Overview
What is Incarcerated Individual Lookup?
Incarcerated individual lookup is intended to provide interested constituents with information on the status and location of incarcerated individuals in all 44 NYS Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Correctional Facilities. Information is taken directly from the Department’s main incarcerated individual information database at the moment a request is made.
Can the Information Listed be Discriminatory?
Correction Law 752 and Executive Law 296(15) prohibit discrimination in hiring or for the issuance of any license by reason of prior criminal conviction unless is a direct relationship between the previous criminal offense (s) and the specific license or employment sought; or the issuance of the license or the granting of the employment would involve an unreasonable risk to the property or to the safety or welfare of specific individuals or the general public.
Who is listed?
- Current incarcerated individuals
- Certain former incarcerated individuals since the early 1970’s
Who is not listed?
- Youthful offenders and those who have had their convictions set aside by the court.
- Individuals under supervision as a result of a court order placing them on Strict and Intensive Supervision Treatment.
- Individuals whose incarceration or supervision history has been removed under Correction Law § 9*
*Correction Law § 9, “Access to information of Incarcerated Individuals via the internet,” requires DOCCS to remove from its website information for a limited class of non-violent offenders five years after they complete their maximum term of imprisonment, or five years after they complete their term of parole or post-release supervision. Prior incarceration information that was removed will be restored for offenders who return to prison.
This statute does not apply to individuals:
- ineligible to earn Merit Time as set forth in Correction Law § 803(1)(d), namely those convicted of a violent felony offense, a sex offense or certain other A-1 felony offenses other than drugs; or
- who committed an offense covered by the Sex Offender Registration Act as set forth in Correction Law § 168-a, including certain prostitution, obscenity and sexually motivated offenses.
These individuals will remain on the website indefinitely.
Since this statute applies to individuals who have already been released from prison, information previously found on this website may no longer be available. If an individual is subsequently returned to DOCCS custody, the information that was previously removed will reappear on this website.
Guidance
Policy and guidelines of the Incarcerated Individual Visitor Program
Policy and procedures for Incarcerated Individual Telephone Calls
Policy and procedures for the Correspondence Program
Directive on the policy concerning the ordering of packages and articles from a vendor by incarcerated individuals and their family and friends which will be received through the mail into facility Package Rooms.
Handbook for the families and friends of New York State DOCCS incarcerated individuals
How To
Refer to this step by step process to complete an incarcerated individual search online.
- Gather accepted identifying information (See below)
- Open the form
- Complete the form
- Refer to Results section for more information
- Print it or write information down
Ready? Have with you:
To find an incarcerated individual, have one or more of the following identifying information:
- Department Identification Number (DIN)
- A DIN is an Internal number assigned to an incarcerated individual upon reception into a correctional facility and used throughout an incarcerated individual’s term of commitment no matter which facility he or she may be housed in: Learn More.
- You can obtain the number from the incarcerated individual or use the name search capability.
- New York State Identification Number (NYSID)
- A NYSID is a unique identifier assigned to an individual by the Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS). If you know a person’s NYSID, you will not be prevented from accessing his or her records online, however a NYSID will not be provided when searching by another search criteria.
- Last Name, First Name
- Birth Year (only to be used with Last and First Names)
Lookup
You can access the lookup tool at specific times:
12:00AM to 11:45PM, Monday to Friday
12:30AM to 11:30PM, Weekends
Contact
Call us Monday-Friday 8:30AM-5:00PM
Or contact us via the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision website: https://publicapps.doccs.ny.gov/DOCCSWebContactForm.aspx
Contact us by phone:
Contact us by mail:
1220 Washington Ave, Building 4
Albany, NY 12226-2050