A convict or an inmate is a person who is stripped of his/her liberty and rights and is being placed in a prison, jail, or any other correctional institution against the person’s will. The most common reason for convicting a person would be a violation of federal or state laws. A person convicted by a federal court and imprisoned for reasons of federal penitentiaries are called federal inmates. All others are called non-federal inmates will be jailed or imprisoned in non-federal facilities like state prisons and jails and are those who are convicted and incarcerated by a state, county, or city courts.

There are over 2.2 million people incarcerated in the country either in the federal or state prison for various crimes. This is almost 1% of the adult population in the country making it the largest prison population in the world. If you are suspicious about someone whom you came across in your neighborhood and want to find out if he is a criminal/ inmate or someone else, you can make use of inmate search tools. You might consider seeking related information to track down that person and alerting the neighborhood or the police of a possible crime that could happen. Moreover, for the same reason, of a large population of prisoners, trying to find an inmate in the US prisons is as good as searching for a needle in a haystack. There are several websites and apps that act as inmate search tools that let you scour the Internet to help you find an inmate you are searching for. Be it government websites or any other free inmate search tools available online, if you know either the inmate’s exact name or inmate number who you are trying to locate, then their location will be available at a click of a button. It is as easy as that.

MobilePatrol is a free mobile app by Appriss Safety that allows various communities to connect and keep themselves updated on important alerts related to safety, news, and other critical information. It is available for a free download with compatible versions with Android and iOS mobiles. Keeping their main motto of connecting communities in mind, the app works toward law enforcement. In line with this thinking way, it becomes essential to keep in touch with the citizens who you would want to protect by communicating important public safety information conveniently and quickly. Hence, the app has partnered with several agencies from across the country that are associated with public safety and law enforcement. This allows citizens to receive timely access to important information from within their communities that are related to safety. At the same time, any person or agency working for any institution related to law enforcement or public safety can register for free with them and gain access to several communication tools which allows them to communicate with those signed up with MobilePatrol.

This app allows the users to get updates on general news and information related to their area like the recent bookings, get or send alerts about those listed on most wanted lists, sex offenders, report a crime that he/she has witnessed, share crime tips—all with the convenience of a mobile phone. Also, it allows users to connect and monitor their outreach by integrating their MobilePatrol account with their social media accounts. Some of the popular features of the MobilePatrol inmate search application are as follows:

• Registered members receive 24/7 notifications related to missing people, most-wanted criminals, traffic, alerts from communities, schools, burn bans, etc.
• Crime tips, sightings of missing children, as well as wanted criminals can be reported to law enforcement. The app also provides the “Report It” feature which allows reporting of traffic, nuisance issues, lost pets, harassment, crime, bullying, etc.
• It allows agencies associated with law enforcement to share any critical news by using their “Smart Newsfeed” feature. The alerts that are of very high priority will appear above other updates like are general and from social media.
• The “Public Records” feature provides access to get up-to-the-minute information like most-wanted people, missing children, warrants, sex offenders, inmate information, etc. available in the law enforcement records.
• Locating inmates who are currently in custody of a federal prison, tracking back parole absconders, reporting unregistered sex offenders, etc.

Apart from the above features hosted by the MobilePatrol inmate search app and other features, there are several reasons why citizens may require an inmate search supporting tool. Some of these purposes are:

• Locating a person who may be held or suspected to be held for a violation related to immigration or any other offense
• Getting an appointment to visit a Federal inmate
• To support certain financial needs to an inmate by sending money
• To register complaints related to federal, state, and local correctional facilities.

Apart from these benefits, an inmate search tool may not be able to be of any help in the below cases:

• If an inmate is given a short-term sentence, even if they are committed to the Commissioner of Correction, but are housed at the facilities provided by “Division of Pretrial and Detention Services.”
• If an inmate is no longer in custody either due to release or escape or any other reason.