returned a certificate and access problem, so the public form fields were not captured from accessible text. That gap should not be read as meaning the roster is unofficial. It is the official roster path because the county detention page links to it.
The fallback chain is important. If the roster fails in a browser, call the jail, use Maryland VINE for custody notifications, or submit a narrow Sheriff PIA request. If the person was sentenced to state custody, search DPSCS instead of the county roster.
- Open the Somerset County Detention Center page and use its inmate lookup link.
- Search with the identifying details the roster accepts. The public text inspection did not confirm exact fields.
- If no match appears, call SCDC at 410-651-9223 or 410-651-9224 to ask about current custody and the inmate ID needed for phone or deposits.
- For a sentenced state prisoner, use the Maryland DPSCS Incarcerated Individual Locator instead.
- For federal or immigration custody, check BOP, ICE ODLS, or the U.S. Marshals District of Maryland.
Somerset County Roster Lookup
The official roster page could not be inventoried in text mode, so exact search fields, profile fields, photo display, and release-retention rules are not confirmed. The known access path is still useful: the county detention page points users to the BlueHorse inmate lookup, and jail staff can provide the inmate ID needed for PAYTEL phone setup and Access Corrections deposits.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Not captured | Not captured | Not captured | The official BlueHorse roster returned 403 to text inspection and needs browser verification. |
| First Name | Text | Unspecified | DPSCS locator displays first-name and last-name search for state prisoners. |
| Last Name | Text | Unspecified | Use DPSCS only for people committed to covered Maryland state custody. |
The Somerset County Sheriff's PIA page is the route for records not shown by the roster. Requests may be submitted digitally or by U.S. mail. Broad requests create delay and cost, so identify the person, date range, agency, and record type.
Past Somerset County Inmates
Released and older booking records are harder to verify from the roster because the public retention rule was not captured. If a person no longer appears in the county inmate lookup, check court records for the case, then use the Sheriff PIA process for existing booking records that may be disclosable. The PIA page warns that the office does not have to create a new record, answer questions, or release protected information.
For a sentenced person who left SCDC for the state system, the DPSCS locator is the better path. It can show the housing location of covered incarcerated individuals who remain in custody, but it does not list people released, escaped, or otherwise no longer in custody. Maryland VINE can help with custody and criminal-case notifications, though the state cautions against relying only on VINE.
Somerset County Inmate Record Fields
Somerset County official sources confirm a few record identifiers even though the roster profile itself was not captured. These identifiers matter for mail, phones, deposits, and requests. A booking number is not the same thing as a court case number, and an inmate ID is not the same thing as a DPSCS number. Use the label from the office or portal that holds the record.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Name | Used in digital mail, deposit setup, jail phone setup, and records requests. |
| Inmate ID / inmate number | Needed for PAYTEL, digital mail, and some Access Corrections tasks. |
| Facility ID 5315 | Required for SCDC digital mail sent to the Greensboro processing address. |
| Booking number | Required by Access Corrections according to the county FAQ. |
| Projected release date | Given to sentenced inmates on a form, but the brochure says staff may not give it to the general public. |
Somerset County Jail vs Prison
The county jail and the state prison are neighbors, but they are not the same lookup. SCDC is the county detention center for arrest, booking, pretrial custody, local sentences, work-release capacity, and other-jurisdiction holds. ECI is a state prison for sentenced adult men committed to Maryland DPSCS. The wrong portal can make it look like there is no record.
| County Jail | State Prison | |
|---|---|---|
| Facility | Somerset County Detention Center | Eastern Correctional Institution |
| Who Is Held | Pretrial detainees, local sentences, holds | Sentenced adult men in DPSCS custody |
| Where to Look | County inmate lookup and jail phone line | DPSCS Incarcerated Individual Locator |
| Key Contact | 410-651-9223 / 410-651-9224 | 410-845-4000 / 877-802-6074 |
Somerset County Federal Search
No BOP prison or ICE detention center was found in Somerset County official source checks. Search the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator for sentenced federal prisoners from 1982 to the present. BOP warns that release dates may change because of sentence reviews and recalculations. For immigration custody, use ICE Online Detainee Locator System, which searches people in ICE custody or CBP custody for more than 48 hours.
Federal pretrial custody is usually routed through the U.S. Marshals Service, even if a person is housed in a local jail by contract. The District of Maryland contact page gives Baltimore and Greenbelt contacts. These systems do not replace the Somerset County jail lookup for a local arrest.
Somerset County Detention Facilities
Every facility in the Somerset County facility map is listed below. The primary county jail appears first, followed by the state prison because the custody type and locator are different.
- Somerset County Detention Center - the county jail for pretrial detainees, local sentences, work-release capacity, and other-jurisdiction holds.
- Eastern Correctional Institution - the Maryland DPSCS state prison for sentenced adult men, including ECI East/West and the Annex.
The county government Sheriff page names Sheriff Ronnie Howard and lists the Sheriff's Office in Westover. The separate Sheriff site says the office is the smallest of Maryland's 24 sheriff's offices and provides 24-hour coverage.
Somerset County Custody Terms
Jail and court records use short labels that can change the correct search path. These common terms help sort county jail custody from court status and state prison custody.
- Pretrial
- The person has not been convicted on the pending charge and is held while the case moves through court.
- Locally sentenced
- The person is serving a sentence in the county jail rather than in state prison.
- Detainer
- Another agency has an active custody interest, so release may be blocked even after local bond is addressed.
- DOC custody
- State Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services custody after commitment to Maryland corrections.
- Work release
- A controlled status for approved sentenced inmates who work outside under jail rules.
Somerset County Inmate FAQ
How big is the Somerset County inmate population?
The January 2023 MCCS audit counted 47 people in the Somerset County Detention Center, with an operating capacity of 120. The 2025 ECI PREA audit counted 3,080 at Eastern Correctional Institution, which is a separate state prison population.
How do I search the Somerset County inmate population?
Start with the county Detention Center page and its official inmate lookup link for local jail custody. If the roster does not work or does not show the person, call SCDC, use Maryland VINE, or submit a focused Sheriff PIA request. Sentenced state prisoners should be searched through DPSCS.
Does Somerset County have a sheriff app?
No official Somerset County, Maryland sheriff mobile app was found in the research. Do not rely on app-only roster, warrant, or most-wanted claims unless an official county or sheriff page later publishes one.
Do court records show the same thing as jail records?
No. Jail records show custody, booking, inmate ID, and facility details. Court records show formal charges, hearings, docket events, dispositions, warrants, and expungement activity after an arrest.