Inmate release notification and custody status tracking
Automated monitoring of federal Bureau of Prisons, state DOC inmate locator pages, and county jail roster pages for custody status changes.
Family members of incarcerated individuals, victims' rights advocates, attorneys, and bail bondsmen all need awareness of custody-status changes — release dates, transfers, parole eligibility updates. WebMonitor.fyi monitors the public inmate-locator pages on federal, state, and county corrections websites for status changes. Many states have VINE (Victim Information and Notification Everyday) but the coverage gaps are wide.
How to set it up
Find the inmate locator URL
Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate locator, state DOC inmate locator, or county sheriff jail roster. The detail page URL for the specific inmate is what you monitor.
Set the criterion to "any status change"
Custody status, location, projected release date — any change triggers the alert.
Daily intervals are appropriate
Custody status doesn't change minute-to-minute. Daily checks catch changes within 24 hours.
Who uses this
- Family members tracking release dates and transfers
- Crime victims monitoring perpetrator status (where VINE coverage is incomplete)
- Defense attorneys tracking client custody status across multiple facilities
- Bail bondsmen monitoring custody status for active bonds
- Journalists covering criminal justice with caseload monitoring
Honest limits
Inmate monitoring works on the data each jurisdiction publishes publicly. Some counties update their rosters daily; some weekly; some inconsistently. Federal Bureau of Prisons data is generally reliable. State and county coverage varies widely. The monitor reflects only what the agency publishes — never delay important decisions waiting for an alert.
Frequently asked questions
Does this replace VINE?
VINE is a phone and email notification system run by state authorities; coverage varies by state and crime type. WebMonitor supplements VINE by monitoring the actual public inmate-locator pages — useful where VINE doesn't reach.
How quickly will I be notified of a release?
On daily check intervals, notification arrives within 24 hours of the status change. For urgent monitoring during a known release window, hourly checks work.
Does this work across multiple states?
Yes. Each state's inmate locator works as a monitor URL. For multi-state tracking, one monitor per inmate per jurisdiction.
Try it on the page you want to monitor
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