The Mora County Inmate Population
Mora County has a contract-based detention structure. The Mora County Sheriff's Office lists Sheriff Americk Padilla and the law-enforcement office in Mora, but the county source material does not show a public Mora County jail lobby, jail administrator page, local jail roster, or visitation counter. County commission records instead show inmate-confinement agreements with San Miguel County Detention Center, and 2024 minutes add Santa Fe County Adult Detention Center as a backup option when the main placement is full or unavailable.
That means the Mora County inmate population is best understood as people arrested or held on Mora County matters and housed through another county's adult detention facility. The public roster does not publish a separate Mora-only daily count. It can show matching bookings, custody flags, charges, bond entries, case numbers, booking history, and booking photos. For counts, costs, agreements, or records not visible on the roster, the county public-records route is the more direct path.
Mora County Inmate Population Statistics
Official sources reviewed for Mora County did not publish a stand-alone jail capacity, average daily jail population, annual booking total, or aggregate detainee demographics. That absence is important. The 2022 county agenda and earlier commission materials identify San Miguel County Detention Center as the confinement partner, while the October 3, 2024 county minutes document the Santa Fe backup agreement. The public San Miguel roster is searchable by person, but it does not give a Mora County population dashboard.
| Measure | Figure | Source / Year |
|---|---|---|
| Mora County stand-alone jail capacity | Not published in reviewed official sources | Mora sheriff page and commission records, reviewed 2026 |
| Primary adult confinement facility | San Miguel County Detention Center | Mora agendas and San Miguel detention page |
| Backup adult confinement facility | Santa Fe County Adult Detention Center | Mora County minutes, 2024 |
| Mora-only daily population at San Miguel | Not separately published | San Miguel Inmate Inquiry, reviewed June 22, 2026 |
| Mora County resident population | 4,189 in the 2020 Census | U.S. Census QuickFacts |
Mora County Inmate Population Trends
The clearest trend in the Mora County inmate population is administrative, not numerical. Public records show repeated reliance on San Miguel County Detention Center, followed by a backup placement agreement with Santa Fe County. The 2024 minutes state that Sheriff Padilla described the Santa Fe MOU as a backup when the primary facility was full or unavailable, and that the cost changed from $97 to $220 per inmate, covering housing, utilities, medical services, and other necessary expenses.
| Year | Published Count | Documented Custody Development |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Not published | Mora agenda considered San Miguel inmate confinement contract. |
| 2022 | Not published | Special meeting agenda again listed a San Miguel confinement contract. |
| 2024 | Not published | Santa Fe backup agreement and per-inmate cost increase were discussed. |
| 2026 | No Mora-only dashboard | San Miguel roster remained searchable by name during research. |
Because no verified Mora County jail count is available in the research file, no incarceration rate should be calculated from the Census population. A rate needs both a reliable resident denominator and a verified jail-population numerator. Here, the numerator is missing.
Where Mora County Inmates Are Held
Mora County detainees may pass through more than one custody system. Local arrest questions begin with the Mora County Sheriff's Office, but adult jail custody usually points to San Miguel County Detention Center. The Santa Fe County Adult Detention Center backup agreement matters when San Miguel is full or unavailable. A state prison sentence moves the person into the New Mexico Corrections Department, and federal or immigration custody uses federal systems instead.
| System | Who It Covers | Where to Search |
|---|---|---|
| Regional county jail | Pretrial and local sentenced detainees held for Mora matters | San Miguel Inmate Inquiry or jail phone line |
| Backup regional jail | Mora detainees transferred when the primary facility is unavailable | Confirm with San Miguel, Mora Sheriff, or Santa Fe Adult Detention Center |
| State prison | People sentenced to NMCD custody | NMCD Offender Search |
| Federal or immigration custody | Federal defendants, sentenced federal prisoners, or ICE detainees | BOP, USMS, or ICE ODLS |
Laws for Mora County Inmate Records
New Mexico public-records law is the main reason booking sheets, jail records, law-enforcement records, and court records can often be inspected. Access is not unlimited. Juvenile confidentiality, sealed cases, expungement orders, medical privacy, safety redactions, and other lawful exceptions may restrict what is posted online or released in a copy request.
Key Statutes and Rules:
NMSA 1978, Section 14-2-1 gives every person a right to inspect public records unless an exception applies.
Section 14-2-1.2 language treats law-enforcement records as public records except as provided by law and allows redaction of nonpublic details.
NMSA 33-3-13 supports holding trial-waiting prisoners in the county jail or an agreed facility.
The Death in Custody Reporting Act covers deaths under arrest, in transit, or in jail, prison, or other correctional custody.
