Montana State Departament Of Corrections Inmate Search

Montana is one of the states in the USA with understaffed and overcrowded prisons. Most offenders housed in prisons are those incarcerated because of substance abuse offenses. Other causes of the increase in prisoners include parole and probation violations. Montana's prison and jail system have focused more on rehabilitative programs to minimize recidivism. 

Let's look more at the system. 

Montana Prison and Jail System  

The Montana Department of Corrections is responsible for all the detention and correction facilities in the state. It runs all the rehabilitation, probation, and parole centers. The major function of the department is to assist crime victims, support inmates, and ensure that inmates are well prepared to be reintroduced back to the community after release.  

The department runs twenty-one state-owned and contracted prisons. The state prisons house felony offenders convicted for more than a year. The County jails operated by Sheriff's department house offenders sentenced for less than a year. There are thirty-seven county jails, the largest being Yellowstone County Jail.  

Montana doesn't have a federal prison government or privately managed. Federal prisoners are housed at crossroads correction center, a private prison in Shelby. Prisoners serving a life sentence cannot be paroled until they serve more than thirty years. If a prisoner is denied parole, one must serve up to six years before another parole hearing is conducted.  

Prisoners are released to work in community programs under strict conditions. The parole and probation divisions oversee prisoners released on parole or probation and help them reintegrate into the community.  

Montana Inmate Lookup Tool

You can use the Montana inmate lookup tool to conduct an inmate search in the state. All you need to input in the search tool is the inmate's name and identification number. During the search, you also get to know the inmate's release date.  

You can also perform the inmate search by contacting the prison administrator by email, phone, or mail.  

Montana county jails have a public register of all the offenders in their facilities. You can access the register by visiting the specific jail website to search for an inmate. You should input the inmate's first and last name on the site as you search. Another option to do the inmate search is to contact the jail administrator by email, phone, or by visiting the facility.  

Contacting an Inmate  

You can contact an inmate by email or by sending mail. You cannot make a call, but the inmate is allowed to make pre-paid calls through the permitted vendor. For inmates to call, they should create an account with Telmate, LLC on their website. 

Sending Money  

Montana prisons allow inmates' lawyers, immediate family members, and approved non-family members to send money to inmates. You can send money electronically through the Inmate Trust Account Deposits service via a cashier's check or US Postal Money Order. You can't send more than $250 through the online service.  

You can also send money through a cashier check or money order. Include the inmate's full name and DOC number, then your name and address. The money will reach the inmate within 20 days from when you buy the money order. You cannot send more than $200 with cashier's checks and money orders.  

Sending money to persons in jails varies from one facility to the other. For example, you can make a debit, credit, or cash deposit at the lobby kiosk in The Missoula County Detention Facility.  

Visit an Inmate  

To visit an inmate in the state prisons, one must get approval from the prison. Fill out an application form and submit it by mail or in person. All potential visitors undergo a criminal background check before being allowed into the prison. Minors below 18 years aren't permitted unless accompanied by an adult or approved by the administrator.  

County jail visitation procedures differ from one jail to the other.  

Video visitations are available at $4 per session of twenty-five minutes.  

Visitor privileges can be revoked if one breaks the visitation rules.