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How Are Inmate Records in South Carolina Created and Stored?

Inmate records in the state of South Carolina are created when someone is arrested, goes to trial and is put in prison. However, that is not all. They begin when someone is first arrested, and the law enforcement agency fills out a RAP sheet containing the person’s name, address, physical description, and details about their crime. After that, everything that happens in the inmate’s life is documented and added into the file. South Carolina inmate records are updated daily. The South Carolina Department of Corrections is the entity in charge of creating, storing, and maintaining inmate records for the state. They also run the state prison facilities. South Carolina inmate records are stored online so anyone can perform an inmate search 24/7.

How to Find if Someone is in Jail or Prison in South Carolina?

The state of South Carolina makes it super easy to find someone incarcerated in a South Carolina prison. The process for finding someone in jail is different, though. The South Carolina Department of Corrections is the agency in charge of inmate records, and they keep them online and searchable. They even have an inmate locator on their website. To look up an inmate in a South Carolina prison just follows these instructions:

  1. Visit the South Carolina Department of Corrections website .
  2. From the main menu, choose “Research.”
  3. Then from the right sidebar menu, choose “SCDC Inmate Locator.”
  4. Scroll down and click the “Search for Incarcerated Inmate” link.
  5. In the form provided, enter either the inmate’s SCDC ID, SID, or name.
  6. Hit the “Submit” button.
  7. A table of results will display below containing the inmate’s SCDC ID, name, gender, race, height, weight, and age.
  8. Click any inmate’s row to see additional details including mugshots, the facility they are held in and crime details.

You can also try the Infotracer search tool to find someone’s arrest records, criminal history, warrants, incarcerations, and other public records.

What Does South Carolina’s Prison System Look Like?

The South Carolina prison system is pretty simple, with only a few types of facilities to hold prisoners. The South Carolina Department of Corrections is responsible for all state-run facilities and programs aimed at rehabilitation and punishment for offenders. That agency reports directly to the Governor. According to their website, “The Department of Corrections currently has some 5,700 employees, just over 20,000 inmates and operates 21 institutions.” The prison system in South Carolina includes:

  • 21 State Prisons
  • 5 Juvenile Detention Center Facilities
  • 11 County Jails
  • 4 Federal Prisons

Did you Know?

  • 0.42% of people in South Carolina are under correctional control, from which 32,634 are on probation, and 4,347 are on parole.
  • Every year, about 6,848 people walk out of prison gates in South Carolina, but people go to jail 1.1 times more each year
  • 93% of prison inmates in South Carolina are male, 7% female.
  • From 1979–80 to 2012–13, state and local government expenditures on corrections in South Carolina increased by 245 percent (from $205,463,520 to $709,439,000).
  • Between 2007 and 2016, the South Carolina prison population decreased by 14%

Types of Jails/Prisons in South Carolina

The state of South Carolina has twenty-one state prisons. Each one is designed for a specific purpose, demographic, and with different levels of custody. They categorize each state prison into four categories: high security (level 3), medium security (level 2), minimum security (level 1B) and community-based pre-release/work centers (level 1A). All of these facilities are managed and operated by the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Additionally, South Carolina has five juvenile detention centers run by the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice. There are four federal prisons managed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FOB) and eleven county jails operated by the local county Sheriff’s Office.

How Many People are Locked up in South Carolina?

South Carolina’s prison system holds 20,858 residents in various kinds of correctional facilities, from which 20,399 residents are held in state prisons, 61 in federal prisons, 42 in juvenile correctional facilities, and 344 in local jails.

