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Starke County Indiana Sheriff's Office
Starke County - County Jail - Indiana
Starke County Jail Indiana

In Starke County Indiana, there are two components to the local criminal justice system: the Starke County Jail and Starke County Community Corrections.  The Starke County Jail handles inmates who are being held in detention, whether that is pre-trial detention, detention awaiting sentencing, or detention pursuant to serving a sentence.  In contrast, Starke County Community Corrections is responsible for supervising defendants who have been ordered to participate in community corrections.  A catch-all phrase, community corrections refers to the supervision of defendants who are serving their sentences in the community.

The Starke County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for supervising the jail, but not the community supervision program.  The Starke County Sheriff is Bill Dunlin.  The Starke County Jail is directly supervised by the Starke County Warden, Phil Cherry and the Starke County Jail Commander, Nathan Caudill.  Starke County Community Corrections is supervised by Director of Operations Robert Hinojosa, Office Manager Jennifer Strickland, Supervisor of the Field Division Shawn Mattraw, and Supervisor of Case Management Jordan Morris.

The Starke County Community Corrections is a county agency that is designed to identify those offenders, both adult and juvenile, that would benefit from community service as a way to deter further participation in criminal behavior.  Although a county program, it is funded by a state grant.

The Starke County Community Corrections program recently implemented the Decision Points program.  Decision Points is a correctional program that is designed to assess participant risk, need, and responsibility and target areas that need improvement through an interactive behavioral approach.  The goal is the restructuring of those thoughts and beliefs held by the offender that are anti-social and the teaching of pro-social thoughts and beliefs that will not only make it easier for the non-criminal world to interact with the offender, but also for the offender to interact with the non-criminal world.  One of the main goals of the program is to help offenders learn empathy.  Old school beliefs about criminal behavior suggested that empathy could not be taught; however, emerging research reveals that empathy can be taught, even to adults.  Empathy, which allows offenders to consider how their actions impact others, is one of the most successful ways to deter criminal behavior.  The program is designed to be both open-entry and open-exit, so that offenders can join it when they need it.

If you see Starke County offenders doing work outside of the jail, they may be inmates at the Stark County Jail or they could be part of the community corrections program.  The Sheriff’s Department operates work crews with low-level offenders.  These work crews engage in various works programs, such as picking up trash.

Starke County Jail Addresses

Physical Address

Starke County Community Corrections’ address is:

Starke County Community Corrections
108 N. Pearl St.
Knox, IN 46534

Starke County Jail’s address is:

Starke County Jail
5435 E State Road 8
Knox, IN 46534

Mailing Address

Starke County Community Corrections’ mailing address is:

Starke County Community Corrections
108 N. Pearl St.
Knox, IN 46534

Starke County Jail’s mailing address is:

Starke County Jail
5435 E State Road 8
Knox, IN 46534

Inmate Mailing Address

You cannot send mail to inmates at the Starke County Community Corrections program.  These inmates are not in detention and can get their mail at their regular mailing addresses.  Therefore, you do not need to send their mail to the Starke County Community Corrections Program.

Offenders who are placed at the Starke County Jail can receive mail at the jail.  You need to send mail through the U.S. Postal Service, not through any private carriers. 

You may send mail to inmates using the U.S. Postal Service.   

To send mail to an inmate at the Starke County Jail, address it as follows:

Inmate Name
Starke County Jail
5435 E State Road 8
Knox, IN 46534

Unlike some detention facilities, the Starke County Jail does not provide any guidelines for inmate mail.  However, there are some rules that are consistent across jail facilities.   We are providing those guidelines to help you make decisions about what type of mail you can send to an offender at this facility.  However, if you have specific questions about mail you intend to send to an offender at that facility, you should contact the jail prior to sending the mail:   

General mail rules:

