Louisiana Inmate Records

With an incarceration rate of 596 per 100,000 persons, Louisiana ranks as one of the states with the highest imprisonment rate in the United States. The state's incarceration rate is significantly higher than the national average, which stands at 355 per 100,000 total population. According to reports by the United States Bureau of Justice (BJS), an estimated 27,296 inmates are imprisoned in Louisiana's state-run prisons annually. Also, approximately 2,500 offenders are held in federal prisons, while about 21,000 are housed in local jails across the state.

A Louisiana inmate record generally documents information about an offender who is housed in any correctional facility in the state. Each prison or jail authority in the state has a responsibility to keep up-to-date and accurate records of every inmate incarcerated in correctional facilities under its purview. These include inmates housed in local, state, and federal prisons or jails.

Any inmate record in Louisiana should have some of the following information:

• Personal Information - This shows the inmate's name, gender, age, race, ethnicity, and date of birth. It also includes physical descriptions like hair color, eye color, height, and body marks, such as scars, tattoos, and birthmarks.
• Arrest Records - These include details of the arresting agency, the arrest date, the place of arrest, charges filed, and the warrant of arrest.
• Custody Details - These include the inmate's custody status, the name of the holding facility, the booking date, and the location of the incarceration facility.
• Court Records - These include trial details, case numbers, judgment, and court orders.
• Release and Parole Information - This shows the inmate's eligibility for parole and the expected release date.

Are Inmate Records Public in Louisiana?

While inmate records are considered public documents in Louisiana, not all pieces of information in inmate records are publicly accessible. Generally, details reflecting an inmate's age, date of conviction, offense, length of sentence, other personal information, and the inmate's misconduct during incarceration are publicly accessible, per Section 15:574.12 of the state's Revised Statutes. Confidential details like health records, financial records, and information related to inmate security are largely exempt from public disclosure. Expunged or sealed arrest records are also not public in Louisiana.

What Agencies Are Responsible for Inmate Records in Louisiana?

Some of the agencies responsible for maintaining correctional facilities in Louisiana and keeping records of inmates housed in those facilities are listed below:

• The Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections (LA DPS&C) - The Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections provides safe and secure incarceration for offenders sentenced to state-run prisons for felony convictions. It also maintains records of all inmates housed in 8 state-operated correctional facilities.
• Police Departments - In Louisiana, local police departments do not have facilities that hold offenders who have been sentenced to incarceration. However, when a person is arrested by a local police department, convicted of a crime, and then sentenced to prison or jail, the police department typically keeps the record of the arrest. This record generally forms a part of the inmate's record.
• County Sheriff's Offices - Each of the 64 parishes in Louisiana has a county sheriff's office overseeing the local jail in their parish and keeping accurate records of inmates incarcerated in such a jail facility. Some parishes have multiple local jails, including detention centers, correctional centers, parish jails, and city jails.
• Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) - Two federal prisons operate in Louisiana and serve as prison custody for individuals convicted of federal crimes in the state. These correctional facilities are solely supervised by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), which is also responsible for maintaining records of all inmates incarcerated in both facilities.

How To Search an Inmate's Information in Louisiana

When looking to find information regarding any inmate incarcerated in a correctional facility in Louisiana, it is best to first identify the exact prison or jail facility where the person is held.

Find an inmate in the Louisiana State Prisons

To search for an inmate who is incarcerated in a Louisiana state prison and obtain their records or information, use VINELink, the platform adopted by the LA DPS&C for locating inmates housed in state-owned prisons. Users may choose to conduct the inmate search by name, ID number, or case number, whichever is available. Information obtained from this search typically includes an inmate's personal information and incarceration details.

Anyone who wishes to obtain a detailed inmate record beyond what VINELink offers in a Louisiana inmate search should consider visiting the state prison where the offender whose information is sought is incarcerated. With a few details like the inmate's name, gender, and ID number provided, the record custodian will be able to locate the inmate's record file and provide the requester the required information as long as it is not exempt from public disclosure.

Find an Inmate in Local Jail

Many of the county sheriff's offices across the 64 parishes in Louisiana have inmate search resources maintained on their websites. These resources allow public access to information about offenders held in local jails using their names, date of birth, ID number, or any other parameter as dictated by the inmate search tool in use.

