If someone was in county jail around inmates with staph, but they come home with no symptoms or signs of staph could they still have it? or spread it?

Staph: It is very important to understand what makes infection different from colonization. What makes colonization different from infection is that colonization is where there is a presence of the bacteria strain that causes an infection, but is without any symptoms of the strain. Thus, your friend could be colonized with staph but show no symptoms. It is estimated that 25 to 30% carry staph.

Staph: If they are asymptomatic and show no signs of infection, they are probably fine but could still be a carrier and therefore, could spread it to themselves or someone else. It's probably best to treat the nostrils with antibiotic ointment twice a day for 2 weeks if they're a carrier.