Humboldt County

The Detention Center

Humboldt County Detention Center, also called the Humboldt County Detention Facility

• Operated byHumboldt County Sheriff's Office, Detention Division
• When it opened and how big it is'The Humboldt County Detention Facility opened in 1994. The facility is an 84-bed minimum, medium, maximum and female housing unit'
• What is in it'The facility has a complete commercial kitchen, an attached courtroom, offices for supervisors and locker rooms for the deputies. In the housing area, the facility has a common area for inmate learning and inmate activities such as AA, G.E.D. and church services'
• Legal access published'Inmates have access to a computer version of the Nevada Revised statutes, upon written request'
• Staffing'The detention facility has a staff of 14 deputies, three sergeants, and one civilian cook. Over the past four years, we have never been fully staffed. In 2019, we were authorized two more deputy positions in order to safely complete all the tasks that are required by NRS'
• State health inspection'In 2019 the Humboldt County Detention Center received a score 98/100 from the Nevada State Health Inspector. This increased from 2018 as the facility received a score of 96/100'
• Outside audit'In 2019, the Humboldt County Detention Center had an outside audit performed through POOL/PACT.' The published finding: 'The Humboldt County Detention Facility is a well-run facility that operates in compliance with legal mandates and their policies and procedures are consistent with generally accepted policies and procedures of correctional facilities nationwide'
• PREA'It should be noted by federal regulations we are also required to be PREA compliant. As of 2019, we have accomplished this task and meet PREA standards' - an assertion of compliance, not a published audit result
• MoneyThe FY2026-27 final budget shows a separate Detention department at $4,502,300 final approved, made up of $1,741,600 salaries and wages, $1,426,900 employee benefits, $963,800 services and supplies and $370,000 capital outlay. That is against $4,398,131 estimated for the current year and $3,323,184 actual for the year ended 30 June 2025. The Sheriff department is budgeted separately at $6,157,585 and Dispatch at $1,954,400. Revenue lines include Detention Fees at $15,000 and Detention Meal Preparation at $2,500
• BailThe Justice Court's Warrants page states: 'If you are arrested, a cash bail must be posted. If bail is not posted, you will remain in custody and be brought before a Judge for further action.' The county's FAQ adds: 'Bail is a security, usually money or property, given to ensure that if an accused person is released from custody they will still attend future court appearances'
• Time to first appearanceThe county's own FAQ: 'Normally, a person who is arrested and brought to the jail will have an arraignment conducted by video within 72 hours of their arrest'
• What was triedThe Sheriff's Office and Detention Division pages, the county sitemap, the county site search for jail, bail, inmate roster and annual report, the FAQ set, the Justice Court and Warrants pages, the Sixth Judicial District Court page, the Board of Commissioners page, the Budget page and the FY2026-27 final budget, and the 2019 Sheriff's Office annual report. The link the Sheriff's page offers for jail information, hcsonv.crimegraphics.com, redirects to a generic CitizenRIMS page with no Humboldt content. No current roster, no PREA audit result and no death in custody is published

Source: Humboldt County Sheriff's Office 2019 Annual Report · checked 2026-08-23

• ✓The jail is named
• ✗Who is in custody — not published
• ✓Beds and daily population
• ✓What it costs taxpayers
• ✗Deaths in custody — not published
• ✗PREA audits — not published
• ✓Independent inspection
• ✗Who else it holds, and for how much — not published
• ✓How to post bond
• ✗Phone, video and commissary rates — not published

This rates disclosure, not conduct — what Humboldt County publishes about a jail its taxpayers own, checked 2026-08-23. Nothing here says the jail is run well or badly. Every mark moves the moment the county posts the document.

The Building

You paid for it. Here is what the record says it cost.

• Year built1994 - 'The Humboldt County Detention Facility opened in 1994'
• Original costNot found
• Paid for byNot found for construction. Operations are funded as a separate Detention department in the county budget: $4,502,300 final approved for the year ending 30 June 2027
• Beds84 - 'an 84-bed minimum, medium, maximum and female housing unit'. The same report publishes a 2019 and 2018 comparison chart of total booked, males, females, average daily population for males and females, highest day population and lowest day population

The Sheriff

Sheriff Angel Cardenas

• Runs the jailYes. The Humboldt County Sheriff's Office runs the Humboldt County Detention Center through its Detention Division, commanded by Captain Jeremy Peters with Sergeants Patchen, Stark and Mendoza
• How the office is filledElected. NRS 248.010 provides for a sheriff elected in each county; NRS 211.030 makes the sheriff the custodian of the county jail
• What the county's own page saysThe Sheriff's Office page is headed 'WELCOME TO THE HUMBOLDT COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE NEVADA - SHERIFF ANGEL CARDENAS', at 50 W. Fifth Street, Winnemucca, NV 89445, phone 775-623-6419
• UndersheriffDamon Kuskie has his own page on the county site
• Cross-checkThe Nevada Association of Counties 2026 directory also lists Angel Cardenas as Sheriff of Humboldt County
• A change since the published annual reportThe county's 2019 Sheriff's Office annual report, still published on the county site, refers throughout to 'Sheriff Allen'. Any figure taken from that report belongs to a previous sheriff's tenure

Source: Humboldt County Sheriff's Office · checked 2026-08-23

The Judges

Nevada District Court judges are elected in nonpartisan district-wide races to six-year terms, and Justices of the Peace are elected to six-year terms in their township. Both are state judicial officers under Article 6 of the Nevada Constitution, not county officials, although the county pays for the Justice Court. At first appearance it is normally the Justice of the Peace who sets bail; the Justice Court also holds preliminary examinations in felony and gross misdemeanour cases. Mid-term vacancies are filled by appointment - by the Governor for a District Court seat, by the board of county commissioners for a Justice of the Peace - and the appointee then stands at the next election. NRS 211.030 makes the sheriff the custodian of the county jail and NRS 248.050 makes the sheriff responsible for the prisoners in it, so the judge who sets bail and the officer who holds the prisoner are answerable to different electorates. Humboldt County's own Justice Court page states the custody role directly: 'Union Township Justice Court issues search warrants and arrest warrants, holds arraignments and trials for misdemeanor cases, and handles felony and gross misdemeanor cases from the initial arrest through the preliminary hearing stage, including bail setting and probable cause determination.' The Sixth Judicial District was recently realigned and now serves Humboldt County alone.

Source: the state judiciary · checked 2026-08-23

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 →