Free Vermont Inmate Search (Verify Sentencing Details)

Perform a Vermont inmate search at no cost to locate individuals currently in jail or prison statewide.

Inmates refer to anyone currently incarcerated regardless of where they are housed. In Vermont, it’s manageable to find out who’s currently in a regional, county, or city correctional facility — once citizens know where to look.

State and federal public record laws protect citizens’ rights to certain information and keep the government transparent about its duties and actions. This resource assists with pointing readers toward the right agencies to contact and links the search tools for running an inmate lookup in Vermont.

Detained in Jail vs Prison

Because inmates can be found in both jails and prisons, knowing where an individual is held can be helpful when conducting a statewide inmate search. This helps loved ones contact the incarcerated individual and often provides assurance and information to victims of the individual by making their current location known.

Jails typically operate on a more local level than prisons, with either the local sheriff’s office or police department overseeing them. The sheriff’s department typically oversees county jails, while the police department maintains them at a municipal level. In Vermont, all jails are county level, though the police department still performs arrests.

Prisons in Vermont are called correctional facilities by the Department of Corrections (DOC) and typically house inmates for longer-term sentences or for higher security levels than are found at the jail level.¹

They may be operated by either the state’s DOC or, at the federal level, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP).² Individuals in BOP custody have been convicted of a federal crime, whereas those in DOC custody have been convicted of state offenses.

In Vermont, the majority of inmates are held in city or county jails. Additionally, those convicted of state crimes outnumber federal felons housed in BOP prisons.

How To Perform a Vermont Inmate Search To Locate Individuals in Jail

In Vermont, there are no online inmate databases at the county or city level within the state.

While in some cases, individuals can be located in regional correctional facilities – as will be detailed at the state level – those performing an inmate search for people in jail may have to make phone calls to local law enforcement for information. This information is made available as part of the public record to improve governmental transparency, which protects civil liberties.

For example, someone performing a statewide inmate search in Chittenden County – the most populous in the state – would contact the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Office directly to learn more.

Chittenden County Sheriff’s Office
70 Ethan Allen Drive
South Burlington, VT 05403

Phone: 802-863-4341
Fax: 802-863-7445

Someone seeking municipal arrest details in Burlington, the largest city in the state, could also contact the Chittenden County Sheriff’s Office. If this does not yield results, the Burlington Police Department may have more information about local arrests and individuals in custody.³

Burlington Police Department
Antonio B. Pomerleau Building
1 North Avenue
Burlington, VT 05401

Phone: 802-658-2704

In addition to the above mentioned, individuals can search for Vermont arrest and criminal records. This will provide a more comprehensive understanding, including contact information for each county jail and access to the search roster.

How To Run a State Prisoner Search in Vermont

In Vermont, one tool endorsed by the Department of Corrections (DOC) provides results for all individuals in custody or under supervision, including those awaiting arraignment, those sentenced and in prison, those on probation and those serving on parole.⁴

This is a thorough tool that provides an overview of information about the legal status of an individual. However, it’s not possible to search specifically by state prisoners, so users will have to sift through those in jail or on community supervision as well.

Upon opening the tool, a list of inmates across the state is generated in chronological order, beginning with the most recent arrests. This list includes:

• Inmate’s First, Middle & Last Name
• Booking Date
• Release Date (If applicable)
• Identifying Number
• Facility Location

There’s also a big, blue “View More” button on the left to reveal more information, including:

• A Link to VINELink Page
• Charges
• Code
• Upcoming Court Date & Court Name
• Status
• Offense Date
• Arrest Date
• Arresting Agency
• Case Number
• Bond Type & Amount
• Other Information (including age, booking date and date released, race, alias, parole officer, case worker and minimum and maximum release date)

It’s also possible to search for Vermont inmates by specific parameters, including selecting to filter out who is currently incarcerated, all inmates or those released, either within the last 7 or last 30 days. Users can also input a first or last name to further narrow down results and speed up their statewide inmate search.

Other tools and websites can assist in this process, pointing the public toward helpful resources. Browse this compilation for more useful information:

• DOC Victims Services Program website
• DOC Correctional Facilities directory
• Interactive map of Vermont correctional facilities
• Vermont Parole Board
• Vermont inmate visitor information
• DOC Constituent Services Unit
• DOC contact information
• Vermont VINELink search tool

How To Find Inmates in Federal Prison

Inmates in federal prisons fall under the Bureau of Prisons’ (BOP) supervision. The BOP makes locating those who are currently or have been in one of their facilities since 1982 simple with the use of its Find an Inmate Tool.^{5, 6}

It’s an online tool that’s convenient to navigate but with a single caveat — it requires a complete last name, spelled correctly, as well as an initial for the first name. Entering partial or misspelled last names will not generate accurate results.

The information this tool provides is somewhat sparse, giving a first and middle initial and complete last name, along with the inmate’s register number, age, race and gender. It also gives a release date, either past for those discharged from custody or a future estimated date. Results for those currently in custody will also reveal their current location.

Inmates released prior to 1982 will not populate because the BOP is archiving those records with the National Archives & Records Administration (NARA).⁷ To access them, requests must be redirected to NARA and include:

• Inmate’s Name (with a middle name or initial if possible)
• Date of Birth (or age when incarcerated if an exact date is unknown)
• Race
• Dates in Prison (or an estimation if unknown)

NARA allows users with an account to request records online or from regional Federal Records Centers.^{8, 9} The nearest center to Vermont is in New York City, and visitors can use the research room by appointment.

National Archives – New York City
One Bowling Green, Room 328
New York, NY 10004

Phone: 212.401.1620
Toll-free: +1.866.840.1752
Fax: 212.401.1638
Email: [email protected]

The Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) Tool offers an alternative avenue to access information about inmates prior to 1982.¹⁰ For a fee, registered users on PACER can request federal court records online.¹¹ It’s possible to search either the specific court that oversaw the inmate’s criminal case or by nationwide index.

The tools provided above streamline the Vermont inmate search process, empowering citizens to explore public information and locate incarcerated individuals with ease.