Indiana Inmate Search

Department Name

Indiana Department of Corrections

Location

302 W. Washington Street, Room E-334, Indianapolis, IN 46204

Phone Number

(317) 232-5711

Official Website

http://www.in.gov/idoc/

Currently Incarcerated Inmates

http://www.in.gov/apps/indcorrection/ofs/ofs

Visitor Application

https://www.in.gov/idoc/offender-information/visitation/, https://www.in.gov/idoc/files/Visitation-Application.pdf

Video Visitation

https://idoc.gtlvisitme.com/app

Send Mail/Packages

https://www.in.gov/idoc/offender-information/mail-and-packages/

Send Money

https://www.in.gov/idoc/offender-information/gtl-information/

Phone Calls

https://www.gtl.net/in-telephone-service/

Indiana has 92 county jails spread across its 92 counties. Indiana inmate records typically contain personal and administrative data of persons incarcerated in correctional facilities within Indiana. Personal details include the designated inmate’s identifying information such as full name, aliases, age, gender, race, date of birth, nationality, ethnicity, mugshots, and physical description (such as height, weight, tattoos, scars, defining body marks, hair color, and eye color). On the other hand, administrative details comprise official information such as the offender’s arresting agency, fingerprints, registration number, booking date and time, bail or bond amount, current charges, custody status, criminal history, sentence information, court dates, transfer details, and maximum release date.  

According to Indiana’s Access To Public Records Act, residents and interested parties can access or obtain inmate records upon request. Generally, you can request these records from your local county sheriff’s office or police department. Alternatively, you can get these documents from the Indiana Department of Correction, the primary custodian of all inmate records. The general public can usually inspect and obtain these files in person, by mail, or by mail from your nearest authorized record custodian. 

Locating the whereabouts of a loved one within the county jail system in Indiana can be a daunting experience, primarily due to the vast and temporary nature of county jails. 

What is a County Jail in Indiana? 

Typically, when the police arrest you, the first place you will be brought to is a county jail. A county jail generally houses detainees awaiting trial or bond meaning these inmates are currently making appearances in court. It also holds offenders serving short-term sentences, usually less than a year. Most offenders serving time in county jails are those convicted of less severe crimes, such as misdemeanor offenses.   

Like other correctional facilities, county jails also provide and manage alternatives to jail incarceration, such as work release programs, house arrests, work furlough, and private county jails where offenders can serve their sentences on weekends.  

Designated county sheriff’s offices typically operate county jails. Numerous staff members and corrections officers are assigned to each county jail to ensure the safety and security of incarcerated individuals alongside visitors. It is also important to note that apart from holding pretrial detainees within the County, some county jails also house pretrial detainees for the United States Marshal Service.  

You should also note that some inmates may stay at a county jail for several months, awaiting space at a state-run correctional facility even after conviction and sentencing.  

Unfortunately, most counties have been known for crowding their jails past capacity. They have also notoriously failed to hire enough corrections officers. Since 2010, the Indiana Department of Corrections has permitted 84% of counties within Indiana to continue operating jails while repeatedly violating that state’s most important safety standards. 

How to Locate an Inmate 

Locating a loved one in a county jail can be difficult since most correctional facilities are temporary holding institutions. The first step to conducting a county jail inmate search is knowing where your loved one or someone you know is serving time.  

Let us look at some legitimate platforms you can utilize to conduct an inmate search for a loved one serving time or detained in a county jail.  

Online inmate Lookup Tools 

Some county jails allow the general public or interested parties to conduct an inmate search using an online inmate search tool available on the jail’s official website. Most of these search tools typically require you to provide basic details regarding an offender, such as the offender’s first, middle, and last name and registration number.  

For instance, Dearborn County Jail offers the “inmate search tool” on the county sheriff’s office’s official website. With this tool, you can search using the following options: 

• Name: First and Last Name 
• Booking Date  

Another example is Hamilton County, whose Sheriff’s Office requires one to search for an inmate by providing the following details: 

• Name 
• Subject Number 
• In Custody 
• Booking Number 
• Booking From Date 
• Booking to Date 
• Housing Facility 

Online Inmate Rosters 

Most county jails in Indiana, even those that offer inmate search tools, usually provide an online inmate roster containing a list of all current inmates at the particular jail facility. A jail roster typically has the inmate’s photo, name, registration number, scheduled release date, and gender. You can click the designated inmate’s name on the rest to access additional information regarding them. The list is usually arranged in alphabetical order.  

In the Hamilton County jail roster, for example, you can expect to view the following information upon clicking a name: 

• Demographic Information: Name, Subject Number, Gender, race, Height, Weight, Address, Aliases 
• Booking History: Booking Date, Release Date, Prisoner Type, Housing Facility, Total Bond Amount, Total Bail Amount, Booking Origin 
• Charges, Court Date, Court, and Court Room 
• Charge Description 
• Offense Date  
• Docket Number 
• Crime Class 
• Arresting Agency 

It is important to note that some county jails may take time before publishing information regarding offenders recently convicted or booked to the facility. It is advisable to keep refreshing the designated jail’s official website to check for changes. If you do not find your loved one on the search tool or roster, consider calling the jail or sheriff’s office to inquire.  

Contact the Jail Directly 

Calling the jail or particular sheriff’s office is the most advisable and quickest way to find out about an offender. Since county jails are often temporary holding facilities, inmate information may occasionally be unavailable.  

For this county inmate search option, you first need to know where the offender is serving time. You can obtain contact details from the county jail’s official web pages or the designated county sheriff’s office’s website. A jail staff or corrections officer will handle all your inquiries regarding the particular offender. Often, they will require you to give the inmate’s full name, registration number, race, age, gender, or a physical description. 

If you still cannot locate your incarcerated loved one using the above options, chances are they were transferred to a state or federal prison.  

State Prisons 

Most inmates convicted of serious crimes such as rape are often transferred from a county jail facility to a state-run correction facility after trial and conviction. When this happens, the offender’s custody shifts to the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC).  

This agency allows you to conduct an inmate search using the “Incarcerated Individual Locator” tool on the website. The search tool has the following search options: 

• Search By Incarcerated Name: Enter Last Name and First Name. Typically searches may be conducted by last name or both first and last name. It is advisable to enter both first and last names when known to narrow your search results. If you know the inmate’s DOC number, searching by this criterion eliminates one step in the process. 
• Search By DOC Number 

Indiana VINELink 

VINE is the county jails’ automated victim notification service in Indiana. This service is the leading victim notification in the United States. It allows victims of crime, survivors, or concerned citizens to access reliable and timely information regarding offenders incarcerated in county jails within Indiana.  

This system will tell you if an inmate is in custody and will provide important status information. It allows you to register a phone number and email address, where you will be notified automatically when the inmate’s custody status changes.