Search Venango County Prison Inmates

Venango County Prison Overview

Venango County Prison is the only detention facility listed in the Venango County facility map. The operator is Venango County Prison Board / Venango County Prison. The official county prison page lists Warden Jason Batykefer, Deputy Warden Anthony Faraone, phone 814-432-9629, fax 814-432-9653, and the facility address at 1186 Elk Street, Franklin, PA 16323. The prison's mission is to protect county residents and staff while providing a safe, secure, and humane setting for inmates awaiting adjudication or serving a sentence.

The official Venango County Prison page shows the local facility, mission, contacts, and quick links for family and correctional resources.

The facility is local custody, not a Pennsylvania DOC prison. That difference matters because a pretrial inmate, a county-sentenced inmate, and a state-sentenced prisoner may require different lookup systems.

Venango Prison Capacity and Population

The Pennsylvania DOC county correctional facility address/contact listing reports a rated capacity of 174 beds for Venango County Prison. Venango County Board of Inspectors minutes recorded a jail count of 119 on February 3, 2026. The January 6, 2026 minutes reported a count of 119, with 92 male and 27 female, and an average in-house population of 114 for November. These are official meeting-date and monthly figures, not a live roster count.

Using the 174-bed capacity, the 119 count was about 68 percent of rated capacity, and the 114 average in-house figure was about 66 percent. The official research did not locate a current public dashboard with live Venango County Prison housing-unit counts, annual bookings, or race and age breakdowns. For any current population question, use the prison phone line or official board records rather than unofficial roster claims.

Who Venango Prison Holds

Venango County Prison houses a mixed local population. The county FAQ says the facility can hold pretrial detainees unable to make bond, people serving county sentences, people awaiting transport to a state correctional facility, defendants sentenced by a district magistrate for summary offenses or misdemeanor of the third degree, civil or domestic-relations contemnors, protection-from-abuse contemnors, probation or parole violators, and limited juveniles charged as adults when Pennsylvania law and the District Attorney's decision allow that custody route.

Look Up Venango Prison Inmates

No official Venango County online jail roster, current-inmate search, booking report, or mugshot gallery was located in the official county pages. The practical lookup chain starts with the prison for current custody, then Pennsylvania VINE for custody notifications, then court and correctional locators based on the case status. Sentenced state inmates are not found through a county roster path, and county inmates do not appear in the PA DOC locator just because the arrest occurred in Pennsylvania.

1. Call Venango County Prison at 814-432-9629 to ask whether the person is currently housed there and whether booking, bond, or release details can be given by phone.
2. Use Pennsylvania VINE for custody status and notification where available.
3. Search UJS Case Search for charges, court dates, bail entries, docket sheets, and case status after arrest.
4. Use the PA DOC Inmate/Parolee Locator only after state sentence, transfer, or parole supervision becomes the relevant status.
5. Check the federal BOP or ICE detainee locator only when the facts point to federal or immigration custody.

For formal criminal proceedings, the Venango County Clerk of Courts is at 1168 Liberty Street, Courthouse, 1st Floor, Franklin, phone 814-432-9577, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For county administrative records not posted online, Venango County Right-to-Know lists the records contact at 1174 Elk Street, Franklin, phone 814-432-9508.

Venango Prison Address and Contact

Use the prison contact for local custody questions, facility rules, and current instructions before a visit, mailing, or deposit. The Sheriff's Office is relevant for warrant service and court duties, but the direct jail phone line is the prison number published by the county.

Venango Prison Visitation Rules

Venango County video visitation uses SmartInmate by Smart Communications. Family and friends create SmartInmate accounts, and customer help is available at 1-727-349-1561. The Deputy Warden reviews public requests for video visitation accounts and approves visit requests from approved-account visitors. Visits may be changed or canceled for facility operations. All video visits are recorded and may be reviewed.

Mail Phone and Money

Mail for a Venango County Prison inmate must go through USPS. It should include the inmate's name, Venango County Prison, 1186 Elk Street, Franklin, PA 16323, and a complete return address with the sender's name. The county bans crayons, gel pens, glitter, music cards, stickers, cash, newspaper clippings, photocopies, books with violence or gang affiliation, and hardback books. Correspondence may not be dropped off.

Inmates make outside calls through Smart Communications. The FAQ says inmates receive a PIN, the PIN must match the number they are trying to call, the phone list is recorded in a computer, the receiver must accept the call, no incoming calls are allowed, and the phone system has technology to defeat third-party calls. Family and friends use prepaid collect or PIN debit accounts through SmartInmate. Venango County also publishes inmate finance rules for deposits and account deductions.

Venango Booking Property Rules

New commitments at Venango County Prison are subject to local property, money, medical, photo, and contraband rules. The county permits one set of clothing worn at incarceration, while extra luggage, baggage, and clothing are not accepted. A plain wedding band and approved religious medallion may be allowed. Eyeglasses, contacts, dentures, prostheses, and approved devices can be accepted, and current prescription medication may be verified by prison medical staff if it is in a current labeled prescription container.

• Currency is logged, receipted, and placed into the prison account.
• Personal photos are limited to five and may be no larger than 5 by 7.
• Religious books can be issued through the chaplain, and other reading material follows prison rules.
• The prison is tobacco-free and bans drugs, weapons, alcohol, cell phones, radios, tobacco products, pocket knives, and unauthorized items.
• Excess property unclaimed 30 days after release is treated as abandoned and destroyed.

Release Programs and PRAB

Release from Venango County Prison can depend on bail type, sentence status, detainers, court orders, probation or parole status, and paperwork review. County release types include release on recognizance, non-monetary conditions, unsecured bail bond, nominal bail, monetary condition, court order, probation or parole, and time served. The county directs bail questions to the Clerk of Courts because that office is custodian of bail bond money.

The county's Pre-Release Advisory Board, known as PRAB, was created in 1996 by Judge H. William White. PRAB meets every two weeks and reviews inmates with sentences over 60 days who are approaching their minimum release dates. The board considers conduct in custody and recommended treatment programs from mental health or drug and alcohol staff, then makes a recommendation to the sentencing judge. A minimum date is not automatic release. The county also lists inmate programs such as AA, GED support, counseling, NA, and ministry.

Venango Prison History

Venango County's official history gives the prison a longer local story than a standard jail listing. The first jail was a 1799 blockhouse in Franklin known as the Old Garrison, north of the Allegheny River on the west shore of French Creek. A second jail was built in 1819 near South Park and housed both inmates and the sheriff's family. The county says that jail had walls easy enough to climb that inmates escaped, and one account says inmates climbed up to watch a circus.

The third jail was built on the present jail site in 1853 and expanded in 1868. By 1909, county history says the jail was reported as one of the worst in the state, which led to plans for the current building. The current building was completed in 1911. It was originally designed for about 30 inmates, while the modern listed capacity is 174 beds. Official board minutes from 2025 and 2026 show ongoing staffing, training, maintenance, program, and population reporting through the Venango County Board of Inspectors.