Search the Mora County Inmate Population
The practical roster route starts with the San Miguel County Detention Center page, which links the Detainee Lookup. The same official page warns that lookup services may be temporarily out of service during a jail-management transition and tells callers to use the detention center phone line. Direct research on June 22, 2026 found the linked Inmate Inquiry screen reachable, so both routes should be kept in mind.
- Open the official detention center page or go to the Inmate Inquiry search.
- Search by last name first, then add first name or booking number if needed.
- Leave archive records off for current custody, or turn it on for released or older bookings.
- Use DOB, sex, race, booking date, and InCustody flag to avoid mixing people with similar names.
- Open the booking-number link for charges, bond, case numbers, photo, and booking history.
| Field | Type | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Last Name | Text | Best first search field for most roster checks. |
| First Name | Text | Narrows common last-name results. |
| Booking # | Text | Direct route when a booking number is known. |
| Include Archive Records | Checkbox | Useful for prior or released records. |
| Recent | Button | Do not rely on it without browser confirmation, because testing returned an error. |
What a Mora County Inmate Record Shows
A public San Miguel profile can show enough detail to connect the jail record to later court records. The sample profile reviewed in the research included a mugshot, inmate ID, booking number, booking date, release date when present, name fields, physical descriptors, charge rows, bond type, bond amount, court case number, and booking history. It did not show housing pod, arresting agency, warrant number, or projected release date on the public grid.
The image below comes from the public San Miguel inmate profile captured for the Mora County research file.
The profile view is useful because it connects booking data, photo, charges, bond, and court case numbers in one record.
Mora County Records Requests
When the roster does not answer the question, use the county public-records process. The Mora County Clerk page lists public-records request responsibilities, and the Mora County NextRequest portal provides online Make Request and Search controls. The IPRA form source noted in the research references in-person submission, phone contact at the clerk's office, email to ipra@countyofmora.com, and a 50-cent-per-page copy fee, but the form should be checked before relying on that fee.
The Mora County Open Public Records portal is shown below with the request and search options used for county-record routing.
For court-file records, use judiciary tools rather than the county clerk portal because the court branch maintains those records.
Mora County State and Federal Searches
The New Mexico Corrections Department Offender Search is for state prison and probation or parole records. NMCD states that it does not have jurisdiction over county or city detention facilities, which is a key distinction for Mora County. A person held pretrial at San Miguel is not searched as an NMCD prisoner unless later sentenced and transferred.
For federal sentenced inmates, use the BOP Inmate Locator. For federal pretrial custody, the U.S. Marshals District of New Mexico may be part of the custody route before BOP designation. For immigration custody, use ICE Online Detainee Locator System by A-number or biographical search. VINELink can help with notification where the agency participates, but the source of record remains the jail, court, or corrections agency.
- County jail
- Local or regional detention for pretrial custody and short local sentences.
- NMCD
- New Mexico Corrections Department, the state prison and supervision agency.
- BOP
- Federal Bureau of Prisons, used for federal sentenced inmates.
- ICE ODLS
- Federal immigration custody locator, not a county criminal roster.
Mora County Detention Facilities
The Mora County facility map has two adult detention entries. The first is the main confinement partner, and the second is a backup facility documented in 2024 county minutes. Neither entry should be confused with a New Mexico state prison or a federal detention facility.
- San Miguel County Detention Center is the primary regional jail for Mora County detainees under county confinement agreements.
- Santa Fe County Adult Detention Center is the documented backup when the primary facility is full or unavailable.
Mora County Inmate Population FAQ
Does Mora County have its own public jail roster? No official Mora County sheriff roster was located. The main roster route for adult detainees is San Miguel County Detention Center.
Why is there no Mora-only population count? Mora County houses detainees by agreement, and the public sources reviewed did not publish a separate daily count for Mora detainees at the regional facility.
What if the roster is down? Call San Miguel County Detention Center, then Mora County Sheriff's Office or dispatch if the custody location is unclear.
Can a released person still appear? The roster has an archive checkbox and profiles may include booking history, but official retention timing was not published.
Where are charges filed after booking? Mora County Magistrate Court and Fourth Judicial District Court records are searched through New Mexico court tools, not the jail roster.
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Directions to the Main Detention Facility
The primary jail destination for Mora County adult detainee inquiries is San Miguel County Detention Center in Las Vegas, New Mexico. Visitors coming from Mora should plan for a drive toward Las Vegas and use the facility address on NM 283 for the final route. The official page does not publish visitor parking, public-transit, locker, or ADA entrance details, so confirm visitor parking at the facility before you arrive.