San Diego County Busted Mugshots

San Diego County busted mugshots are processed through the San Diego County Sheriff's Department, which runs the county's jail facilities and booking operations. This is the second most populous county in California with about 3.3 million residents. The sheriff handles bookings for unincorporated areas and many smaller cities, while the San Diego Police Department covers the city itself. All county jail bookings go through the sheriff's system. This page explains where to search for busted mugshots in San Diego County and what tools are available to the public.

Who's in Jail Search Tool

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department offers a "Who's in Jail" search tool on its website. This is the primary way to look up busted mugshots in San Diego County. The tool is free and available to anyone. You can search by name to find people currently in county custody. Results include the booking photo, charges, bail amount, and facility location.

The county operates several detention facilities. The San Diego Central Jail downtown processes a large share of bookings. The Vista Detention Facility serves the north county area. The George Bailey Detention Facility in Otay Mesa and the East Mesa Reentry Facility handle additional capacity. The "Who's in Jail" tool pulls records from all these locations into one search, so you do not need to check each facility separately.

Keep in mind that this tool only shows people currently in custody. Once someone is released, their record drops off the public search. For older booking records, you need to go through a formal records request process.

Finding Booking Records in San Diego County

Start with the "Who's in Jail" tool. Enter a first and last name. The results page shows all matches in the system. Click a name to see the full booking details including the mugshot. The search updates regularly as new bookings come in throughout the day.

If the person is no longer in jail, contact the sheriff's department directly. The main phone number is (858) 565-5200. The jail information line is (619) 610-3000. You can also file a California Public Records Act request for booking records. Send your request to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department records unit. They have 10 days to respond under state law. Include the person's full name and approximate date of arrest to help them find the right record.

The San Diego County Sheriff's Department website also has general information about its corrections division, patrol areas, and how to contact specific bureaus. The sheriff serves unincorporated communities and provides contract law enforcement to several smaller cities in the county.

San Diego Police Department Records

The San Diego Police Department handles law enforcement within the City of San Diego. SDPD makes its own arrests, but booking happens at county jail facilities run by the sheriff. That means even for SDPD arrests, the mugshot ends up in the sheriff's booking system. To get records specific to an SDPD arrest, you can contact the department directly or file a public records request through the city.

Other cities in San Diego County also have their own police departments. Chula Vista, Oceanside, Escondido, and El Cajon each run city police forces. Same rule applies. Regardless of which agency makes the arrest, the booking and mugshot go through the county sheriff's jail. So the "Who's in Jail" tool remains your best starting point for any San Diego County busted mugshot search.

State Tools for San Diego County Mugshots

The California DOJ keeps statewide criminal history data that includes San Diego County records. You can file a request through the DOJ public records form for state-level information. To check your own record, submit Live Scan fingerprints along with form BCIA 8016RR and a $25 processing fee.

The CDCR CIRIS tool lets you search for inmates in California state prisons. This only covers people sentenced to state prison, not county jail inmates. If someone from San Diego County received a state prison sentence, you can find them in CIRIS. For county-level custody, use the sheriff's tool instead.

The DOJ's Public Records Act page explains what types of records you can request and how the process works. Response times vary depending on the complexity of the request.

Review the DOJ page for details on what records are available and any fees that may apply to your request.

San Diego County Fresh Start Program

San Diego County runs a Fresh Start program for people looking to clear their criminal records. The program helps with expungement petitions, arrest record sealing, and certificate of rehabilitation applications. You can reach the program at Fresh.Start@sdcounty.ca.gov. This is a county-run resource, not a private service.

Under Penal Code section 851.87, you can petition to seal an arrest record if charges were never filed, dismissed, or resulted in acquittal. Once sealed, the mugshot is no longer accessible to the public. Expungement under Penal Code section 1203.4 clears a conviction but does not automatically seal the arrest data. The Clean Slate Act under SB 731 provides automatic sealing for certain arrests after specific time periods have passed.

For San Diego County cases, file court petitions with the San Diego Superior Court. The court has locations across the county including the downtown courthouse, the Vista courthouse for north county cases, and the El Cajon courthouse for east county matters.

Mugshot Laws Affecting San Diego County

California has some of the strongest mugshot protection laws in the country. Under SB 1027, third-party mugshot websites cannot charge a fee to remove your booking photo. This applies to all California mugshots, including those from San Diego County arrests. The law was passed in response to exploitative websites that profited from publicly available booking photos.

Under Penal Code section 13665, law enforcement agencies in California cannot post booking photos to social media for most arrests. There are exceptions for fugitives and people who pose a public safety threat. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department follows these state rules when it comes to sharing booking images publicly. Under AB 1475, additional restrictions apply to how agencies distribute mugshots to third parties.

Cities in San Diego County

San Diego County has 18 incorporated cities. These are the major cities with populations over 100,000 that have their own pages on this site. Arrests in any of these cities are booked through the county sheriff's detention system.

Nearby Counties

San Diego County sits at the southern tip of California. It borders only a few other counties, plus the U.S.-Mexico border to the south.