The Detention Center
None — Renville County operates no jail
- Operated byN/A
- Where Renville County's prisoners are held"The office partners with Bottineau County for detention and dispatch services" — stated directly on Renville County's own Sheriff's Office page
- Consistent with state-layer researchMatches ND state-layer finding that Renville sends to Ward and Bottineau counties; the county's own current site names Bottineau specifically
Source: Renville County — Sheriff's Office page · checked 2026-08-25
The Building
You paid for it. Here is what the record says it cost.
- Year builtNot found
- Original costNot found
- Paid for byNot found
- BedsNot applicable — Renville County operates no jail
Since then
- Not found
The Sheriff
Sheriff Not found
- Runs the jailNo county jail — Renville County contracts with Bottineau County for detention and dispatch services
- ElectedYes — NDCC 11-10-02, four-year term (name of current sheriff not confirmed)
- Office205 Main Street East, Mohall, ND 58761; 701-756-6386
- Detention budget requested vs. approved, by year
- Jail staffing levels and vacancy rate
- Lawsuits and settlements involving the jail
Source: Renville County — Sheriff's Office page · checked 2026-08-25
The Judges
North Dakota district judges are elected on a nonpartisan ballot to six-year terms (ND Constitution Art. VI, Sec. 1). Midterm vacancies are filled by the Governor from a list submitted by a judicial nominating committee, unless the Governor instead calls a special election (ND Constitution Art. VI, Sec. 13). District judges are state judicial officers, not county officials. Under ND Supreme Court Administrative Rule 20, a presiding judge may appoint a magistrate with delegated authority to hold initial appearances and set bail under NDCC ch. 29-08.
District Court — Northeast Judicial District
- Anthony Swain Benson (Presiding Judge)
- Kari Michelle Agotness
- Kelley Cole
- Michael P. Hurly
- Lonnie Olson
- Ashley Samuelson
- The county's bond schedule
- Share of the jail population held pretrial
- Median time from booking to first appearance
Source: the state judiciary · checked 2026-08-25
The County Commissioners
They pay for the jail. The sheriff runs it.
- What they controlThe detention budget, the building itself, and the agreements that let other agencies rent its beds.
- What they don'tDay-to-day operations. The sheriff is separately elected and answers to voters, not to the board.
- The boardBoard of County Commissioners →
- Where the jail money is decidedAgendas and minutes →
Notes on the record
- Renville County operates no jail and is not among the 20 ND counties with an operating adult correctional facility.
- 'named' is recorded yes because Renville County's own Sheriff's Office page names Bottineau County as its detention partner — this is the finding, not a gap.
- The current Renville County sheriff's name is not stated on the county's own site; the county's Auditor page publishes only a Mill Levy Report, no budget document.
- 3-member Board of County Commissioners: Andy Gates (District 1), Richard Haman (District 2), Jamee Hansen (District 3). Regular meetings first Tuesday of the month at 9:00 AM.
These three offices decide who sits in a cell in Renville County and what it costs the people who live here. Nationally, almost 77% of the people who died in local jails in 2019 had not been convicted of anything, and suicide was the leading single cause of those deaths (Bureau of Justice Statistics, Mortality in Local Jails, 2000–2019).
How much is your sheriff — and your judge — costing you?
Your VOTE is POWERFUL.
The sheriff who runs this jail is elected. So are the commissioners who pay for it.
Names verified 2026-08-25 · dollars and outcomes still being gathered