Booking
THE BOOKING PROCESS
When a person is arrested and brought to the Humboldt County Correctional Facility, they must go through the booking process.
Medical Questions and Search
The first step in the process is a medical questionnaire form. The person will be asked a series of medical questions by medical staff to ensure that they are not sick or injured. The person is searched by correctional staff for weapons and contraband. During this search, the handcuffs are removed and the person removes excess clothing leaving a single layer of outer garments. His/her personal property and extra clothing are put into a storage bin for safe keeping. The person will next be asked a series of questions required to book the person into the facility.
Booking Area
As correctional staff enters the information into the computer system, the person is allowed to sit in a booking waiting area. While here the person may use the inmate phone system to place free local or collect long-distance telephone calls, use the restroom, get a drink or water or watch television. If a person is too intoxicated to safely sit in the waiting area, correctional staff will move them to a detoxification cell. When the person is sober enough to safely sit in the waiting area, they will be removed from the detoxification cell.
Photograph and Fingerprinting
After the person's information has been completely entered into the computer system, they proceed to the photograph and fingerprinting portion of the booking process. The person is first photographed using a digital camera system and then fingerprinted using a laser fingerprinting computer system. Using a computer based fingerprinting system allows us to digitally transmit the fingerprints to the California Department of Justice for comparison with their database of fingerprints.
Changing Room
If the person is going to be housed in the facility, they will be taken to a changing room by correctional staff once the photograph and fingerprinting portion are complete. They will be offered a chance to take a shower and provided with a set of jail issued clothes to wear. Their personal clothing will be placed into property storage with rest of their belongings. After they are dressed they will be given an issue of bedding and have a wristband placed on their wrist. Once all of their paperwork is completed and signed, they will be sent to an intake housing unit.
The inmate will be taken to court in the next two court days. Court days are days that the court is in session, this excludes weekends and holidays. To find out when an inmate is scheduled for court, call the clerk of the court. Or you may wish to visit the court. The court calendar will be posted outside the courtrooms.