Tempe Recent Bookings

Recent bookings for Tempe arrests are held at Maricopa County jail facilities, not at a local Tempe city jail. When Tempe Police Department officers make an arrest, the person goes to a Maricopa County Sheriff detention center for booking and processing. This means you search for Tempe recent bookings through the Maricopa County Sheriff inmate lookup system. The MCSO database covers all arrests made by Tempe police, campus police at Arizona State University, and any other law enforcement working in the city. You can search this booking database online at no cost, call the county jail for inmate status, or request official records from the Tempe Police records unit.

Where Tempe Recent Bookings Are Processed

Tempe does not run its own city jail. All arrests made in Tempe go to Maricopa County Sheriff facilities for booking. This is standard practice across the Phoenix metro area. City police departments handle patrol and investigations, but the county sheriff runs the jail system for everyone.

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office operates five jail facilities in the Phoenix area. Most new bookings start at the Intake, Transfer and Release center located at 2670 S 28th Drive in Phoenix. After initial processing, inmates get assigned to one of the other facilities based on their charges and classification. For Tempe arrests specifically, you would search the same MCSO inmate database that covers all of Maricopa County.

To find someone booked after a Tempe arrest, use the MCSO inmate search portal. This free tool lets you look up any adult in county custody by name or booking number. Results show the booking date, current charges, bond amount, and which jail facility holds the person. The search updates through the day as new arrests come in.

Note: Search results from MCSO are for general information only and should not be used for legal purposes without verification.

Tempe Police Records Request

While booking records are at the county level, Tempe Police Department keeps arrest reports and other law enforcement records. If you need the police report from a Tempe arrest, you request it from Tempe PD rather than the sheriff. This includes incident reports, arrest narratives, and evidence documentation that led to the booking.

The Tempe Police records unit is at 120 E. 5th Street in Tempe, AZ 85281. You can reach them by phone at 480-350-8588. This line runs seven days a week from 5 a.m. to midnight. Regular office hours for walk in requests are Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For email requests, send them to PD_RecordsRequests@tempe.gov.

The Tempe Police online portal at Tempe Police Public Records explains the request process. You can submit requests through the JustFOIA portal which tracks your request and lets you check status online. This image shows the Tempe Police JustFOIA records request portal.

The online system makes it easy to specify what records you need and upload any supporting documents. Many people use this portal to get copies of arrest reports after someone they know gets booked into county jail.

Tempe Traffic Accident Reports

Tempe Police uses BuyCrash for traffic accident reports. This matters for recent bookings because many arrests in Tempe involve traffic offenses. DUI arrests, hit and run cases, and accidents that lead to criminal charges all generate accident reports separate from the booking records at the county jail.

To get a Tempe crash report, visit BuyCrash and search by date and location. Reports cost around $5 to $10 depending on the type. You can download them right away after paying. The accident report gives details about what happened that the booking record does not include. This can be important for understanding the full picture of a Tempe arrest.

ASU Campus Arrests in Tempe

Arizona State University has its own police department that patrols the Tempe campus. ASU Police make arrests for crimes that happen on university property. These arrests also go to Maricopa County jail for booking, not to a campus detention center. The booking process is the same regardless of whether Tempe PD or ASU Police made the arrest.

If you know an arrest happened on the ASU Tempe campus, you can still find the booking through the MCSO inmate search. The records request process may differ though. ASU Police maintains its own records for campus incidents. You might need to contact the university police department for detailed reports rather than Tempe city police. Both agencies work together on cases that span city and campus boundaries.

Note: ASU has campuses in other cities too, but the main Tempe campus generates the most arrests that end up in Maricopa County booking records.

Finding Tempe Booking Records Step by Step

Looking up someone arrested in Tempe takes a few steps. First, you need to know roughly when the arrest happened. Recent bookings show up in the MCSO system within hours of intake. Older records may require a formal request.

For recent arrests, follow these steps:

• Go to the MCSO inmate search at mcso.org
• Enter the person's last name and first name
• Add date of birth if you know it for better results
• Review matches and note booking number and facility
• Call the jail info line at (602) 876-0322 to confirm status

The online search shows current inmates. If someone was arrested in Tempe but already released, they may not appear in the active search. You can still get booking records by requesting them from MCSO public records. Old Tempe booking records remain available through the county system even after release.

Contacting Maricopa County Jail About Tempe Arrests

Sometimes the online search does not give you what you need. Maybe you cannot spell the name right. Maybe you are not sure if the arrest happened in Tempe or a nearby city. The jail information line can help sort this out.

Call (602) 876-0322 for Maricopa County jail information. This line runs 24 hours a day, every day of the week. Staff can look up inmates by name and tell you if someone is in custody. They can also tell you which facility holds the person, what their bond is set at, and whether they have a court date scheduled. Have the person's full name and date of birth ready when you call.

For records requests from MCSO, the public records unit is at 550 W. Jackson Street in Phoenix. You can email them at publicrecords@mcso.maricopa.gov. Video recordings from jail cost $25 per hour under the fee schedule from A.R.S. 39-129. Payment must be cash, money order, cashier's check, or business check. They do not take personal checks or credit cards.

Tempe Booking Records and Arizona Law

Booking records for Tempe arrests are public under Arizona law. A.R.S. 39-121 requires public records to be open for inspection during office hours. You do not need to give a reason for wanting to see booking records. You do not need to be the person arrested or their family member. The law gives everyone the same access rights.

There are some limits on what gets released. Victim information is protected under A.R.S. 13-4434. Juvenile records have extra privacy rules. Active investigation files may be withheld until a case closes. But basic booking facts for adults are generally available.

Under A.R.S. 41-1750, booking agencies must report arrest data to the Arizona Department of Public Safety. This creates a statewide criminal history beyond just the local booking record. The Central State Repository holds Arizona criminal records going back years. For a complete history rather than just recent Tempe bookings, you would contact DPS at (602) 223-2222.

Crime victims have special rights under A.R.S. 39-127. Victims of Part I crimes get one free copy of police reports and body camera footage related to their case.

Visiting Someone After a Tempe Booking

Maricopa County jails use video visitation. You do not go to the jail and sit across from the inmate. Instead, visits happen through video screens at the jail or from your home device. The county uses the GettingOut platform from ViaPath to schedule and conduct video visits.

To visit someone booked after a Tempe arrest, first create an account on GettingOut. Search for the inmate by name to confirm they are in county custody. Then pick an available time slot for your visit. Remote visits from home have fees. Some on site kiosk visits at the jail may be free. The GettingOut site shows current pricing and rules for Maricopa County facilities.

You can also deposit money into an inmate account through TouchPay or directly on the GettingOut platform. Inmates use these funds for phone calls, commissary items, and video visits. Having money in their account helps them stay in contact with family while their case moves through court.

Nearby Cities in Maricopa County

Tempe sits in the heart of the Phoenix metro area surrounded by other cities. All of them book arrestees into the same Maricopa County jail system. If you are not sure which city an arrest happened in, the county inmate search covers everyone regardless of which police department made the arrest.

Phoenix borders Tempe to the west and north. Mesa is to the east. Scottsdale is to the northeast. Chandler and Gilbert are to the south. These cities share the mill avenue entertainment district and Arizona State University draws people from all over the region. An arrest that seems like it happened in Tempe might actually fall under another city's jurisdiction depending on the exact location.