New York Inmate Search

The number of inmates in the New York prison system has been declining for some decades. Approximately 32,613 individuals are incarcerated in the state's correctional facilities, while another 16,728 incarcerated persons are housed in local jail facilities. Albany, Oneida, Schenectady, Onondaga, and Monroe Counties are some of the counties with the highest number of inmate populations with an average of 502, 250, 228, 543, and 712 incarcerated individuals, respectively.

Inmate searches in New York State help members of the public, including families of inmates to know their (inmates) location. In addition, inmate search tools generally provide public access to inmates' information, which may either be used for legal or personal purposes. New York inmate searches assist families of incarcerated individuals to plan scheduled visits to the correctional facilities to enable them to stay in touch with their loved ones.

What is New York Inmate Lookup?

New York inmate lookup is a type of service that helps people find information about incarcerated individuals within the state, including the current facility in which they are being held. Inmate searches conducted on incarcerated individuals within the state also provide information on the charges/offenses that led such persons to prison/jail, custody status, and other important information.

In New York, friends of families of incarcerated persons may look up inmates using the state's official search tool, Incarcerated Lookup portal, to know where such inmates are housed and to stay connected with their loved ones. Similarly, VineLink may be used to search inmates incarcerated in county jails within the state outside of New York City.

These New York inmate lookup tools generally provide transparency in the state's criminal justice system, as they permit the public to search for incarcerated individuals, which ultimately upholds the criminal justice system's accountability. Furthermore, it helps legal professionals in legal research and court proceedings.

What Information Can You Find in a New York Inmate Search?

Individuals who conduct inmate searches in New York will typically find the following information about such inmates:

• Full name
• Date of birth
• Age
• Date received
• Custody status
• Housing/Releasing facility
• Admission type
• Crimes of conviction
• Latest release date
• DIN
• County of commitment
• Sentence terms and release dates, which generally include the following:
• Earliest release date and type
• Aggregate maximum sentence
• Aggregate minimum sentence
• Parole interview date and type
• Parole eligibility date

How Are Inmate Records in New York Created and Stored?

Inmate records in New York are created when someone is first arrested. It starts with a RAP sheet which documents the suspect's name, address, phone, physical description, and crime details. Then everything else that happens to the inmate is recorded and added to the file, some of which typically show up when an inmate search is conducted.

The New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision is the entity in charge of maintaining and storing all inmate records. They keep them online and searchable so that anyone may conduct an inmate search day or night. They even have a handy inmate locator feature right on their website to make finding someone in a New York prison easy.

What Does New York's Prison System Look Like?

The New York prison system provides safe and secure facilities for incarcerated individuals and is managed by the state's Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS). The DOCCS operates about 42 correctional facilities in different parts of the state and 60 local correctional facilities. These include 13 maximum security correctional facilities, 26 medium security correctional facilities, and 3 minimum security prisons. At least 39 of these facilities house male inmates, while 5 hold female inmates. These facilities generally maintain prison records of incarcerated inmates.

New York's prison system has an estimated 32,613 inmates housed in state correctional facilities and approximately 16,402 incarcerated persons in local correctional facilities. In addition, there are about 25,039 parolees under the state's prison system. All correctional facilities in New York have almost 16,000 correctional personnel. Over 70% of the DOCCS personnel are security personnel, while others primarily ensure the delivery of health services, incarcerated programs, facility operations, and community supervision

Types of Correctional Facilities in New York

New York has a large number of state prisons to hold felons who have broken the law inside the state boundaries. These inmates are serving sentences of more than one year. Each facility has different levels of security and holds a different demographic. The state also has five federal prisons that hold inmates who broke federal laws. It also has eight juvenile detention centers that house youth offenders and 62 local county jails run by local police or Sheriff's Offices.

New York State Prisons

The list of New York state prisons is extensive. Some of the facilities are male-only and some are female-only. Others cater to inmates with drug and alcohol addictions who require treatment. The list of state prisons in New York includes the following:

• Attica Correctional Facility
• Bare Hill Correctional Facility
• Cape Vincent Correctional Facility
• Clinton Correctional Facility
• Wyoming Correctional Facility
• Taconic Correctional Facility
• Queensboro Correctional Facility
• Greene Correctional Facility
• Mid-State Correctional Facility
• Groveland Correctional Facility

New York County Jails

New York also has 60 local county jails to house recently arrested individuals and pretrial detainees. These facilities are run by local police and Sheriff's Offices. The list includes:

