Montcalm County Released Inmates
A release from Montcalm County custody is an event tied to one custodian. The Montcalm County Jail may release a person on bond, after a dismissal, for time served, or when a county sentence ends. It may also transfer that person to the Michigan Department of Corrections, another jail, federal authorities, or immigration custody. A transfer ends the first facility's custody but is not freedom in the community. Carson City Correctional Facility uses a separate state process. A person who leaves that prison on parole is out of the prison building yet still under MDOC authority.
That distinction controls the record search. The sheriff holds county booking and release records. MDOC maintains state-prison parole and discharge data in the Offender Tracking Information System, known as OTIS. Courts show the order or judgment that authorized a change, while the jail record supplies the physical book-out time. MI-VINE can report a recent custody event. Each source answers a different question, so a name vanishing from one system is never enough by itself.
- Release
- Physical custody at one facility ended, either through community release or transfer.
- Parole
- A person left state prison under conditions and remains within MDOC jurisdiction.
- Probation
- A court ordered community supervision, sometimes instead of jail or after a local term.
- Discharge
- The agency's sentence or supervision authority ended for the record shown.
- Detainer
- Another authority requested custody, which can turn an expected release into a transfer.
Ways Montcalm County Releases Occur
The label attached to a Montcalm County release tells more than a simple yes or no. Bond means a financial or surety condition was met, but processing and other holds can remain. A dismissal or court release order supplies legal authority, though it does not prove the exact time the jail opened the door. Time served and sentence completion close the stated local term. Prison parole, final MDOC discharge, and a transfer all require other systems and should not be blended into one result.
| Event | Meaning | Best next record |
|---|---|---|
| Bond | A payment or surety condition was satisfied | Jail confirmation and county release record |
| Dismissal or court order | The court authorized release on that case | Court register plus jail book-out record |
| Time served | The stated local jail term ended | Judgment and sheriff release timestamp |
| Transfer | Custody moved to another authority | Receiving-agency record or locator |
| Parole | A state prisoner entered supervised release | OTIS Date Paroled and Parolee status |
| Discharge | MDOC jurisdiction ended for the shown sentence | OTIS discharge fields or MDOC record |
A BOP result marked Released or Not in BOP Custody only ends the federal part of the inquiry. It does not rule out a local case, state custody, immigration detention, or supervision. Likewise, OTIS does not index every person held only in Montcalm County Jail.
Note: “Not at the jail” identifies a change, but the destination field or receiving agency determines whether that change was community release.
Montcalm County Release Record Fields
A person-specific Montcalm County release request should name the existing fields needed to connect identity, booking, and departure. The county does not publish a data dictionary that guarantees each label. Asking for the items separately lets the FOIA response show what is maintained, what is exempt, and what does not exist. A booking photograph is a separate record and should not be assumed to accompany the release sheet.
| Requested field | What it can establish |
|---|---|
| Full name and date of birth | Connects the response to the intended person |
| Booking number | Ties the release to a specific jail episode |
| Book-in date and time | Marks the start of the recorded custody period |
| Release date and time | Documents when Montcalm County Jail processed departure |
| Release disposition | May identify bond, order, time served, completion, or transfer |
| Receiving agency or destination | Separates community release from continued custody elsewhere |
| Booking photograph and image date | Identifies the image linked to that booking, if disclosable |
A court record is useful beside this inventory. The 64B District Court covers misdemeanor cases and preliminary felony events, while the 8th Circuit Court carries felony dispositions and sentences. A judgment explains the authority. The sheriff's record establishes actual jail processing.
Note: Ask for the image as a separate item because the maintained booking photograph may not be attached to the release sheet.
Request Montcalm County Release Records
The Sheriff's Office Records page routes all sheriff records through the county FOIA process. Use the Montcalm County FOIA form and keep the request narrow. Michigan FOIA applies to existing records, not a demand that the county create a custom list of everyone released during a chosen period.
- Give the full name and date of birth. Add a booking number when known.
