Looking for an inmate in LA County? Start with the necessities: the inmate’s full name, DOC or ID number, and date of birth. These key details will open the door to three primary sources of information you can use for an inmate lookup. Without them, your search might hit a dead end before it even begins.
If you are only looking for details on prisoners serving time at one of the 5 correctional facilities in Los Angeles County, you can use the inmate locator provided on the official website of the sheriff. However, for details on prisoners housed at state correctional centers, it would be more appropriate to initiate a jail inmate search through the website of the California Department of Corrections.
Looking for inmates through the LA County sheriff’s website
Los Angeles County has five correctional facilities in its jurisdiction, of which the Men’s Central Jail is the largest facility of its kind in the state and the world, with an inmate population of no less than 5000 prisoners. So, when you initiate a sheriff inmate search, you are essentially only browsing through the database of prisoners lodged in these correctional centers. To use the law enforcement agency’s website, go to lasd.org.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) provides an online inmate search tool for the general public to access information about currently detained inmates. This search tool, known as the LASD Inmate Search, enables users to locate inmates by name, booking number, or date of birth. The search results contain comprehensive inmate information, including the inmate’s name, booking date, charges, and mugshot.
To find a prison inmate in LA County, you will need at least the first, last, and middle names of the subject of your inquiry, along with his/her date of birth. The webpage mentioned above has an online inmate locator tool that gets results almost instantaneously. When on the site, insert the prerequisite information and click on search.
This will lead you to a CAPTCHA page; insert the alphabets and numbers you see on the screen in the space provided to access the results page. This is done to safeguard the database from automated systems trying to access the information.
The results page will list all prisoners incarcerated in LA County jails who meet your search criteria, along with their booking numbers. You will have to choose from this list. Once a selection is made, you will be redirected to the inmate information page, which will have details about the prisoner’s arrest, bail, charges filed, booking, facility of incarceration, case data, court dates and release, and parole dates.
Conducting an LA County inmate search through the DOC website.
Another approach to conducting an inmate search throughout the California prison system is to use the inmate locator on the Department of Corrections site. Visit their site at cdcr.ca.gov. Read the terms and conditions on the disclaimer page and agree to them by clicking on the tab. This will give you access to the DOC tool for an inmate search.
While the database is regularly updated, the Department makes no guarantees about the accuracy of the information found on this site. Also, prisoners who have just entered the state’s correctional system will not appear in the results listing.
The minimum information you need to conduct the search is the inmate’s last name or DOC number; providing middle and first names will certainly help to narrow down the search and bring back more accurate results.
After inserting the required information, simply click on search, and you will be directed to a results page with the names of all inmates who match your query in tabular form. Here, you will find details on the prisoner’s name, age, CDCR number, admission date, and location of incarceration. Clicking on the name of the correctional facility will give you additional details about the center. There is also a maps tab to get directions to the facility.
Getting information about LA county inmates through the VINE system
A service provided by the sheriff’s department of Los Angeles County, the Victim Information and Notification System is a telephone-based, automated program that provides victims of a crime with regular updates on the status of an inmate through the county’s prison network.
The service is free, anonymous, and computer-based. People can register for it easily and receive daily updates on a telephone number of their choice. For one-time information on an inmate lodged in a prison in Los Angeles County, you can dial 1-877-VINE4-LA and simply follow the prompts. Callers are expected to furnish basic details about the subject of their inquiry to search through the VINE database.
In response, the caller will quickly be told if the prisoner he is looking for is still incarcerated in an LA correctional facility or has been freed. If the prisoner is still in the jail system, the VINE service will prove the location of the facility where he/she is being held.
Once you have received the information you need, you will have the option to register for the regular notification service. This service will provide an update every day on whether the inmate has been released or transferred from one facility to another.
To register for the notification program, you must provide a telephone number with the area code where the information can be offered. You will also be asked to pick a four-digit Personal Identification Number that can be used to stop the automated responses at any time.
While the VINE program does not guarantee the victim’s security, the information provided has helped many people safeguard their personal and professional interests.
How to send money to inmates in LA County Jail
There are few ways to send money to a Los Angeles County jail inmate.
- You can send money to an inmate’s account using a credit or debit card through the Los Angeles County Inmate Reception Center’s website.
- By Phone: You can call a toll-free number to make a phone deposit using a credit or debit card.
- By Mail: You can send a money order or cashier’s check payable to the inmate’s name to the jail where the inmate is housed.
- In Person: You can deposit cash, credit, or debit cards into an inmate’s account in person at the jail where the inmate is located.