Free Inmate Lookup for Mid-State Correctional Facility

The Tool, and What It Costs

Nothing. The lookup is at nysdoccslookup.doccs.ny.gov, the state runs it, and anyone can use it. No sign-up, no fee, no cap on searches.

It returns people held in New York state prisons. Mid-State is one, so a free inmate lookup for Mid-State is this search with a name typed into it.

Searching by Name

With a DIN in hand, enter that. Exact, and fastest.

Without one, the search takes a last name and first name:

• Use the legal name before any nickname.
• Try a maiden name if one might be on record.
• Check the spelling letter by letter, because the tool matches what you type exactly.

A result gives you the facility, the DIN and custody details. It does not give a housing unit, and no New York result does.

The Town Is Called Marcy, and So Is the Other Prison

This is the confusion specific to Old River Road.

Both prisons are in the town of Marcy, Oneida County. One of them is Marcy Correctional Facility. The other is Mid-State Correctional Facility. So the town line on a result reads “Marcy, NY” whichever of the two holds the person.

	Mid-State	Marcy
Street	9005 Old River Road	9000 Old River Road
Family mail box	P.O. Box 2500	P.O. Box 3600
Phone	315-768-8581	315-768-1400
Security	Medium	Medium

The facility line is the answer. The town line is not. Read it before you address anything.

What the DIN Is For

The lookup returns a Department Identification Number, and what follows all runs on it.

Where you need it	What happens without it
The envelope	Mail is not matched to a person
The JPay deposit slip	Deposits are matched to the DIN, not a name
The visiting desk	Staff work from the number
Any call to the prison	It is the first thing you will be asked

Write it down once, carefully.

County Jails Are a Different System

The DOCCS lookup covers state prisons only.

Someone awaiting trial, serving under a year, or recently arrested is usually in a county jail, and every county runs its own roster. A blank result often means the county is the right place to look, not that the search failed.

It runs the other way too. People move into state prison after sentencing, so a name that was in the Oneida County jail last month may be at Mid-State now.

Nothing Came Back

In this order.

1. Spelling, then variants, then a maiden name.
2. Not yet in state custody. Sentencing comes first, then transfer.
3. Transferred. New York moves people between prisons and the lookup follows them, so search again instead of assuming the last facility still holds.
4. County or federal custody. Separate systems with separate tools.

Run It Again Before You Act

A move between Mid-State and Marcy is a few hundred yards on the ground and a completely different post box on an envelope.

Re-run the lookup before you post a letter and before you send money. It takes under a minute and it is the cheapest check you can make.

Once You Have the Number

With the DIN written down, everything else opens up. Pigeonly takes the name and the facility and sends letters and photos from your phone, addressed to P.O. Box 2500 the way Mid-State expects, so the box that separates these two prisons is handled for you.