• Cattaraugus County Jail
• Albany County Jail
• Columbia County Jail
• Delaware County Jail
• Genesee County Jail
• Hamilton County Jail
• Franklin County Jail
• Oneida County Jail
• New York City Department of Corrections
• Rockland County Jail
• Ulster County Jail
• Yates County Jail
• Seneca County Jail

The table below shows New York's County jail population between 2016 and 2023

New York Juvenile Detention Centers

New York has eight juvenile detention centers, otherwise known as Specialized Secure Detention (SSD) facilities. They house youth offenders under the age of 18. All juvenile detention facilities are overseen and managed by the Bureau of Detention Services in the New York Office of Children and Family Services. The list of facilities includes:

• Capital District SSD Facility
• Erie County SSD Facility
• Monroe County SSD Facility
• Crossroads SSD Facility
• Hillbrook SSD Facility
• Woodfield SSD Facility
• Nassau County SSD Center
• Horizon SSD facility

New York Community Correctional Facilities

New York State has no community correctional facilities. However, the DOCCS makes provision for Community Supervision, whose staff members must supervise incarcerated persons released from prison by any of the following actions:

• Release to a period of post-release supervision
• The action of the state's Board of Parole
• Conditional release
• Direct sentencing to community supervision

The DOCCS's Community Supervision has dedicated Offender Rehabilitation Coordinators (ORCs) whose primary duties involve guiding and counseling incarcerated inmates to prepare them for eventual release to society. ORCs responsibilities generally include the following:

• Motivating inmates to participate in appropriate programs
• Helping incarcerated inmates develop positive behavior and attitudes
• Preparing inmates for their Parole Board Interviews

Why are People Incarcerated in New York?

New Yorkers are generally incarcerated in state prisons or county jails for varying reasons, which may be broadly categorized as non-criminal and criminal offenses. These offenses often show up when an inmate search is conducted using the DOCCS's Incarcerated Lookup portal. Non-criminal offenses in the state typically include violations and traffic infractions (violations of New York's Vehicle and Traffic Law) and are punishable by jail time.

While traffic infractions include speeding, unlawful parking, and failure to have a vehicle's registration or driver's license up to date, violations are non-criminal offenses other than traffic infractions. They include trespassing and disorderly conduct and may cause a person to go to jail.

Criminal offenses that lead people to incarceration in New York are broadly classified as felonies and misdemeanors. Misdemeanors are divided into three, namely Class A, Class B, and unclassified misdemeanor offenses. They include third-degree assault, sexual misconduct, and DUIs. On the other hand, felonies may be violent or non-violent and are the most serious types of crimes that take people to prison in New York. They include murder, arson, rape, robbery, and the possession or sale of controlled substances.

Although New York takes incarcerating violent offenders seriously, it does have certain correctional alternative programs that help rehabilitate non-violent offenders. For instance, the state has a community service program under which the court may award appropriate sanctions for non-violent offenders who will return through unpaid supervised work to the community as payment or repercussion for the pain caused by their criminal offenses. However, sex offenders are excluded from community service programs. The New York State Treatment Accountability for Safer Communities (TASC) also offers treatment alternatives for nonviolent offenders aged 16 years or older who are facing a prison or jail sentence.

New York's Incarceration Rate and Statistics

New York's incarceration rate for year-end 2022 under state prison or local jail jurisdiction per 100,000 population was 159. The number of New York prisoners at the year-end of 2022 was 47,241.

New York's year-end incarceration rate over a 7-year period

Life After Incarceration in New York

Most inmates, when released from New York correctional facilities, will return home to family and friends. The DOCCs offer re-entry services to assist incarcerated persons returning home with resource referrals for anger management, housing and specialized services, mental health counseling, medical services, employment, and mentoring.

New York ranks 12th in recidivism rate in the United States. Over 43% of inmates released from the state's correctional facilities are back inside the prison system within three years. This puts New York among the states with the worst recidivism rates in the U.S.

How Does Parole Work in New York?

The Parole Board for New York monitors the progress of each inmate. Those who behave well and do not pose a danger to the outside world may be released early on parole. Parole is a supervision program that comes with some strict rules and regulations. If the parolee does not follow all the rules, they may be picked up and returned to prison to complete their sentence.

New York's Parole Population in 2022

Source - U.S Department of Justice (Probation and Parole in the United States, 2022)

How Does Someone Get Probation in New York?

New York judges have the option of ordering parole rather than prison. This privilege is reserved for low-risk and first-time offenders. Again, this is a supervisory program where the probationer is required to check in frequently with a probation officer and comply with other court-ordered rules. If they violate any of the terms of their probation, they will go to prison.

New York's Probation Population in 2022

Source - U.S Department of Justice (Probation and Parole in the United States, 2022)