  1. Mail should be standard 8x11 paper or postcards.  The paper should be white and may generally be lined or unlined. 
  2. Many jail facilities will not allow inmates to receive pre-printed greeting cards, while others will.  Before sending an inmate a card, check with the facility to determine whether it was permitted.  If sending a card, do not send cards that play music, have moving parts, or are made of plastic or other materials that could be used to make a weapon.
  3. You should send mail inside plain envelopes that are free from adornment or decoration.
  4. Mail should not include stickers, stamps, or other decorations, except for the stamp used to mail it. 
  5. All inmate mail must include a full return address with the sender’s full name and full address. 
  6. All mail should be addressed from the sender; no sending mail from third parties.
  7. Do not send any additional objects other than the letter in the mail.  Some facilities will permit inmates to receive photographs, but you should contact the Starke County Jail about its photograph policies prior to sending photos.
  8. Do not put any extraneous fluids on the mail, such as spritzing it with perfume or cologne, placing lipstick kisses on it, or putting bodily fluids on it.
  9. Do not send sexually explicit material to an inmate.  Keep in mind that jails tend to have conservative views about what type of material is explicit.
  10. Do not send violent materials to an inmate. 
  11. Do not send incendiary materials to an inmate.  Incendiary materials usually include materials that describe criminal behavior, materials that could be used to create escape plans, materials depicting gang activities, materials that are racist, or materials that would encourage violence.
  12. Do not send weapons, drugs, or other contraband.

Phone Numbers

The Starke County Jail’s main phone number is 574-772-3772. You can also directly contact the Starke County Sheriff’s Department; their number is 574-772-3771.  You can also email the jail.  The warden, Phil Cherry’s, email is [email protected].  The jail commander, Nathan Caudill’s, email is [email protected].

The Starke County Community Corrections’ phone number is 574-772-2258.  The fax number is 574-772-2512.  You can also email them at [email protected].

Starke County Inmate Roster

Starke County Sheriff’s Office’s Jail division has an inmate roster that provides information on all inmates currently incarcerated in the Starke County Jail.  In the roster, the inmates are listed by booking date.  The information that these records provide include: inmate last name, inmate first name, inmate gender, inmate age, inmate race, the arresting agency, the inmate’s address which is actually zip code, inmate booking number, inmate booking date, bond information if available, and the charges against the inmate.  The record also contains a mugshot.

Inmate Bookings / Recent Arrests

While the Starke County Jail does not provide a list labeled as inmate bookings or recent arrests, it does have an inmate roster.  The roster is not alphabetical, but is broken down into booking dates.  The most recently booked inmates appear first on the list.  Therefore, it serves as a recent arrest list.  In addition to the inmate’s booking date, these inmate records provide information such as: the inmate’s name, gender, age, race, address, booking number, booking date, the arresting agency, the charges against the inmate, the bond information and a mugshot.

Mugshots

The Starke County Jail does not have a mugshot database but does include inmate booking photos on its inmate roster.  In addition, the Starke County Sheriff’s Department has a Wanted List.  The Stark County 10 Most Wanted List includes mugshots of the wanted people, as long as those mugshots are available.  If you click on the picture available on the most wanted list, it gives the person’s first and last name, the charges against the person, the person’s age, and contact information for the Sheriff’s Department.

Visitation

Offenders who are serving sentences through Starke County Community Corrections will not have visitors.  While they are at the Community Corrections Center, they will be engaging in work to complete their sentences or in some of the programming offered by Starke County to help reduce their chances of recidivism.  Because the offenders are permitted to return to their homes, they have no reason for visitors.  If, for some reason, you should need to reach an offender while he or she is at Starke County Community Corrections, you should call the facility.

Inmates at the Starke County Jail are permitted to receive visitors.  All visitors must schedule visits before they can visit an inmate.  To register and schedule a visit, visitors may call 1-866-340-7879 or visit the Jail ATM website at: www.jailatm.com.  Visits must be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance.

Visitation hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8am to 2pm.

While the Starke County Jail does not post visitation rules, general rules for local jail visitation are as follows:

  1.  No unaccompanied minors.
  2. All visitors must show photo identification to visit.
  3. All visits are subject to monitoring.
  4. Visits are generally limited to a set number of visitors.
  5. There may be a limit on the number of visits an inmate may have in a set time period.
  6. Do not bring cell phones or electronics to visitation.
  7. No drugs or alcohol at visitation, including over-the-counter or prescription medication.
  8. Do not visit if you are intoxicated.
  9. Behave in an orderly manner during visitation and follow all directions by jail staff.
  10. Dress modestly for visits; jails usually prohibit low-cut shirts, midriff shirts, short-shorts, mini-skirts, sheer clothing, see-through clothing, skin-tight clothing, sleeveless shirts, gang-related clothing, and visitors who are not wearing undergarments.

