How Can You Find Out When an Inmate Will Be Released?

Release date information is available through several channels, depending on the facility type and your relationship to the inmate.

The facility website is always worth checking first. Many state correctional systems and county sheriff's offices maintain public inmate search tools that include projected release dates as part of the available record. Searching the facility name plus inmate search or offender search will usually surface the right tool if one exists. Some systems, particularly larger state DOC databases, are updated regularly and reflect good time credits and projected release dates in real time.

If the website does not have what you need, calling the facility directly and asking to speak with the inmate's counselor or case manager is the next step. These are the staff members who manage individual cases and have direct access to sentence computation records. Most facilities will share basic release date information with immediate family members but may decline to provide it to friends, partners, or others who are not blood relatives or legal spouses. Be prepared to confirm your relationship when you call.

A third route is the sentencing court. The Clerk of the Court in the jurisdiction where the inmate was sentenced can direct you to the Judgment and Commitment Order, which is the document the judge signed at sentencing. That document specifies the sentence imposed, which combined with information about good time credit and time served, lets you calculate an approximate release date. In some cases the clerk's office can also confirm a projected date directly.

For federal inmates, the Bureau of Prisons inmate locator at bop.gov includes projected release dates for most federal prisoners and is publicly searchable by name.