Chemung County Booking Reports Search
Chemung County booking reports are processed at the county correctional facility in Elmira. The Sheriff's Office handles arrests, jail operations, and records for the county. If you are looking for a booking report or want to check on someone in the jail, you can contact the Sheriff's Office or submit a FOIL request for specific records. Chemung County is in the Southern Tier of New York, near the Pennsylvania border. The county seat is Elmira, and local police along with state troopers also make arrests that get booked through the county jail. State databases like the DOCCS inmate search and OCA criminal history tool are also useful if you need records that go beyond the county level.
Chemung County Booking Reports Overview
How to Request Chemung County Booking Reports
All booking reports in Chemung County go through the Sheriff's Office. When someone is arrested, they get taken to the Chemung County Correctional Facility for booking. Staff at the jail record the person's name, date of birth, charges, bail amount, arresting agency, and physical description. A mugshot photo is taken. This creates the booking report, which stays on file at the facility.
To get a copy, file a Freedom of Information Law request. FOIL gives the public the right to access government records in New York. Your request should be in writing and describe the records you want with as much detail as possible. Send it to the Records Access Officer at the Chemung County Sheriff's Office. Under Public Officers Law Section 87, the agency must respond within five business days. Copies cost $0.25 per page. In-person inspection is free.
You can also call or visit the Sheriff's Office during business hours. Walk-in requests work, but having a written FOIL request on file is better because it creates a record of your inquiry and triggers the legal response timeline.
Chemung County Jail Inmate Lookup
The Chemung County Correctional Facility holds inmates awaiting trial and those serving short sentences. People sentenced to more than one year get sent to state prison. To check if someone is currently in the county jail, call the facility or use VINELink to search by name. VINE is free. It runs 24 hours a day. You can sign up for alerts that tell you when an inmate gets released or moved. The service covers most county jails and all state prisons in New York.
For people who have gone to state prison, the DOCCS Incarcerated Lookup is the right tool. Search by last name and birth year to find anyone in a state correctional facility. The database goes back to the early 1970s and is available around the clock. Elmira Correctional Facility is a state prison located in Chemung County, but it is a separate operation from the county jail. The state facility is run by DOCCS. The county jail is run by the Sheriff.
Note: Elmira Correctional Facility (state prison) and the Chemung County Correctional Facility (county jail) are two different places with separate inmate systems.
Chemung County Court Records and Criminal History
Criminal cases originating in Chemung County go through the local court system. The NYS OCA Criminal History Record Search pulls case data from courts in all 62 counties. It costs $95 per name. You need an exact name and date of birth. Results include open cases, convictions, and sentencing data from county, supreme, city, town, and village courts. Sealed records do not appear. This is a separate system from the booking records kept at the county jail.
The Division of Criminal Justice Services maintains fingerprint-based criminal history records. These include arrest, indictment, conviction, and sentence data from across the state. DCJS records are not public. You request your own through the Record Review process by submitting fingerprints. Email RecordReview@dcjs.ny.gov or call 518-457-9847 for information. Third parties need a law that allows them to request a fingerprint-based check.
FOIL Process for Chemung County Records
FOIL applies to booking reports, arrest logs, jail rosters, and most other records kept by the Sheriff's Office. There are exceptions. Records that would put someone in danger, reveal investigative techniques, or violate personal privacy can be withheld. The Committee on Open Government helps the public navigate FOIL issues. If your request gets denied, you have 30 days to appeal. The denial must be in writing and cite the legal basis for withholding the records.
Court records are not subject to FOIL. You have to request those from the court directly. The Chemung County Court Clerk can provide case files, disposition records, and certified copies for a fee. For Supreme Court matters, contact the court in Elmira.
The Sex Offender Registry is searchable by county or zip code. Level 2 and Level 3 offenders in Chemung County appear in the public directory. For Level 1 offenders, call 800-262-3257 with the person's name and one identifier.
Booking Reports and the Clean Slate Act
New York's Clean Slate Act went into effect November 16, 2024. It gives the Office of Court Administration up to three years to build an automatic sealing process for eligible old conviction records. Sex crimes and non-drug Class A felonies are excluded. For Chemung County, this could mean some older criminal records become sealed in future years. Until OCA finishes the setup, all current convictions remain visible in OCA and DCJS searches.
The screenshot below shows the NYS Inmate Lookup Portal, which links to the DOCCS search for state prison inmates.
This portal at ny.gov connects to the DOCCS system for looking up anyone in state custody.
What Chemung County Booking Reports Contain
A Chemung County booking report records everything from the intake process at the jail. The arrestee's full legal name, aliases if any, date of birth, Social Security number (redacted in public copies), height, weight, and hair and eye color are listed. The charges appear with their statute sections. The arresting officer and agency are named. Bail or bond amounts are noted. The date and time of the arrest and the date and time of booking are both recorded. Any personal property taken at intake is inventoried. The report also indicates whether the person was released, held, or transferred.
Nearby Counties
Chemung County borders several other Southern Tier and Finger Lakes counties. Each has its own Sheriff's Office and jail.