Correctional Facilities: Totals:
Juvenile Correctional Facilities42
Federal Prisons61
State Prisons20,399
Local Jails344
Private Prisons12

South Carolina State Prisons

South Carolina has an extensive array of state prisons with different levels of custody and a specific focus. Some hold long-term inmates who are serving multi-year sentences, and some are work-release/reentry programs aimed at helping inmates who are being released. The list of state prisons in South Carolina include:

  • Livesay Correctional Institution.
  • Allendale Correctional Institution (L2).
  • MacDougall Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Broad River Correctional Institution (L3).
  • Manning Reentry/Work Release Center (L1-B).
  • Evans Correctional Institution (L2).
  • McCormick Correctional Institution (L3).
  • Goodman Correctional Institution (L1-B).
  • Palmer Pre-Release Center (L1-A).
  • Graham (Camille Griffin) Correctional.
  • Perry Correctional Institution (L3).
  • Kershaw Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Ridgeland Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Kirkland Reception and Evaluation Center (L3).
  • Trenton Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Leath Correctional Institution.
  • Turbeville Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Lee Correctional Institution (L3).
  • Tyger River Correctional Institution (L2).
  • Lieber Correctional Institution (L3).
  • Wateree River Correctional.

How to Search for State Prison Inmates

The South Carolina Department of Corrections makes it very easy to find someone locked up in state prison. They are the agency in charge of inmate records, and they keep them online and searchable in a massive database. The process for looking up someone in a South Carolina state prison is as follows:

  1. Visit the South Carolina Department of Corrections website .
  2. From the main menu, choose “Research.”
  3. Then from the right sidebar menu, choose “SCDC Inmate Locator.”
  4. Scroll down and click the “Search for Incarcerated Inmate” link.
  5. In the form provided, enter either the inmate’s SCDC ID, SID, or name.
  6. Hit the “Submit” button.
  7. A table of results will display below containing the inmate’s SCDC ID, name, gender, race, height, weight, and age.
  8. Click any inmate’s row to see additional details including mug shots, the facility they are held in and crime details.

South Carolina Federal Prisons

South Carolina has four federal prisons. All of them are owned and operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FOB). These facilities confine inmates who have broken federal laws inside South Carolina’s borders. The FOB has an extensive website making it easy to research each of the facilities or to visit friends and family who are held there. The four federal prisons in South Carolina are:

  • Bennettsville FCI - medium-security federal correctional institution holding 1,397 male inmates.
  • Edgefield FCI - medium-security federal correctional institution holding 1,925 male inmates.
  • Estill FCI - medium-security federal correctional institution holding 1,206 male inmates.
  • Williamsburg FCI - medium-security correctional institution holding 1,274 male inmates.

South Carolina's Federal Prison Population During 2011-2016 years

201120122013201420152016
Total856565685961
Male856565685960
Female000001

How to Search for Federal Prison Inmates

The process for finding someone in a South Carolina federal prison is different than someone in state prison. The SCDC does not have jurisdiction over federal prisons. All federal prisons are managed and overseen by the Federal Bureau of Prisons and anyone wanting to find an inmate held there, must contact them directly. The FOB does have an inmate locator on their website and a page for each facility with information on how to visit, send money or gifts, or receive phone calls from inmates.

South Carolina County Jails

The state of South Carolina has eleven county jails that hold pretrial inmates and recently arrested individuals. Most of these are maintained and operated by the local county Sheriff’s Office. The list of South Carolina county jails includes:

  • Richland County: https://jail.richlandonline.com/.
  • Lexington County: http://www.lex-co.com/sheriff/divisions.aspx?did=de.
  • Aiken County: http://www.aikencountysc.gov/apps/dtnview2/.
  • Greenville County: https://app.greenvillecounty.org/inmate_search.htm.
  • Charleston County: https://www.charlestoncounty.org/departments/sheriff/detention.php.
  • Florence County: http://www.florenceco.org/.
  • Marion County: http://www.marionsc.org/detentioncenter.
  • Anderson City Jail: https://www.andersonsheriff.org/.
  • Darlington County: http://www.darcosc.com/government/.darlington_county_detention_center/.
  • Horry County: http://sheriff.horrycounty.org/Detention/DetentionCenterHomePage.aspx.
  • Spartanburg County: http://www.spartanburgcounty.org/.

