Washington Inmate Search

Washington holds state prisoners under the Washington Department of Corrections at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla, the Monroe Correctional Complex, Clallam Bay, Stafford Creek near Aberdeen, Coyote Ridge in Connell, Airway Heights near Spokane, the Washington Corrections Center in Shelton, where new commitments are processed, and the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor. County jails run by the sheriffs and county corrections departments hold pretrial detainees and sentences of up to a year, and the King County jails in Seattle and Kent are the largest.

The Department's incarcerated individual search is the state lookup. It covers people in state custody, keyed to the DOC number or the name.

Official sources on this page were checked on September 25, 2026.

The Washington DOC search returns the DOC number, name, the facility and the custody status. It does not list the offenses or the release date, which the Department releases on request, and it does not include people on community custody, the Washington term for post prison supervision. For the charges and sentence, the Washington Courts case search covers superior and district courts statewide and is free.

• Washington DOC incarcerated individual searchSearch Washington state prisons by DOC number or name, checked September 25, 2026
• Washington Department of CorrectionsFacilities, visiting, mail, phone and money deposits, checked September 25, 2026
• Indeterminate Sentence Review BoardRelease decisions for indeterminate and certain sex offense sentences, checked September 25, 2026
• Washington Courts case searchSuperior and district court case information statewide, checked September 25, 2026
• VINELink WashingtonCustody alerts for Washington county jails and state prisons, checked September 25, 2026

The King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention posts a jail register for the King County Correctional Facility in Seattle and the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. The Pierce County Jail in Tacoma, the Snohomish County Jail in Everett, the Spokane County Jail, the Clark County Jail in Vancouver, the Thurston County jail in Olympia, the Kitsap County Jail in Port Orchard and the Yakima County jail publish rosters as well, and the SCORE regional jail in Des Moines holds prisoners for several south King County cities. Seattle Police book into the King County jail, and the Washington State Patrol books into the county jail of the arrest.

• Washington County Sheriff DirectorySheriff offices and jail registers for all 39 counties
• Washington Police DepartmentsCity police and State Patrol records
• Washington Criminal RecordsWATCH criminal history checks through the Washington State Patrol
• Washington Most WantedFugitives and outstanding warrants

The Washington Public Records Act, RCW 42.56, makes the custody record public, and the Department releases the facility, status, offenses and release date on request, though its search shows only the location and status. Jails release booking information, and most sheriffs post booking photos. Medical and mental health records, the pre-sentence report, classification and disciplinary files and Indeterminate Sentence Review Board case files are exempt. The Washington State Patrol sells a name based conviction check called WATCH to anyone online for a small fee, and the courts' case search is free.

Washington's Sentencing Reform Act of 1984 replaced parole with fixed terms, so the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board decides release only for the few remaining indeterminate sentences and for certain sex offenses sentenced since 2001. Most prisoners are released to community custody supervised by Department community corrections officers from field offices statewide, and misdemeanor probation belongs to the district and municipal courts. The judgment and sentence sits with the clerk of the superior court of the convicting county.

• Washington Court RecordsSuperior, district and municipal court case searches
• Washington ExpungementsVacating convictions and the New Hope Act in Washington

If the Washington DOC search returns nothing, check the King County jail register for a Seattle arrest, the SCORE regional jail for south King County cities, or the roster for Pierce, Snohomish, Spokane or Clark county, since pending cases and sentences of up to a year stay in the jail. A person on community custody or probation is in Department field office or court records. Check the Washington Courts case search for the case, the federal Bureau of Prisons locator for a federal case, including the federal detention center in SeaTac, and VINELink for a recent release.

These federal and national sources complement Washington's state-level records. They are the authoritative sources you should cross-check when Washington state records are incomplete or out-of-state activity matters.

Federal BOP, Inmate Locator The Federal Bureau of Prisons locator returns federal inmates held since 1982 in any BOP facility, contract facility, or community corrections center.

VINELink, Victim Notification Operated by Appriss for the U.S. Department of Justice's victim-notification program. Free, anonymous registration for custody-change alerts across participating states.

U.S. Marshals, Prisoner Tracking The USMS Prisoner Tracking System is the authoritative source for federal detainees in pre-trial custody (before BOP designation).