About Us


The Yuma County Sheriff's Office is a public service organization that is dedicated to providing the best possible service to the citizens of Yuma County.

The powers and duties of the Sheriff, as governed by the Arizona Revised Statutes § 11-441, include preserving the peace; taking charge of the county jail, including a county jail under the jurisdiction of a county jail district, and the prisoners in the county jail; serve process and notices; and conducting search and rescue operations within the county involving the life or health of any person.

What is now known as Yuma County was once a part of New Mexico Territory named Dona Ana County with Santa Fe as the County seat. There was no civil government, as the early counties had neither the money nor inclination to exercise control. Thus the local settlements were left to their own governments. Early records reflect that there was a sheriff of sorts elected on October 18, 1862 in La Paz located about 70 miles up the Colorado River from present day Yuma. His name was Pedro Padilla with a title of first sheriff and Francisco Figueroa as second sheriff, now known as deputy sheriff.

The Arizona Territory was created by the Arizona Organic Act which was signed on February 24, 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln. The Arizona Organic Act provided for the creation of the Arizona Territory by the division of the New Mexico Territory into two territories along the current boundary between New Mexico and Arizona. The Arizona Territory was officially established on December 29, 1863 in a ceremony performed at Navajo Springs, Arizona with John Noble Goodwin serving as the first Governor of the Arizona Territory (In office: December 29, 1863–April 10, 1866).

The 1st Arizona Territorial Legislative Assembly convened in Prescott on September 26, 1864. One of the first tasks accomplished by the Legislature was to divide the new territory into four counties: Mohave, Pima, Yavapai and Yuma. The first county seat of Yuma County was established on November 9, 1864 at La Paz.

At the same time the County was established in 1864, the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office was created. The first sheriffs were appointed by the Territorial Governor and the first one so appointed by Governor John Noble Goodwin was Isaac Bradshaw. The long and honorable history of YumaCounty Sheriffs began with Sheriff Isaac Bradshaw who served from June 18, 1864 to September 10,1864. His office was in La Paz and his duties included collecting taxes, taking the census, and being present at all district court proceedings. The first elected sheriff, after the creation of Yuma County, was William A. Werninger.

Until 1871 the main office of the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office was located in La Paz, Arizona. Sheriff Oscar Frank Townsend transferred all county records from La Paz to Arizona City in 1871 when that small river port settlement became the county seat. Two years later Arizona City’s name was changed to Yuma.

The Yuma County Sheriff's Office has come a long way from its inception. Following are some of the milestones for the Yuma County Sheriff's Office:

1864--Yuma County Sheriff's Office was created

1871--Sheriff Oscar Frank Townsend transferred all county records from La Paz to Arizona City.

January 1, 1983--Yuma County is divided into two separate counties with the northern portion of the county becoming La Paz County.

October 1986--Addition of new detention facility

January 1, 1996--The Yuma County Jail District and tax became effective after voter approval in 1995.

March 1997--Opening of Martinez Lake Substation

April 1997--Opening of new jail expansion

May 23, 2006--Opening of new Foothills Substation

August 2008--Jail Annex construction completed

May 17, 2011--Jail District Special Election: Yuma County voters approved the extension of the Jail District tax for another 20 years in a special election by 61%.

Yuma County is in southwest Arizona. It is bordered on the west by California, on the south by Mexico, on the east by both Maricopa and Pima Counties, and on the north and northwest by La Paz County. The lowest point in the state of Arizona is located on the Colorado River in San Luis in Yuma County, where it flows out of Arizona and into Sonora, Mexico.

In 1983, voters approved to split Yuma County and so it was divided into two separate counties with the northern portion of the county becoming La Paz County. La Paz County became Arizona’s fifteenth county with a total of 4,513.36 square miles of territory. The split reduced the size of Yuma County to 5,518.96 square miles in area of which 5,514.09 square miles is land and 4.87 square miles is water.

In order to ensure adequate patrols in all areas of the County, the Sheriff’s Office divided the County into six patrol areas or districts.

The Yuma County Sheriff's Office is comprised of three bureaus:

Administration Bureau: The Administration Bureau provides support services to both the Detention and Patrol Bureaus in such critical areas as Finance, Payroll, Human Resources, Information Technology, Purchasing and Civil Processing.

Detention Bureau: The Detention Bureau provides for the care, custody and control of prisoners with the intent to reduce recidivism in Yuma County through education and services provided to prisoners both accused of or convicted of crimes. This bureau is headed by a Captain and three Lieutenants.

Patrol Bureau: The Patrol Bureau is responsible for patrol activity throughout the unincorporated areas of the county to enforce laws and conduct crime prevention activities. This bureau is comprised of the Patrol Division, Boating Safety & Enforcement Unit (Boat Patrol), Criminal Investigations Bureau, Office of Professional Responsibility, Communications Department (Dispatch), Evidence Department and the Volunteer units. The bureau is headed by a Captain and three Lieutenants.

The 1990 census conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that the population in Yuma County was 106,889. According to the 2000 census also conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the population for Yuma County is 160,026. This reflects a 49.7% increase in population from the 1990 census.

As of 2009, the population in Yuma County was estimated to be 196,972. (Yuma County Quick Facts from the U.S. Census Bureau)

During the months of October through April, the population of Yuma County increases by approximately 90,000 people with the influx of winter visitors and persons associated with winter agriculture.