Why Does GettingOut Show an Inmate as Active and Inactive?

The confusing active and inactive status you are seeing is almost certainly a reflection of where your person is in the intake process rather than any error or problem with the account itself.

When someone first arrives at a facility they go through an orientation and intake review period before they are fully processed into the system. During that window their information exists in the database but their account is not yet fully activated for services like phone calls and commissary. The app is essentially showing you two things at once, that the person exists in the system and is physically at the facility, but that their account has not yet been cleared for active use.

Once intake and orientation are complete, the account flips to fully active and your person will be able to make calls and access their commissary account provided they are not in the SHU or under any other restriction at the time. How long that process takes varies by facility and how backed up their intake operation is. It can be a few days or it can stretch to a couple of weeks, depending on the volume of incoming inmates and how efficiently the classification and orientation process moves.

The best thing you can do right now is be patient and keep an eye on the app status. When it clears to fully active that is your signal that calls should start coming through. Make sure your number is on the approved contact list and that there are funds in the account so that when he is able to call for the first time everything is ready on your end.

First time navigating this is genuinely confusing but it gets clearer quickly once the intake period is over and communication opens up.