Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility

The Main Adult Detention Facility is located in Santa Rosa, California, and is operated by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department. This facility houses adult males and females who have been arrested by county or municipal law enforcement. MADF is a medium/maximum security facility, housing both pre-trial and sentenced inmates. 

The Main Adult Detention Facility (MADF) is located in the County of Sonoma's Hall of Justice Complex. It opened in 1991 as a new generation facility based on a direct supervision design, instead of the "linear" design of the County's earlier jails. The direct supervision concept at MADF encourages deputy contact with inmates and emphasizes the use of interpersonal communication skills. 

MADF was originally designed to hold close to 500 inmates, but quickly reached its housing capacity. The facility has since expanded, and currently has a total capacity of 1,473 inmates. 

Inmate Search

To find out if your loved one is being held in the Main Adult Detention Facility, click here or use VINE (see below). To find out if a specific prisoner is going to court that day, call the jail at noon.

VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday)

Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) is a free and anonymous telephone service that provides victims of crime both information and notification. VINE monitors the custody status of offenders in the Sonoma County Claybank and receives updated information every 15 minutes.

The Toll Free Number for California VINE is 1.877.411.5588. Anyone can call the California State VINE line to determine an inmate's custody status. To search for offender information, callers will need one of the following items:

• Offender name or alias
• Secondary search option (if there is more than one offender with the same name), such as:
  • Arrest date
  • Date of birth
  • Middle initial
  • Offender identification number

VINE will let callers know about the offender's current custody status, the location of the inmate, and their offender number.

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

Visitation at the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility is limited and visitors are required to schedule an appointment prior to their visit. All visitors must be approved in advance. Appointments are on a first come first serve basis and can only be made via phone. 

Visitors can call 707-565-1400 on Tuesday-Friday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm to schedule visits. Inmates are allowed one visit per day.

A maximum of two visitors are allowed per inmate, and they must check in at least 20 minutes prior to the scheduled visiting time. Visits may last up to 30 minutes.

Visits can be scheduled on Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays at the following times:

• 9:00 am
• 9:45 am
• 10:30 am
• 1:00 pm
• 1:45 pm
• 2:30 pm
• 3:15 pm
• 7:00pm
• 7:45 pm
• 8:30 pm

Dress Code

• Shorts, skirts, and dresses must be as long as the bottom of the fingertips when arms are placed at the side.
• No bare midriffs, tube tops, tank tops, low-cut, or revealing tops.
• No sports team attire or gang insignias.
• No bandanas, beanies, hair nets or hats.
• No steel-toed boots or shoes that will not clear the metal detector.

** Masks are mandatory and must be worn at all times. Visitors will be required to review COVID-19 screening questions and conduct a temperature self-check**

All mail must contain both the inmate’s full name and the sender's return address. Mail must be written on plain white or lined paper to include the envelope – colored paper or envelopes will result in disapproval. 

Photographs are permitted as long as they comply with outlined stipulations. 

New books are accepted from Amazon and Barnes & Noble only. Used books, hardcover books, and books with spiral bindings are not accepted. 

Magazines and other publications including periodicals and newspapers that are deemed to be appropriate are accepted from the publisher. 

If the following items are included in inmate mail, they will not receive it. Instead, it will cause the mail to be placed in the inmate’s property: 

"Colored paper, crayon, glue/tape, lipstick, paint, white out, carbon paper, bookmarks, glitter, perfume, stains, sticky substances, post-it notes, stamps, stickers, envelopes, stationary, blank paper/cards, polaroid pictures, cardboard, bubble packaging, posters, wall calendars, laminated or plastic coated items, padded envelopes, payroll or personal checks, sexually-oriented material, obscene publications or writings, newspaper or magazine clippings, hygiene items, gang/code writing, drawings or monikers, photos or other materials containing nudity or partial nudity, threats of criminal activity, physical harm, and any written material which fosters animosity among individuals to include hate mail and racial slurs."

The followings items, if present will cause the mail to be returned to sender: 

• Greeting cards, cardstock 
• Colored envelopes 
• Unsolicited, commercial and business mail 
• Books or any other package from an unauthorized source 

Any sexually oriented materials and materials related to the manufacture of weapons or that may cause a threat to the safety, security, rehabilitation, or other legitimate facility interests, or create a hostile work environment are prohibited.

How to Call an Inmate

Inmates at the Main Adult Detention Facility cannot receive incoming phone calls. However, they have access to phones and can make outgoing calls from the inmate housing area. Phone calls are recorded and may be monitored at any time.

California law has established the right of an arrested person to make at least three free local telephone calls when they are booked: one call to an attorney, one to a bail bond agent, and one to a relative or other personal contact. 

How to Send Money

Friends and family can deposit money into an MADF inmate’s account in person via the TouchPay kiosks in the lobby, the US mail, on the internet, or by phone.

Online

To deposit money to an inmate’s account using a debit or credit card via the internet, visit touchpayonline.com and follow the instructions on the website.

By Phone

To deposit money to an inmate’s account over the phone, call 1-866-232-1899.  Our facility code is 295403.

Lobby Kiosk/US Mail

You can add money to an inmate's account via debit/credit card using the kiosk in the Main Adult Detention Facility's lobby.

The preferred and primary method for depositing money orders, certified checks and cashier’s checks is via US mail. They must be made payable to the inmate and sent to:

Main Adult Detention Facility
℅ Inmate Name
2777 Ventura Avenue
Santa Rosa, California 95403

The jail Cashier may, on a case-by-case basis, accept cash, money orders, certified checks, cashier's checks, and government checks for deposit in an inmate's account. 

The MADF Cashier will take government checks that are made out to the inmate only. Tax return checks made out to the inmate and a second party will not be accepted unless the second party endorses the check, in the Cashier's presence, and provides proper photo ID.

Programs For Inmates

The Main Adult Detention Facility offers a variety of classes and programs to eligible inmates. These classes are held in classrooms at the MADF, and may include but are not limited to:

• Alcohol/Narcotics Anonymous
• Five Keys
• General Education (GED)
• Book Club
• Parenting Class
• Anger Management
• Bible Study
• Art Class
• Religious Services
• Relapse Prevention
• Correspondence Courses
• Community Re-entry
• Independent Study
• Job Skills
• Life Skills
• Literature Appreciation
• Read Me A Story
• Service Dog Training Program
• Starting Point Program
• PATHS Program

Work Crews

To be eligible for work crew programs, inmates cannot have violent charges, escape histories, or disciplinary behavior problems. 

Inmates can be assigned to a variety of work details both on and off site. They include: 

• MADF laundry
• Commissary and Food Services
• Facility groundskeeping and janitorial
• CalTrans, road and dump crews
• Equipment garage, fairgrounds, and airport
• Agriculture

Pictures of Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility

Careers at Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility

If you are interested in a career with the Sonoma County Sheriff's Department and would like more information about the job openings at the Main Adult Detention Facility, click here.