Inmate Search Indiana: Guide To Finding Inmates In Indiana

In Indiana, inmates are held in custody at any of the 26 state prisons, 92 county jails, and the sole federal prison at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Terre Haute.

So if you were to look for an inmate in the state, you'd be looking at these places. Some of these facilities have inmate databases in print and electronic format, with the latter mostly available online. 

Hence, the procedures involved in finding an inmate in any of them may differ across the board.

This article intends to put you through all these procedures, so you can find any inmate in Indiana without going to great lengths.

This is helped to a large extent by the free and easy access to inmate records across all levels of government, made possible by the Indiana Access To Public Records Act.

How Do I Perform an Indiana Prison Inmate Search

The Indiana Department of Corrections is the agency charged with the management of all state prisons and correctional facilities.

They are responsible for the custody of all the inmates and the compilation of their inmate records as well.

To find an inmate in their custody, you could put a call through to the records division of the IDOC using the phone number, (317) 232-5765, or forward a request to the address [email protected]

The department also has an official website where you can be directed to run an incarcerated persons' search.

On this website, you will see an offender search feature that has options for either search by name, or search by DOC number.

If you type in the first and last name of the inmate in question, the system will return a list of results that match your search terms.

But if you were to include the inmate's DOC number, you'd be ever closer to your goal. The result would typically feature the inmate's name, gender, mugshot, and other details about themselves or their case. 

How Do I Perform an Indiana Jail Inmate Search

Indiana Jails are intended to house inmates in pre-trial status and those serving year-long sentences.

The Sheriff's Office is the place to direct all your inmate-related inquiries as long as such an inmate is held in an Indiana county jail. You could choose to visit the office and formally lodge an inmate search request.

Alternatively, you could put a call through and inquire about the availability of the records of anyone in the custody of their jails. 

Your best bet would be to visit the website of the county's Sheriff or the county jail in question and check if there's an inmate search portal.

Some of them may feature an Offender Database Search tool that interested persons can use to run an inmate lookup.

These search tools would mostly need you to provide the first and last name or the offender number of the inmate in question.

Likewise, some other county jails would outrightly list out the names and even pictures of the inmates in their custody.

If you find your subject in the list, you can contact the jail to connect with the inmate in question. 

Indiana VINE Link

Like most other states in the USA, the state of Indiana(through the Indiana Sheriffs' Association) adopts the Victim Identification Network Everyday service, VINE Link.

This service is primarily designed to give crime victims the chance to be regularly informed of the latest in the custody status of their offenders held in county jails.

It works by notifying the victims through messages or emails whenever their offenders are either due for a transfer, a court hearing/parole/release, or in case of their death or an escape. 

People that register for this service have to provide their name, phone number, email address, and any information that proves them to be the victims of a criminal case.

They'd then be duly notified using these contact channels whenever the need arises.

And if they need to find out by themselves about their offender, the Indiana VINE Link system is just a phone call away. 

Third-party Websites

Third-party websites are independently-managed search platforms that gather public records from government agencies and institutions.

It is from this pool of collected public records that they create specialized databases for their search portals.

So if you were to run an inmate search, you'd be looking at those websites devoted to background checks, a prison handbook, or one with a jail roster. 

Most of them will require you to fill in designated text fields with the name and address of the inmate in question.

You could provide extra information such as their age range, gender, or any other personal information to narrow the search.

And when the results roll in, you can select the best fit. You should find much of the information that you'd normally see in an inmate record, such as names, mugshots, personal and booking information, offense, sentence, and location, among others.