What Do the Search Results Mean?

Name: Self-explanatory. For a common name such as "Charles Brown," there will be many duplications. Fill in the Middle Initial field to help reduce duplications.
Register No.: Even if you entered another type of number for your search, this shows the inmate's Federal Bureau of Prisons Register Number.
Age: This is based on the inmate's date of birth, so it shows current age rather than age at release. If the inmate is known to be deceased, that will appear in the "Date Released" column.
Race: Self-explanatory. Hispanic refers to ethnicity and race will vary.
Sex: Self-explanatory.
Projected Release Date: A result of "UNKNOWN" can mean several things. For instance, the inmate's sentence may not have been computed, or the inmate may not have come to trial. In addition, even if a projected release date does exist, it may indicate the date the individual is released to another jurisdiction or to another sentence of imprisonment - not the date the inmate will be released to the community.
Date Released: The inmate is no longer in BOP custody, but may still be on parole or some other type of correctional supervision, or in the custody of some other jurisdiction.
Location: For inmates still in BOP custody, this shows the name of their location. Inmates shown as being in a Regional Office are serving a concurrent state sentence in a state prison. Inmates shown as being in a Community Corrections Management (CCM) center are in a contract "halfway house" (not in the CCM). "IN TRANSIT" means the inmate has been moved from a BOP facility, and may or may not be returned. For example, a pretrial inmate may have been removed by the U.S. Marshals Service and subsequently released by the court with no further notice to the BOP. "RELEASED" means the inmate is no longer in BOP custody.

Please note: It is possible that a record may exist for an individual who was in BOP custody but never served a sentence of incarceration (e.g., a person was detained pre-trial but criminal charges were dismissed, held as a material witness, held for civil contempt).

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Why is the inmate's location underlined?

If you click on the inmate's location, it will take you to specific information about that facility.

I want to conduct a new search. How do I do that?

Click on the new search button at the bottom of the page.

I did not get a result for the name submitted with search. What now?

All Federal inmates starting in 1982 are in the Inmate Locator. First, check to make sure you put the information in correctly. Is the name spelled correctly? Is the number correct? Searching for John Doe will not find Jon Doe (the name must be an exact match).

If you still do not get a result, either the person is not a Federal inmate (he/she may be a state or local inmate), or he/she was in the Federal system before 1982.

What is the difference between Federal, state, and local inmates?

An explanation of the difference between Federal, state, and local inmates.

How do I find inmates released before 1982?

How to locate inmates released before 1982.

How up-to-date are the Locator search results?

Inmate Locator data are taken from the BOP’s main inmate database. Locator information is updated every day.

How can I contact a facility shown in the Location column?

Click on the facility name that is underlined in the search results. Each facility has a link to a contact page where you will find contact information for that facility.

Please note: some inmates will be shown with a location of either a Regional Office or a Community Corrections Management (CCM) office. This is for management purposes only. The inmates are not at these addresses, so any mail sent will have to be forwarded.

If you are not sure of an inmate's mailing address, call 202-307-3126 between the hours of 8 a.m. and 3:45 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday.

I want to find more information on an inmate. How can I do this?

Two Federal laws - The Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act of 1974 - authorize the release of certain information about Federal inmates to any member of the general public requesting it. To get information beyond that provided here, please e-mail the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) office. FOIA requests are processed as quickly as possible. Usually, there is no charge for inmate location requests; but if you request more information, you may be charged for research time. Read through the FOIA page for information about fees.