Find an Inmate at the Work Release Center

Community Work Release Center Overview

The Community Work Release Center is operated by the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office as a separate 100-bed facility from the Main Detention Unit. It holds male inmates sentenced to the county jail for 364 days or less who meet the criteria for work release or the county work squad. The 364-day line matters, because a sentence of one year or more generally points to state prison rather than the county jail.

The CWRC is a different custody setting, not a different records system. There is no separate public CWRC roster, so a person here is found through the same Sheriff's custody channels used for the main jail. The 2025 inmate handbook describes the CWRC as the work-release side of the county jail, with its own daily schedule, work rules, and commissary that differ from the main unit.

Work release serves a clear purpose in the county system. It lets eligible men keep a job or perform supervised county work while finishing a short sentence, which can ease the return to the community. Because the men here are sentenced rather than awaiting trial, the focus shifts from bond and first appearance to structured work, accountability, and a steady path toward release. That is why the CWRC page emphasizes schedules and rules rather than the booking and bond steps that dominate the main jail.

Community Work Release Center Capacity and Population

The Sheriff lists the CWRC at 100 beds, the smaller of the county's two adult facilities. It is part of the county's combined 764 adult beds. No separate published average daily population for the CWRC alone was found, so the build does not state a CWRC-only count.

Eligibility is evaluated by Classification and Medical, and entry to the CWRC is decided by the Classification Committee. Not every sentenced man qualifies for work release.

How to Look Up an Inmate at the CWRC

Use the county custody channels, since the CWRC shares the Sheriff's records rather than a separate roster. The Sheriff's inmate search page is the official online path, and the booking and detention lines confirm custody. During research the online roster was offline, so the phone fallback is the practical route.

1. Open the Sheriff's inmate search page and use the roster when it is online.
2. Search by the inmate's last name, since CWRC men appear in the same county custody data.
3. For custody questions, call the Detention Center at 904-209-1443.
4. For a record, file a request with the Records Unit at 904-810-6610.

The full set of access channels, including state and federal locators, is on the jail inmate records page.

CWRC Address and Contact

The CWRC shares the detention complex on Lewis Speedway with the main jail. The detention line is the general contact for custody questions about a work-release inmate.

Because work-release inmates may be off site during the day, the Sheriff's schedule rules below explain when an inmate is likely at the facility.

Daily Schedule at the CWRC

The work-release routine starts early. The handbook describes a 4:30 a.m. wake-up for cleanup and breakfast, a 5:45 a.m. inspection and count, and mandatory work assignments during the day. Meal windows and phone hours are set, which shapes the best times to reach a CWRC inmate.

Note: Work-release inmates are off site during work hours, so visits and calls should be planned around the non-working schedule.

Visiting Someone at the CWRC

Visits at the CWRC follow the same Smart Communications guidelines as the Main Detention Unit, with one key difference: they must be scheduled for non-working hours, since inmates work during the day. Visitors still need an approved account and must schedule in advance. The same conduct rules apply, including a ban on recording or rebroadcasting a video visit and a bar on visitors who hold a no-contact order against the inmate.

Because the inmate's work assignment sets availability, confirm the open visiting window for that person before scheduling. The general visitation framework is the same one described for the Main Detention Unit.

Mail, Money, and Commissary at the CWRC

Mail and money channels match the county jail. Non-legal mail goes through Smart Communications at the same Seminole, Florida, post office box, and money is added at the lobby kiosk or online through JailATM. The CWRC commissary is its own system, though, and offers food and hygiene items that are not allowed at the main unit.

A man returned from the CWRC to the main unit forfeits items not issued by the facility, with opened items discarded and the rest handled as the CWRC supervisor directs. Care-package and canteen ordering for county inmates runs through the JailCanteen portal the Sheriff links.

The JailCanteen portal is the care-package and canteen service the Sheriff links for county inmates.

Commissary orders are placed and delivered weekly, and a separate menu applies for the work squad.

Fees, Funds, and Recreation at the CWRC

Several county jail money rules carry over to the work release center. The Sheriff lists an admission processing fee of $20 under Florida Statutes 951.033, with exceptions for certain transfers, court returns, and federal inmates. If an inmate owes a debt to the facility, 40 percent of any deposit is applied to the debt and 60 percent goes to commissary until the balance is cleared. An inmate is considered indigent with less than $1 in the account over the prior 14 days, which triggers weekly indigent hygiene and writing supplies. A replacement for an intentionally damaged inmate identification badge is listed at $6.28.

Recreation and structure round out the routine. The handbook states that work release inmates are offered recreation no less than three hours per week. Because the schedule is built around mandatory work, time for visits, calls, and recreation falls outside work hours. The CWRC supervisor manages commissary and property handling, including what happens to a man's items if he is returned to the main unit. These rules make the CWRC a closely managed step between a county sentence and release rather than an open setting.

Work Release Rules and Eligibility

Work release is a privilege with conditions, not an automatic benefit. Eligibility is evaluated by Classification and Medical, and the Classification Committee decides entry to the CWRC. The handbook also sets grooming and conduct rules specific to county-sentenced work-release status, including a prohibition on wearing a beard. Sanctions for rule violations can include removal from the work squad, disciplinary confinement, loss of gain time, and criminal charges where a state law is broken.

The CWRC is the county step between a short sentence and release, and it is distinct from state work-release programs run by the Florida Department of Corrections. Sentenced men who do not qualify for the CWRC serve their time in the Main Detention Unit.