The Craig County Inmate Population
Craig County, Virginia, uses the Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail in Fincastle as the practical jail for local custody. The official jail page says the facility is managed and operated by the Botetourt County Sheriff's Office. Craig County's Sheriff's Office, led by Sheriff L. Trevor N. Craddock, remains the local arresting and law-enforcement agency for Craig County matters, but a person booked after a Craig County arrest is normally checked through the regional jail and its public roster path.
The key point for Craig County inmate population research is the reporting unit. State capacity reports list Botetourt/Craig Regional Jail as one jail, and they do not break the average daily population into Craig-only and Botetourt-only shares. That means the most accurate local wording is Botetourt/Craig Regional Jail average daily population, with Craig County named as one county served by the jail. A few admissions can matter in a small county whose 2025 Census estimate was 4,800 residents, but the official jail count is regional.
Craig County Inmate Population Statistics
The newest official jail-population source in the research is the 2025 State Board of Local and Regional Jails Capacity Report. It lists Botetourt/Craig Regional with an average daily population of 95.32 for the July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025 reporting period. The same report lists rated capacity as 124 and actual capacity, including double-bunking, as 265.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| Average daily population | 95.32 | 2025 BLRJ Capacity Report, 7/1/2024-6/30/2025 |
| Rated capacity | 124 | 2025 BLRJ Capacity Report |
| Actual capacity including double-bunking | 265 | 2025 BLRJ Capacity Report |
| Permanent beds | 265 | 2025 BLRJ Capacity Report |
| Craig County population estimate | 4,800 | U.S. Census QuickFacts, July 1, 2025 estimate |
Craig County Jail Population Trends
The three-year official series shows a small regional jail population that moved down, then back up. Botetourt/Craig Regional Jail reported 100.17 average daily population in the 2023 report, 87.15 in the 2024 report, and 95.32 in the 2025 report. Each figure is below the rated capacity of 124, but rated capacity does not decide all crowding questions. Classification, gender housing, medical needs, staffing, separation needs, and work-release status can all affect usable space inside a jail.
| ADP Period | Average Daily Population | Capacity Note |
|---|---|---|
| 7/1/2022-6/30/2023 | 100.17 | Rated capacity 124; 269 permanent beds and 12 special-purpose beds reported. |
| 7/1/2023-6/30/2024 | 87.15 | Rated capacity 124; 269 permanent beds and 12 special-purpose beds reported. |
| 7/1/2024-6/30/2025 | 95.32 | Rated capacity 124; actual capacity including double-bunking 265 and 265 permanent beds. |
Craig County Jail Capacity Context
Capacity should be read with care. In FY2025, the Botetourt/Craig average daily population was about 76.9 percent of rated capacity and about 36.0 percent of actual capacity including double-bunking. Those numbers help place the Craig County inmate population in context, but they should not be turned into a blanket claim that every housing unit has open space. The official reports warn that bed space and capacity must be assessed facility by facility.
The jail's public visitation materials refer to A-Pod, B/C/D-Pod, Male Admin E/F-Pod, female housing groups, T-Pod, Female Gym, and male and female work-release categories. Those labels show why a single population number can be less useful than it looks. One person may need separation from another. Another may need medical or mental-health placement. A work-release inmate can be in custody but follow a different daily pattern than a new pretrial detainee.
Craig County Inmate Record Laws
Virginia law shapes public access to jail data, booking records, and inmate population reports. The Virginia Freedom of Information Act creates the general public-records framework for state and local public bodies. For jail and arrest records, Virginia Code section 2.2-3706 is especially important because it addresses law-enforcement records, adult arrest identity information, arrest and charge status, and adult booking photographs, subject to exemptions.
Key access rules: Virginia FOIA gives a route to request existing records, but it does not require an agency to create a new record or answer general questions. Virginia Code section 2.2-3706 allows access to many adult arrest and booking records while still protecting juvenile, sealed, expunged, investigatory, and safety-sensitive records. Title 53.1 and 6VAC15-40 place local and regional jails under Virginia jail oversight and minimum standards.
Craig County's FOIA page says requests may be made by mail, fax, email, in person, or phone. The county identifies Amy Bryson as FOIA officer and says the county must respond within five working days unless a statutory extension or other response applies. Jail-operator records may instead route through the Botetourt Sheriff's FOIA path because the regional jail is operated by Botetourt County Sheriff's Office.
Search Craig County Inmates Online
The main online lookup is the Citizen Connect Inmate Confinements portal for the Botetourt County Sheriff's Office. The portal is not a Craig-only roster. It serves the regional jail and includes tabs for Current Confinements, Admits by Date Range, Charges, and Arresting Agency. For a Craig County inmate population search, the arresting-agency labels matter because the dropdown includes several Craig and New Castle entries.
The Citizen Connect Inmate Confinements screen shows the current and recent booking tools used for the regional jail roster.
That interface is useful because it gives separate paths for current custody, recent admits, charge keywords, and arresting agency filters instead of forcing every search through one name box.
- Open the Citizen Connect Inmate Confinements page.
- Use Current Confinements first when the person may be in custody now.
- Use Last 24 Hour Admits, Last 7 Days Admits, or a custom date range for recent bookings.
- Try the Charges tab only when a charge keyword is known.
- Use Arresting Agency filters such as Craig County Sheriff's Office, CRAIG CO VA, CRAIG CO VA - VA0230000, or NEW CASTLE VA - VA0230100 for Craig-related bookings.
- Call the 24-hour jail line if the person may still be in intake, released, transferred, or held under another authority.