Local jails in Louisiana also allow individuals looking to obtain detailed information about inmates housed in their facilities to do so in person. However, such persons will have to provide any information that can help the custodian find the sought record quickly.

Find an Inmate in Federal Prison

To find information about inmates housed in any of Louisiana's two federal prisons, namely Pollock FCC and Oakdale FCC, use the BOP Inmate Locator, which allows inmate search by name and BOP register. This Inmate Locator has records of offenders incarcerated in federal correctional facilities from 1982 to the present.

How Can I Access Old Inmate Records?

Online inmate search tools offered by prison/jail authorities in Louisiana do not have information about previously incarcerated inmates. They can only provide information about offenders who are currently in custody. One of the first places to look when searching for old inmate records in the state is the National Archives (for former inmates housed in federal prisons) and the Louisiana State Archives (for those previously incarcerated in state prisons). The State Archives can be reached at (225) 922-1000.

Alternatively, individuals interested in obtaining records of old inmates in Louisiana may go to the correctional facilities, whether state-owned prisons or local jails, where such inmates were incarcerated in person. They may also contact the correctional facilities by phone (if allowed) to obtain paper records. Requesters may be asked to pay search fees.

Detailed records of formerly incarcerated inmates in Louisiana may also be retrieved by submitting public records to the relevant authority. If the old inmate whose information is sought was housed in any of the federal prisons in the state, submit a FOIA request to the BOP through any of the available means to retrieve such information. Similarly, if an inmate was held in a state-run prison, obtain their record by submitting a public record request to the state's Department of Public Safety & Corrections by email or by mailing a written request to the department at:

Furthermore, third-party services like Louisianapublicrecords.us are great for finding publicly available records like inmate records in the state, although at a small fee. These sites typically collect public records and information and keep them in their databases, where they remain permanently and are accessible.

Can I Find a Louisiana Inmate Record for Free?

Yes. Records of an inmate housed in any correctional facility in Louisiana may be retrieved for free using the online inmate search tool adopted by the prison or jail authority in charge of the facility. In other words, the BOP Inmate Locator, VINELink, and local jail inmate search tools allow members of the public to find information regarding inmates incarcerated in federal prisons, state prisons, and local jails, respectively, without paying any fee. However, each of these online resources can only provide information about offenders in the custody of each supervising prison/jail authority.

While they are not free, independent sites like Louisianapublicrecords.us offer members of the public databases that provide centralized access to all inmate records in the state. These sites have records of inmates held in state, local, and federal prisons in one place, making it convenient for anyone to search for an inmate in Louisiana with a single click, regardless of the inmate's holding facility.

Jails and Prisons in Louisiana

Louisiana categorizes its correctional facilities into the following classes based on the management structure of each facility:

• State Prisons - There are 8 state-operated prisons in Louisiana, which are all managed by the state's Department of Public Safety & Corrections (LA DPS&C).
• Federal Prisons - Louisiana has two federal prisons, which are both managed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).
• Local Jails - The numerous local jails in Louisiana are run by the county sheriff's office across the 64 parishes in the state. Some counties have multiple local correctional facilities, including city jails, detention centers, parish jails, correctional centers, and transitional centers.

State Prisons in Louisiana

All state-owned prisons in Louisiana are listed in the table below:

Private Prisons in Louisiana

Louisiana does not have private prison facilities within the state boundaries.

Louisiana Inmate Statistics

• Louisiana Incarceration Rate - 596 per 100,000 residents
• Male Incarceration Rate - 1,154 per 100,000 males
• Female Incarceration Rate - 61 per 100,000 females
• Youth Custody Rate - 144 per 100,000 youths
• Number of Prisoners in Private Prisons - 0
• Black/White Imprisonment Disparity - 3.8:1
• Latino/White Imprisonment Disparity - 0.0:1
• Number of offenders under community supervision -1,262 per 100,000 people
• Number on probation - 738 per 100,000 people
• Number on parole - 538 per 100,000 people
• Felony Disenfranchisement Rate - 1.6%

* Source: United States Bureau of Justice Statistics