Dover Jail Roster
The Dover jail roster tracks adult inmates booked by Dover Police and other Kent County forces. Every Dover arrestee goes into the Delaware Department of Correction system, most often to the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna. That one state inmate locator is the right tool to search the Dover jail roster. This page shows you how to pull up a Dover inmate custody record, where Dover Police process and file arrest notes, which Kent courts handle the case, and how to file a FOIA request for any Dover jail roster backup record.
Dover Overview
How the Dover Jail Roster Works
Dover is the state capital and the Kent County seat. All adult Dover inmates are held by the state, not the city. When Dover Police arrest a person, the inmate is moved to JTVCC in Smyrna for booking and intake. The Dover jail roster entry then posts on the Delaware DOC inmate locator. The system shows the current facility, the charges, and a release date if set.
Use the Delaware DOC inmate locator for any Dover jail roster lookup. The tool runs 24 hours a day.
For alerts when a Dover inmate status changes, sign up at VINELink. The Dover Victim Services Unit can help you pair notifications with Dover jail roster records, too.
JTVCC for Dover Inmates
James T. Vaughn Correctional Center, or JTVCC, is the main Dover jail roster facility for men. JTVCC sits at 1181 Paddock Road, Smyrna, DE 19977, about 15 miles north of Dover. Call (302) 653-9261 for general info. JTVCC is the largest Delaware prison, holding about 2,500 male inmates across all security levels.
Pre-trial holds, sentenced inmates, and work release inmates tied to Dover all pass through JTVCC. Kent County Community Corrections Center in Dover takes work release inmates late in their jail roster time. KCCC also houses the Kent Violation of Probation Center for short-term probation detention tied to a Dover inmate case.
JTVCC has school, GED, job training, drug care, and mental health care for Dover inmates. The prison also has special housing for inmates with medical or security needs. After the known 2017 hostage event at JTVCC, the DOC tightened security steps that touch every Dover inmate on the Delaware jail roster.
Female Dover inmates do not go to JTVCC. Women from Dover show on the Delaware jail roster with a BWCI address in New Castle. Visitation for JTVCC and BWCI both must be booked in advance, and both need the inmate's DOB or SBI number.
Dover Police and Records Unit
Dover Police handle arrests inside city limits. The department is at 400 South Queen Street, Dover, DE 19904. Call (302) 736-7130 for the main line. The Records Unit is at (302) 736-7105, open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Dover officers book arrestees into JTVCC for men or BWCI for women, so every Dover arrest ends up on the Delaware jail roster.
The Dover Police release a free "Victim's Copy" of a crime report to any victim named on the report. Photo ID is required. Call the Records Unit first to confirm the report is ready. Crime reports are not released to non-victims unless a court issues a subpoena for the Dover jail roster file.
Insurance carriers can request a crime report that relates to their insured's property for a $25 fee. A parent or legal guardian can pull a minor child's Victim's Copy. Next of kin can pull a report for a deceased victim with proof of relationship.
Delaware State Police Troop 3
Delaware State Police Troop 3 serves the Dover area and covers Kent County state highways, including Routes 1, 13, and 113. Troop 3 arrests often feed the Dover jail roster. The Troop sits at 1441 N. DuPont Highway, Dover, DE 19901. Call (302) 697-4454 for non-emergency matters. DSP Newsroom posts press releases on big Dover investigations.
Troop 3 works with Dover Police on traffic stops, drug cases, and joint investigations. Arrestees from Troop 3 cases go through JTVCC, just like Dover Police arrestees. The State Bureau of Identification in Dover at 655 South Bay Road, Suite 1B, handles fingerprint prints tied to Dover inmate history checks.
See the Troop 3 page for contact info and news.
Kent County Courts for Dover Cases
Dover cases go through Kent County courts. Kent County Superior Court at 38 The Green, Dover, DE 19901, handles felonies. Call (302) 739-5353 for the Prothonotary. The Court of Common Pleas at (302) 739-4618 in the same courthouse hears misdemeanors. Minor Dover cases may go to the Justice of the Peace Courts.
Use Delaware CourtConnect to run an online case search tied to a Dover jail roster entry.
Expungement petitions for old Dover cases file at the Kent Superior Court. Once a judge signs, the inmate record drops off the Dover jail roster and the SBI file. That takes a three-year wait for most misdemeanors and seven years for eligible felonies. Most serious violent crimes and sex crimes can not be cleared from the Dover jail roster history.
The Prothonotary's Office at Kent Superior Court in Dover makes certified copies of papers from a Dover inmate file. Plain copies cost less than certified. The court charges $15 for the first three pages of a certified packet, plus $2 per added page. Retrieval of archived Dover jail roster files can add another $25 per record. Call ahead to plan your trip.
Dover FOIA Requests for Jail Roster Data
Dover's FOIA coordinator is Crystal Wheeler. She also serves as Records Manager. Reach the City Clerk at (302) 736-7008 or email cityclerk@dover.de.us. Under Delaware law in Title 29, Chapter 100, Dover must reply to a FOIA request in 15 business days. The first 20 pages of copies are free. After that, $0.10 per page.
For a sample form and rules, open the City of Dover FOIA page.
Dover also runs an online portal so you can file, track, and pull jail roster records in one place. Past requests are posted in a public archive, which may save you a new filing.
Open the Dover records portal to submit a request online.
The portal will send email alerts when the status of a Dover jail roster request changes. You can also message the FOIA coordinator in the portal. Fire investigation reports are held back unless a subpoena orders release. A Statement of Verification can be pulled from the Fire Marshal at (302) 736-7099.
Note: Dover's online portal is the fastest way to ask for inmate and jail roster records from the city's records unit.
Dover in Kent County
Dover is the Kent County seat. All Dover cases feed into the Kent County jail roster. For county-wide tools and a deeper look at JTVCC and KCCC, see the Kent County page.
Nearby Cities
These Kent County towns share the same state jail roster and book men through JTVCC. Milford spans Kent and Sussex, so some Milford arrests route through SCI in Sussex instead.