South Carolina's County and Local Jail Prison Population During 2011-2016 years

201120122013201420152016
Total366374364298332344
Male362371357293323329
Female4375915

How to Search for County Jail Inmates

Searching for a local county jail inmate in South Carolina is much different than finding someone in state prison. All the local county jails are operated and managed by local law enforcement. Their database of inmates is not tied in with the SCDC. Therefore, anyone wanting to locate an inmate in a South Carolina jail must contact the local Sheriff’s Office or local police station where the person was arrested. Many of these local law enforcement agencies have websites of their own with inmate search features or lists of current residents.

South Carolina Juvenile Detention Centers

South Carolina’s Department of Juvenile Justice is responsible for five juvenile detention centers and programs. According to their website, their mission is to: “protect the public and reclaim juveniles through prevention, community programs, education, and rehabilitative services in the least restrictive environment.” The five juvenile detention centers in South Carolina are as follows:

  • MIDLANDS REGIONAL EVALUATION CENTER.
  • UPSTATE REGIONAL EVALUATION CENTER.
  • COASTAL REGIONAL EVALUATION CENTER.
  • JUVENILE DETENTION CENTER.
  • BROAD RIVER ROAD COMPLEX (BRRC).

Juvenile Population in Custody During 2011-2016 years

201120122013201420152016
Total443227242942
Male443126232841
Female011111

How to Search for Juvenile Detention Center Inmates

Typically, state governments deem juvenile records as sealed until the person is 18 years old. After that, the offender has the right to apply to have those records permanently expunged. Therefore, searching online for juvenile records won’t be possible. However, anyone wanting to find out about a specific inmate in a South Carolina juvenile detention center can contact the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice directly to inquire. On their website, they have information about visiting and sending money and gifts as well as details about their programs.

Why are People Incarcerated in South Carolina?

Roughly 38,000 people are incarcerated in South Carolina. About 21,000 of those are located in state prisons, another 11,000 are in local jails, 4,600 are in federal prisons, and 690 are in juvenile detention. Additionally, 420 inmates have been involuntarily committed to mental wards for treatment. Twenty-one percent of the prison population in South Carolina committed murder. Almost 16% are in prison due to drug charges, 13.3% are in there because of burglary, 12.8% are in for robbery, and 8.3% are in prison due to sexual assault.

South Carolina’s Incarceration Rate and Statistics

South Carolina’s incarceration rate for year-end 2016 under state prison or local jail jurisdiction per 100,000 population was 408, which is lower than an average incarceration rate by 9%. The number of South Carolina prisoners at the year-end of 2016 was 20,858, from which 7% were female prisoners, whereas the number of male prisoners was 19,384 in 2016.

2011201220132014201520162017
Total473458446429414408386
Male916888863828799784743
Female54515351505450

Where Do South Carolina Inmates Go When They are Released?

South Carolina has a variety of different types of facilities, and some of these are level 1-A, which means they are pre-release work camps designed to help reintegrate inmates back into society. Inmates are allowed to move to these facilities within 36 months of release. They are low-security with supervision. Any inmate who does not participate in these reentry programs will simply return home to family and friends upon release.

How Does Parole Work in South Carolina?

Parole is when an inmate is released early before completing their sentences. Parole is only granted when an inmate has displayed good behavior and has proven to the parole board that they do not pose a danger to society. They are released early but with some very strict regulations such as having to check in regularly with their parole officer. Parole is a supervisory program designed to rehabilitate offenders while also keeping residents safe.

Parole Population

Type of Parole Entry: Number of Parolees:
State Parole Population: 4,347
Entries: 2,460
Exits: 3,076
Change in 2016: -12%

How Does Someone Get Probation in South Carolina?

South Carolina judges have the option of assigning an offender probation rather than sending them to prison. When this happens, the person is allowed to remain free and go to work each day, but they must check-in regularly with their probation officer and follow other court-ordered rules. If they fail to complete even one of them, they will go immediately to prison to serve out the remainder of their sentence. Usually, probation lasts for a few months to a few years.

Probation Statistics

Type of Parole Entry: Number of Parolees:
State Probation Population: 32,634
Entries: 13,483
Exits: 14,501
Change in 2016: -3%

Table of Contents

South Carolina Department of Corrections

Additional Resources

South Carolina Inmate Search