How to look up prisoners and prison records | USAGov (2024)

FAQs

How do I find information about someone in prison? ›

Access California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS). Those people who don't know where an inmate is housed may contact the Department's ID Unit at (916) 445-6713. A date of birth will be required if the person they are inquiring about has a common name.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) is the single repository for inmate records incarcerated in state-owned facilities. The CDCR provides access to these records via an inmate search tool on its website.

The best way to locate information on a federal prisoner for free is to go to the Bureau of Federal Prisons. Then, go to the inmate locator tab. You can search by inmate number or name. A list of results will appear with the inmates' names, ID number, age, sex, race, and release date, or prison location.

Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator – Locate the whereabouts of a federal inmate incarcerated from 1982 to the present. Search by name or BOP registration number.

While key differences exist between jails and prisons — jails typically house people awaiting trial and those serving short sentences, while prisons confine convicts long term — the Justice Department's study remains illustrative of life behind bars….

The VINELink™ Mobile App is the on-the-go version of the Inmate Release Notification System that lets you access vital information from agencies right from your mobile device. The VINELink Mobile App is available for iOS and Android devices and is completely free for users.

If you need an incarcerated person's conviction information, you may contact the court or jurisdiction. If you are unable to locate an Incarcerated Person, please contact the CDCR Identification Unit at (916) 445-6713.

About this app. MobilePatrol connects you to important safety information, news, and critical alerts for places you care about.

You can also find mugshots from every state on informational portals, database websites, and government sites. These include prisoner locator websites like the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and the California State Archives.

Locate or learn about an inmate

Use the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) inmate locator to find out when a prisoner is or was expected to be released. To learn more details about an inmate, find out how to submit a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to BOP.

Where can I view local mugshots for free? ›

Visit your state's department of corrections website.

Every state in the U.S. should have a website, and you can use the inmate locator to find information about the prisoner. Some states will also publish mugshots. Type “your state” and “department of corrections” into your favorite web browser.

TextBehind® connects you with every inmate across America using text messages with photos, custom greeting cards and electronic money orders.

Regular, otherwise unexplainable visits by police or federal agents to your workplace or residence could indicate you're under scrutiny. Officers might show up under the guise of routine checks or small talk but pay close attention to their questions—they're possibly probing for information.

The U.S. Marshals Service houses over 63,000 prisoners in federal, state, local and private jails throughout the nation.

To the extent practicable, pre-trial detainees will not be housed with those who are convicted. v Rather, they will typically be held in a Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC), Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC), or Federal Detention Center (FDC).

We are an agency like no other. We protect public safety by ensuring that federal offenders serve their sentences of imprisonment in facilities that are safe, humane, cost-efficient, and appropriately secure, and provide reentry programming to ensure their successful return to the community.

Common online resources such as search engines, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn can effectively locate individuals by their names. Specialized people search engines like Intelius, Spokeo, and Social Catfish are available.

Each inmate's controlling parole eligible date is provided to the inmate and publically available on CDCR's website via the Department's “Inmate Locator” search engine.