![]() | Sheriff's Office |
The first jail was built in La Crosse County in 1858 and over the years the location and size of the jail changed to meet the needs of the justice system. In 1965 the 4th Street jail, designed for male and female, adult and juvenile inmates, opened on
the second floor of the current Administrative Center. The linear jail was originally created with 60 beds plus 10 receiving cells. As the jail population grew, an area of the first floor in the Administrative Center was remodeled as a 54 bed male
Huber facility. Huber inmates are given the privilege of leaving the jail to go to work, counseling, school or treatment. They must submit a schedule of their activities, have it verified and approved before they may be released. Juveniles were moved
out of the jail and into a new Juvenile Detention Facility that opened in 1990. Again the population grew and in 1992 the former Montgomery Ward's Service Center, across the street from the 4th Street jail, was remodeled "temporarily" as a 110-bed
male Huber facility. The old first floor Huber area became a "Medium Security" area for male inmates in the still overcrowded second floor jail.
As the jail population continued to increase, a decision was made to build a new Law Enforcement
building which would provide housing for inmates along with the offices and space for the Sheriff's Dept., 911 Dispatch, Court System and District Attorney. The original plan included a jail facility in excess of 400 beds. The final building provided
172 beds in the 8-pod (17 to 30 beds per pod) housing unit on the second floor of the Law Enforcement Center and 23 receiving cells with a 7-bed medical area on the lower level.
The new jail in the Law Enforcement Center opened in September
of 1997. Due to lack of space and the need for inmates to be housed utilizing objective classification (a system of housing assignments based on current charges, past criminal and jail behavior records), the female population remained in the old second
floor 4th Street jail. The County Board authorized necessary repairs to be made to comply with state mandates and passed a resolution to limit the number of females to be held in the facility at a maximum of 39. The "Medium Security" area in the Administrative
Center was closed and the "temporary" Male Huber Facility remained operational for a total bed capacity of 321. On January 1, 2006 the Male Huber Facility was closed; the bed capacity was reduced to 211.
In November of 2008, ground was
broken for a 29.5 million dollar addition to the 1997 Law Enforcement Center. Jail expansion plans included a new kitchen, jail garage, booking, master control, two 57-bed direct supervision blocks, increased program space and remodeling of three
existing housing blocks along with the medical and receiving holding cell area of the existing jail. On 02/23/11 the old 1960's "Female Jail" closed and all inmates were housed in the Law Enforcement Center Jail with a bed capacity of 274 plus 49
receiving/medical and close supervision cells.
During Regular Business Hours (Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.):
After Regular Business Hours and on Weekends
Will I get my bond money back?
The La Crosse County Jail provides fingerprinting for the public at the jail (333 Vine Street, the south-west entrance, closest to Third St/Vine St), by appointment only on Wednesdays from 7:00p - 9:00p and Saturdays from 10:00a - Noon. To schedule an appointment, call the Business Office at (608)785-9629 during normal business hours (Monday - Friday, 8:00a - 4:30p).
Walk-ins will not be accepted.
We no longer provide ink fingerprinting, we only provide electronic. If you require ink, please contact either LAXPrint (146 Rose St, La Crosse, 608-783-6440) or Winona County Sheriff (507-457-6368).
Staffing for the La Crosse County Jail facilities includes:
In addition, we contract with Advanced Correctional Healthcare to provide medical services for the inmates.
Our meals are prepared on site through a contract with ARAMARK, Inc.
*Failure to comply with these rules will result in suspension of visitation privileges.
*Failure to comply with these rules will result in suspension of visitation privileges.
Total Number of Bookings: | |
Year: | Bookings: |
2000 | 5,822 |
2001 | 6,049 |
2002 | 6,111 |
2003 | 6,127 |
2004 | 6,106 |
2005 | 6,438 |
2006 | 6,072 |
2007 | 5,965 |
2008 | 5,893 |
2009 | 6,333 |
2010 | 6,033 |
2011 | 5,178 |
2012 | 6,106 |
2013 | 5,668 |
2014 | 5,263 |
2015 | 5,401 |
2016 | 5,562 |
2017 | 5,700 |
2018 | 5,625 |
Average Daily Population: | |
Year: | Average Population: |
2000 | 264 |
2001 | 289 |
2002 | 259 |
2003 | 260 |
2004 | 246 |
2005 | 242 |
2006 | 198 |
2007 | 184 |
2008 | 187 |
2009 | 181 |
2010 | 173 |
2011 | 172 |
2012 | 195 |
2013 | 201 |
2014 | 199 |
2015 | 197 |
2016 | 201 |
2017 | 205 |
2018 | 201 |
Total Number of Bookings By Gender: | ||
Year | Bookings | |
2000 | Male: Female: | 80% 20% |
2001 | Male: Female: | 87% 13% |
2002 | Male: Female: | 80% 20% |
2003 | Male: Female: | 78% 22% |
2004 | Male: Female: | 78% 22% |
2005 | Male: Female: | 76% 24% |
2006 | Male: Female: | 77% 23% |
2007 | Male: Female: | 78% 22% |
2008 | Male: Female: | 76% 24% |
2009 | Male: Female: | 76% 24% |
2010 | Male: Female: | 77% 23% |
2011 | Male: Female: | 75% 25% |
2012 | Male: Female: | 75% 25% |
2013 | Male: Female: | 75% 25% |
2014 | Male: Female: | 74.5% 25.5% |
2015 | Male: Female: | 73.6% 26.4% |
2016 | Male: Female: | 73.2% 26.8% |
2017 | Male: Female: | 73.8% 26.2% |
2018 | Male: Female: | 74.5% 25.5% |
If the Court has ordered your record to be expunged, you still need to follow-up with the Wisconsin Crime Information Bureau to remove the arrest data from your Criminal History. For step-by-step information on this process, refer to the brochure below created by the Wisconsin Department of Justice.