Central Arraignment Courthouse
The downtown courthouse where a great many Los Angeles County arraignments are heard — and the first point at which a judge can change a bail amount.
The building
What it looks like when you arrive
Full security screening at the entrance. The courthouse sits within the downtown jail complex on Bauchet Street, so the surrounding streets are busy with custody transport and parking is limited. Allow extra time.
Of every courthouse in Los Angeles County, this is the one that matters most to a family in the first 48 hours. The Central Arraignment Courthouse sits on Bauchet Street within the downtown jail complex, alongside the Inmate Reception Center and Men’s Central Jail. That proximity is deliberate: it is where people in custody are brought to be arraigned.
Key details
- Central Arraignment Courthouse — 429 Bauchet St., Los Angeles, CA 90012
- Superior Court of Los Angeles County
- Address verified against the court’s own published courthouse directory
Before you assume a bond is needed: the Superior Court’s Pre-Arraignment Release Protocols mean many people arrested in Los Angeles County for non-violent, non-serious felonies and misdemeanors are cited and released, or released on their own recognizance, with no money bail at all. Money bail still applies to serious and violent felonies, to arrests on a warrant, where a judge sets or increases bail under Penal Code sections 1269c or 1270.1, and where the source of bail is restricted under Penal Code section 1275.1. Our pre-arraignment release guide explains it in full.
Why arraignment is the moment that decides things
Arraignment is the first court appearance, and under Penal Code 825 it must generally happen within 48 hours of arrest, excluding Sundays and holidays. That exclusion is why a Friday evening arrest can mean Monday or Tuesday before anyone sees a judge — see arrested on a weekend.
It matters for bail because it is the first point at which a judge can do something the schedule cannot. A judge may raise bail under Penal Code 1269c, is required to hold a hearing before release in certain serious cases under Penal Code 1270.1, and may consider release on own recognizance. Under In re Humphrey (2021) 11 Cal.5th 135, a court must also consider a person’s ability to pay before setting money bail at an amount that results in detention. In practice, many people in Los Angeles County are released before this hearing ever happens, under the pre-arraignment release protocols.
Where someone is held
Los Angeles County books men and women into different facilities, and calling the wrong one is the single most common way families lose their first few hours. Men are processed at the Inmate Reception Center in downtown Los Angeles. Women are held at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood. Nobody appears in any search until booking completes, and Los Angeles publishes no record at all for roughly the first two hours.
AmountsLA Bail Amount LookupGet the charge, read the county schedule, then check the holds that override it.Read more
ProcessArraignmentThe PC 825 48-hour rule, excluding Sundays and holidays.Read more
ProcessHow Long Release TakesWhat controls the clock, and why a release stalls after the money is in.Read more
How to be certain this is the right courthouse
We will not guess at your court date or your courtroom, and you should be wary of any bail website that does. The Superior Court of Los Angeles County publishes no public city-by-city table assigning criminal cases to courthouses, and the courthouse that hears a case depends on where the case is filed and on the charge that is ultimately brought — not simply on the city of arrest.
The release paperwork names the actual courthouse, date and time, and that document governs. Use it, and confirm independently before travelling — see how to find a court date. The address above is taken from the Superior Court’s own published courthouse directory.
Where we work
American Freedom Bail Bonds has no Los Angeles County office. Our three physical offices are Anaheim, Brea and La Habra, all in Orange County. We work Los Angeles County cases from our La Habra office, which sits directly on the county line. Paperwork can be completed electronically and posting happens at whichever facility holds the person, so an agent can meet you at the courthouse or the jail without you travelling to an office first.
Related
- All Los Angeles County courthouses and all LA County jails
- Warrants — the most common reason an LA County case still needs a bond
- Failure to appear and cite and release
La Habra office — (562) 690-8303Anaheim office — (714) 520-2002
Please note: American Freedom Bail Bonds is a licensed bail bond agency, not a law firm. Nothing on this page is legal advice, and we cannot guarantee a bail amount, a release time, eligibility for release, or the outcome of any case. Los Angeles County release rules changed substantially in October 2023, and court and jail information can change — always confirm details directly with the facility or the court. California bail license 1841014.
Talk to a licensed agent now
Open 24 hours(714) 520-2002
North county and the 57 corridor(657) 286-5038
North county and the LA County line(562) 690-8303