Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse
Orange County and Los Angeles County court information for families trying to work out where a case is heard.
The building
What it looks like when you arrive
Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse is a full security facility. Leave knives, scissors, pepper spray and anything blade-like in the car — there is no property storage at the screening point. Allow extra time for the queue at the entrance.
The Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse is the criminal courthouse for the Superior Court’s South District, covering Long Beach and the communities around it.
Key details
- Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse — 275 Magnolia Avenue, Long Beach, CA 90802
- Phone: (562) 256-2312
- Superior Court of Los Angeles County, South District (which also includes the Catalina Courthouse)
Before you assume a bond is needed: since 1 October 2023 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. 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 Los Angeles County guide explains it in full.
Which communities feed into it
Long Beach is the second largest city in Los Angeles County and runs its own police department and its own city jail — which makes it genuinely different from the sheriff-policed cities around it, and means a Long Beach arrestee may not enter county custody at all in the first instance.
Neighboring Lakewood is policed by the Sheriff’s Lakewood Station, alongside Artesia, Bellflower, Hawaiian Gardens and Paramount.
Where someone is held
Los Angeles County books men and women into different facilities. Men are processed at the Inmate Reception Center in downtown Los Angeles, on a 24-hour intake line of (213) 473-6080. Women are held at the Century Regional Detention Facility at 11705 S. Alameda Street in Lynwood, on (323) 568-4500. Calling the wrong one is the single most common way families lose their first few hours.
For Long Beach specifically, check the city jail first — see our Long Beach page.
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 traveling to an office first.
There is a holding facility inside this building
The California Board of State and Community Corrections classifies the holding facility at the Long Beach courthouse as a Court Holding facility. Under California Code of Regulations, Title 15, § 1006, that means a facility constructed within a court building, used for the confinement of persons solely for the purpose of a court appearance, for a period not to exceed 12 hours.
Two practical consequences. First, this is not somewhere to visit — nobody is housed here, and there is no visiting programme. Second, if a person is in court holding they have been brought from a jail for a hearing and will go back to that jail afterwards unless the court releases them. Where someone is actually held, and where a release happens, is covered in what kind of jail is holding them.
Before the case reaches this courthouse
A Long Beach arrest begins at the Long Beach City Jail and moves into county custody through the Inmate Reception Center if it is not resolved quickly.
Related
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.
Charges we are called about, and where bail is posted
The Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse hears Long Beach area matters. The charge on the booking sheet decides the bail figure and the realistic timeline.
- Domestic violence bail — the charge type with the most restrictive release rules. Penal Code § 1270.1 requires a hearing in open court before release at any figure other than the published scheduled amount, which is why weekend timing matters so much here.
- DUI, drug charges, warrants, felony and misdemeanor bail.
County custody runs through the Inmate Reception Center and, for women, the Century Regional Detention Facility. We serve Long Beach, Lakewood, Bellflower and Cerritos, working from La Habra and Anaheim, both open 24 hours.
The holding area inside the courthouse is itself a classified facility
Most people never think about where a defendant waits during a court appearance. The Board of State and Community Corrections classifies it as a facility in its own right: LASD Long Beach Courthouse (facility 1884) is listed as class CHJ — a Court Holding facility. The J suffix means the holding area is separately approved to hold minors.
Under Title 15 § 1006 a Court Holding facility is for court appearance only, and may not hold a person more than 12 hours. That single number explains several things families find baffling:
- Why someone is moved back the same day. A person brought here from county custody must return — the courthouse cannot hold them overnight. See jail transfers.
- Why release does not happen at the courthouse. When a bond is posted for someone in custody, the release is processed at the custody facility, not here. See how long release takes.
- Why transport timing drives the day. Court transport runs on its own schedule, which is why an early hearing can still mean a late return.
This is not a regular jail, and it should not be treated as one. A Court Holding facility exists only to hold people who are at the courthouse for a court appearance. It is not a custody facility where someone serves time, where visiting happens, or where routine jail bail is posted. Unless the court or the facility specifically tells you otherwise, do not travel to the courthouse to visit someone or to post bail — visiting and bail are handled at the custody facility holding the person. Find that facility first with find an inmate, and see sending money to an inmate and what to bring.
Every classification in both counties is explained on what kind of jail is holding them, and the Los Angeles County facilities are listed in our Los Angeles County jail guide.
Our three offices
La Habra, CA 90631(562) 690-8303
Anaheim, CA 92801(714) 520-2002
Brea, CA 92821(657) 286-5038