Craig County Roster Search Fields
The roster fields are practical rather than ornate. Current Confinements is best for a person believed to be at the jail now. Admits by Date Range is better for a person recently booked and possibly released. The charge tab can help when the offense is known but the name is uncertain. The arresting-agency tab is the most local feature for Craig County because it lets a search focus on Craig labels inside a regional jail database.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current Confinements | tab/button | No | Opens current-custody results for the regional jail. |
| Get Last 24 Hour Admits | submit button | No | Loads admissions from the last 24 hours. |
| Get Last 7 Days Admits | submit button | No | Loads admissions from the last seven days. |
| Custom date range | date fields | If selected | The visible page warns to keep the range to 31 days or less. |
| Charge | text | No | Uses a plain charge term, such as DUI. |
| Arresting Agency | dropdown | No | Craig-relevant options include Craig County Sheriff's Office, CRAIG CO VA, and NEW CASTLE VA. |
Craig County Inmate Record Details
Citizen Connect sample profiles could not be fully opened during research because automated calls triggered an access-denied or CAPTCHA response. The public page and scripts still document important behavior. The portal has containers for current confinements, admits, name search, charge search, and arresting-agency search. Its scripts include a mugshot-image fallback path, which means the system is built to show booking images when available and to substitute a no-photo image when needed.
| Field | What It Shows |
|---|---|
| Name | Current-confinement results are loaded and sorted by name in the script. |
| Mugshot / booking image | Booking images may appear, with a no-mugshot fallback if an image is missing. |
| Admission or booking date | Date-range and recent-admit tools show that booking timing is stored. |
| Charge | The charge search field confirms charge labels are searchable. |
| Arresting agency | The dropdown includes Craig, New Castle, Botetourt, Virginia State Police, and US Marshals labels. |
| Current custody status | The Current Confinements tab separates current jail custody from recent admits. |
Craig County Jail or Prison
A regional jail roster and a state prison locator answer different questions. The Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail holds people in pretrial custody, local sentenced custody, and work-release categories tied to the local/regional system. The Virginia Department of Corrections Inmate and Supervisee Locator covers VADOC institutions, probationers and parolees, institutional hospitals, local or regional jail inmates under VADOC authority, and CCAP participants.
| Custody Type | Where to Search | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| Current regional jail custody | Citizen Connect Inmate Confinements | Pretrial, local sentenced, or work-release custody at Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail. |
| Sentenced state custody | VADOC locator | State prison or state-supervision status, updated daily but not guaranteed current. |
| Sentenced federal custody | BOP Inmate Locator | Federal prison and some historical federal custody records. |
| Immigration custody | ICE Online Detainee Locator System | Civil immigration detention search by A-number or biographical details. |
Craig County Custody Alerts
For notification rather than a one-time roster check, use Virginia VINE and VINELink. The Botetourt Sheriff's victim-notification page says VINE is free, anonymous, available 24 hours a day, and can send phone, email, or text alerts for custody changes. It also says VADOC no longer participates in VINE as of October 1, 2021, so post-conviction victim resources should be checked through NAAVI and VADOC victim services.
The Botetourt victim notification page shows the VINE, VINELink, NAAVI, and VADOC victim-services routes that may apply after a Craig County booking.
VINE does not replace a direct jail call when release timing, intake status, or a hold needs immediate confirmation.
Craig County Records Requests
Use the online roster first for current custody, then use phone and FOIA paths when the record is older, unclear, or not published. Craig County's official FOIA page accepts requests by U.S. Mail, fax, email, in person, or phone and asks requesters to identify existing records with reasonable specificity. Written requests are not required by Virginia FOIA, but writing the request helps identify the booking, date, arresting agency, and record sought.
The Craig County FOIA page is the county-held records route for Craig County agency records and explains response timing, cost rules, and the FOIA officer contact.
Jail records held by the regional jail operator may need the Botetourt Sheriff's FOIA or jail records route instead of Craig County's county-administration path.
Craig County Detention Facility
Only one detention facility is listed in the facility map for Craig County inmate population work. No state prison, BOP prison, ICE detention center, city jail, or municipal jail was found inside Craig County from the official sources reviewed. VADOC District 40 in Fincastle serves Craig County for probation and parole, but it is a community supervision office, not a jail.
- Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail - regional jail in Fincastle for local and regional custody, including Craig County arrests, pretrial detainees, local sentenced inmates, and work-release categories.
Craig County Inmate Terms
Jail and court terms can blur together during a new arrest. These definitions help separate custody status from case status.
- Booking
- Jail intake after arrest or court commitment, including identity, property, charges, and data entry.
- Detainer
- A hold request or notice from another agency or jurisdiction that may prevent release.
- Classification
- The jail process that assigns custody level, housing, and restrictions.
- Personal recognizance
- Release based on a promise to appear, without money paid upfront.
- Disposition
- The court outcome of a charge, such as guilty, dismissed, amended, or nolle prosequi.
Craig County Inmate Population FAQ
How large is the Craig County inmate population? The official jail population figure is reported for Botetourt/Craig Regional Jail, not Craig County alone. The 2025 BLRJ Capacity Report lists 95.32 average daily population for the regional jail reporting period from July 1, 2024 through June 30, 2025.
Where is the Craig County jail roster? Current and recent regional jail custody is searched through Citizen Connect Inmate Confinements for the Botetourt County Sheriff's Office. It includes current confinements, admits by date range, charge search, and arresting-agency search.
What if the roster does not show a person? Call the Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail 24-hour line at 540-928-2314, then check VADOC, VINE/VINELink, BOP, ICE, court records, or FOIA channels depending on the custody type and record needed.
Is there a Craig County sheriff app for inmate search? No official Craig County Sheriff or Botetourt County Sheriff mobile app was found for inmate roster, warrants, most-wanted records, or records requests. Paytel, VINELink, and JPay apps serve communication, notification, or state-prison money functions, not a sheriff roster.