Tensas Parish Arrest Records
Tensas Parish arrest records are held by the Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office in St. Joseph, Louisiana. The parish publishes a current inmate roster through the LAVNS system at tensas.lavns.org, which shows who is in custody at the Tensas Parish Detention Center in Waterproof. Initial arrest reports and booking records are public documents under LRS 44:3, meaning any adult can request them. This page explains how to search for Tensas Parish arrest records using the sheriff's office and the public tools available online and in person.
Tensas Parish Quick Facts
Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office
Sheriff Rickey A. Jones leads the Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office, the primary law enforcement agency in this small northeast Louisiana parish. The mailing address for the sheriff's office is P.O. Box 138, St. Joseph, LA 71366. You can reach the office by phone at (318) 766-3499 or by fax at (318) 766-3498. Tensas Parish is a rural parish, and the sheriff's office handles all county law enforcement duties including booking and records for anyone arrested in the parish.
| Sheriff | Rickey A. Jones |
|---|---|
| Mailing Address | P.O. Box 138, St. Joseph, LA 71366 |
| Phone | (318) 766-3499 |
| Fax | (318) 766-3498 |
The Tensas Parish Detention Center is located at 8606 Highway 65 in Waterproof, Louisiana, at (318) 749-5810. This is the facility where people booked in Tensas Parish are held. All booking records, including the person's name, date of birth, charges, and arrest date, are created at this facility and are public under LRS 44:3. If you need to confirm whether someone is currently in custody, the LAVNS roster is the fastest way to check.
LRS 44:1, Louisiana's Public Records Act, requires the sheriff's office to respond to records requests within three business days. If they deny a request, they must state the legal reason in writing. The law covers all public agencies in the state, including small parish sheriff offices like Tensas.
Tensas Parish Inmate Search Online
The Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office participates in the Louisiana Victim Notification System and provides a public inmate roster at tensas.lavns.org. You can browse the roster by the first letter of the last name. Each listing shows the inmate's name, date of birth, race, sex, and the date they were arrested. The roster shows who is currently in custody at the Tensas Parish Detention Center in Waterproof.
The screenshot below shows the Louisiana State Police website, the state's main public safety hub that links to arrest records and law enforcement resources for all 64 parishes including Tensas.
The Louisiana State Police at lsp.org provides statewide records resources. If a person was transferred to a state facility, checking the state police records may help you locate them.
LAVNS also offers VINE notifications for Tensas Parish. If you want to be alerted when a specific person is released from the Tensas Parish Detention Center, you can register at the statewide VINE portal at vinelink.vineapps.com/state/LA. Registration is free and does not require you to give your name. Alerts come by phone, email, or text message. This service is open to victims, family members, and the general public.
Because Tensas is a small parish, if the person you are looking for is not found on the parish roster, check the statewide VINE portal. They may have been transferred to a facility in a neighboring parish or to a state correctional facility.
The statewide VINE database shown here covers Tensas Parish and all other Louisiana parish jails, allowing you to search and track custody status across the entire state network.
How to Request Tensas Parish Arrest Records
To request arrest records from the Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office, call (318) 766-3499 or send a fax to (318) 766-3498. You can also mail a written request to P.O. Box 138, St. Joseph, LA 71366. Include the full name of the person, the approximate date of arrest, and the specific document you need. The office may charge a fee for copies of records, but they cannot charge you for the right to view a public document.
LRS 44:3 makes initial arrest reports and booking records public from the time they are created. The case outcome does not change this. A not-guilty verdict or dropped charge does not seal the original booking record. You can ask for these records at any time, and the office must respond within three days under LRS 44:1.
If you need records from the Tensas Parish Detention Center specifically, the facility is at 8606 Highway 65 in Waterproof. The detention center's direct number is (318) 749-5810. For documents related to your own criminal history, you must contact the Louisiana State Police directly under LRS 15:588. That process involves fingerprints and a fee and is separate from local arrest records.
Note: Because the sheriff's office uses a P.O. Box for mail, in-person visits should be confirmed by phone first to get the physical address for the office in St. Joseph.
Tensas Parish Arrest Record Laws
LRS 44:3 is the central law that governs which arrest records are public in Louisiana. It covers initial arrest reports, booking records, summons, citations, and bills of information. All of these are public from the moment they are created. An adult can request them at any time without explaining why. If a charge is dropped, dismissed, or results in acquittal, the original arrest record remains open unless a court specifically seals it through a separate process.
LRS 15:587 restricts the full Louisiana criminal history database managed by the state police. That database is not available for public searches. There is a difference between the booking records held at the parish level, which are public, and the statewide criminal history database, which is not open for general access. If you want a full background check, that requires going through an authorized process at the state level.
LRS 44:1 is the base public records law. It applies to every government agency in Tensas Parish, including the sheriff's office and the detention center. Any adult can invoke this law to inspect or copy public records. If a request is denied without legal basis, the person can file for a court order compelling the agency to release the records. Legal aid groups in Louisiana can help if you run into problems accessing records you are entitled to see.
Cities in Tensas Parish
There are no qualifying cities in Tensas Parish with dedicated arrest records pages on this site. All communities in the parish, including St. Joseph and Waterproof, are served through the Tensas Parish Sheriff's Office. Call (318) 766-3499 for records requests or questions about arrest records for any location in the parish.
Nearby Parishes
Tensas Parish is in the northeastern corner of Louisiana along the Mississippi River. It shares borders with several other parishes, each with its own sheriff and records system.