A Department Identification Number (DIN) is assigned to each inmate admitted to the Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) in most states. It is an internal number used as an identifier for the inmate while he/she is in the custody of the department. This number can be used to locate your loved one, and you need to know this number. If you do not know this number, you may find it by logging onto a state’s website. You will need to know the inmate’s complete name and birthdate for a successful search. The website will show you the name of the facility where the inmate currently is held. It is recommended that just prior to visiting the inmate, you should try to find their location by utilizing this website or by contacting the facility directly.
Unscheduled transfers, although infrequent, could result in you traveling a long distance only to find that he/she is no longer at that facility.
PLEASE NOTE: Inmates with Youthful Offender status are not listed on the Department’s website.
Inmates can also be located by calling a central office during normal business hours or the automated free line provided by most states penal systems. If an inmate is in the process of being transferred, his or her location will not be available until he or she arrives at the next destination. That may take a few days. It is the inmate’s responsibility to notify you of their new location.
Telephone calls upon transfer or return to a facility: Within 24 hours of arrival at a new facility, an inmate will be permitted one collect telephone call to his/her family. If security precautions prevent the inmate from placing this call, a staff person designated by a superintendent, usually from a guidance and/or counseling unit, shall make the call to a person of the inmate’s choice.
This procedure does not apply to an inmate in “transit status”, or temporarily held at a transit facility overnight or for a weekend during transfer. It does apply to inmates in holding units. An inmate who is “out of court” or in a hospital for a period of 5 days or more will be allowed to make a collect telephone call within 24 hours of returning to the correctional facility. Collect calls from an outside hospital, other than a secure ward, may be made only with the approval of the superintendent or designee.
A parole violator who is returned to prison will be allowed to make one collect telephone call to a person of his/her choice within 24 hours after their arrival.