Inmate Phone Privileges

Although offenders who are diverted into the Starke County Community Corrections program probably have access to a cell phone and can receive phone calls while not serving their community corrections sentence, they probably will not have access to or will be discouraged from using their cell phones while they are serving their community corrections sentences or participating in any programming through the Community Corrections center.  If you need to reach an offender while he or she is participating in community corrections, please contact the community corrections center. The Starke County Community Corrections’ phone number is 574-772-2258.

Inmates at the Starke County Jail cannot receive incoming phone calls.  If you have an actual emergency requiring that you reach an inmate, you can attempt to contact the inmate using the jail’s phone number.  The Starke County Community Corrections’ phone number is 574-772-2258.  The jail administrator may not contact the offender and may require you to prove an emergency.  You will not be put into contact with the inmate, but the inmate may be asked to contact you.

Inmates can place outgoing phone calls using collect calls.  The person receiving the call can make arrangements to accept the charges or to set up an account to allow the inmate to make phone calls.  You can contact JailATM, which is the Starke County Jail’s service provider, to make arrangements to set up phone services.  You can call them at 1-866-340-7879 or visit them online at www.jailatm.com.

Inmate phone calls may be monitored and/or recorded.

If you are being contacted by an inmate and do not want them to contact you, call the jail to see if they can block calls to your number.

Inmate Trust Accounts / Commissary

Jails use inmate trust accounts to pay for their purchases from commissary/canteen programs. Commissary/canteen is a way for inmates to purchase items that are not provided by the jail.  These items vary from jail to jail, but generally include hygiene items, snack items, writing supplies, and other “luxuries.”  You can contact the jail to inquire about how to fund inmate trust accounts or visit www.jailatm.com or call 1-866-340-7879.

Bail Information

The Starke County Jail inmate roster contains information on bail amounts for inmates, when bail has been set.  Not every inmate will be eligible for bail.  It may also take some period of time before an inmate’s bail is set.

Almost all people arrested in Starke County will be processed at the Starke County Jail.  Before an inmate can be released, the inmate must be booked, which is when bond is set.   Once bond has been set, an inmate can begin the bond procedure.  Once the bond process begins, it can still take a period of 1 to 2 hours for an inmate to be released.

In Starke County, there may be cash bonds or bail bonds.  Cash bonds are bonds that are paid entirely in cash.  They are fully refundable to the person who posted the bond as long as the offender comes to all scheduled court appearances.  Bail bonds involve using a bail bondsman.  Upon paying a percentage of the bond, usually ten percent, to the bondsman, the bondsman secures the offender’s appearance in jail.  The fee is not refundable.  If the offender does not appear, the bondsman is responsible for paying the entire amount of the bond.

The Starke County Jail cannot recommend any specific bail bondsmen.  However, you may find a bail bondsman by looking in the local yellow pages or by searching online.

Conclusion

There are two correctional facilities in Starke County that handle post-conviction offenders, the Starke County Jail and Starke County Community Corrections.  Offenders who qualify for diversionary programming will be sent to Community Corrections.  The Starke County Jail is the only facility that handles pretrial detainees.   Starke County Community Corrections’ address is 108 Pearl Street, Knox, Indiana.  Its phone number is 574-772-2258.  The Starke County Jail’s address is 5435 E State Road 8, Knox, Indiana.  The Starke County Jail’s main phone number is 574-772-3772.   Starke County Community Corrections is under its own control, but the offenders may be monitored by the Sheriff’s Office.  The Starke County Sheriff’s Office is responsible for supervising the offenders in the jail as well.

 


Year Built or Opened: 2015 Warden or Supervisor: Phil Cherry Daily Inmate Count: 130 Total Capacity: 145 Security Level(s): minimum - medium

Inmate Name
5435 E State Road 8
Knox, IN 46534

Phone Number(s): 574-772-3771
Fax Number: 574-772-7641
Email Address: [email protected]

5435 E State Road 8
Knox, IN 46534