- State a narrow booking or release date range.
- Ask separately for the booking/release record, release timestamp, disposition, transfer destination if maintained, and booking image.
- Request electronic delivery and a fee estimate before work begins.
- Send the form by email, mail, fax, or hand delivery through the published county channels.
P.O. Box 368, Stanton, MI 48888
Hand delivery: 211 W Main Street, third floor, Stanton
Email: foia@montcalmcountymi.gov
Phone: 989-831-7300 | Fax: 989-831-7375
Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
The county says requesters should wait for its calculated charge. Michigan law sets a five-business-day response period and permits one extension of up to ten business days. A response may grant, deny, partly grant, request a deposit, or announce the extension. Duplication can cost up to ten cents per standard sheet, while search, review, authorized separation, and mailing may add charges under the policy.
The official Montcalm FOIA page shows the submission routes and coordinator details.
The published process provides a lasting route when a call or notification is not enough to document the release.
Montcalm County Release Record Law
Michigan's Freedom of Information Act, 1976 PA 442 and MCL 15.231 et seq., governs existing public records created in an official function, subject to exemptions. Under MCL 15.235, the public body follows the response schedule described above. Juvenile, sealed, set-aside, expunged, or otherwise exempt details may be withheld or redacted. A release record is therefore available according to the actual record and law, not as an unlimited public profile.
An empty portal result does not erase the event. Nonpublic treatment, record retention, or a set-aside can remove material from public view.
OTIS uses its own retention rule. A discharged profile may be removed three years after discharge, and a later supervision term starts a new period. Michigan courts also make covered set-aside matters nonpublic under MCL 780.621g. For older county-jail-only events, the court and a focused county records request are stronger paths than an OTIS name search.
Note: Michigan FOIA covers existing agency records; it does not compel Montcalm County to create a release list that it does not maintain.
Bond and Montcalm County Release
Montcalm County documents three bond-payment channels. Cash or a card may be used at the jail lobby kiosk. The county also directs online card deposits through Express Account, and a money order may be mailed with the person's full name or inmate number. These are payment routes, not a public release list. Another hold, paperwork, or administrative step can keep a person in custody after the payment starts processing.
The county Bond and Court Information page pairs those channels with the status line. Confirm the completed event through the jail and MI-VINE, then request the release timestamp when a lasting record matters.
The page helps separate proof of payment from proof that Montcalm County custody actually ended.
Booking Fees at Montcalm Release
The Montcalm booking-fee page states that each booking carries a $12 fee under MCL 801.4b. If it remains unpaid, the county says a civil-infraction citation is issued at release. After fourteen days, the matter goes to 64B District Court with a stated warrant risk and a $150 fine plus costs. Dismissal or acquittal can support a refund request through the jail sergeant.
Those consequences happen around a release, but they do not prove the release time. The jail record remains the source for the processed departure. The official booking-fee page should not be confused with the separate FOIA fee calculation for a record copy.
The official wording connects the citation to release while leaving custody verification to the jail's status and records channels.
Find Montcalm County Released Inmates
Begin with the last likely custodian. A local arrest or short sentence points to Montcalm County Jail. A Michigan prison sentence points to MDOC and OTIS. A federal sentence belongs in the BOP locator, while an immigration transfer calls for the ICE locator. When the custodian is unclear, start with the court case and identify which agency received the person.
- Call Montcalm County Jail at 989-831-7592 and check MI-VINE for a county custody change.
- Read 64B District Court records for misdemeanor and preliminary felony events, or the 8th Circuit record for a felony judgment.
- Search OTIS when a state commitment, parole, probation, or discharge is plausible.
- Follow any transfer to MDOC, another jail, BOP, USMS, or ICE rather than calling it community release.
- Obtain the county or MDOC record for durable proof of the event and date.
A released person usually leaves a current-custody view. Search the release record, disposition, supervision status, or receiving custodian instead.
The county warns that court-based jail status can lag earlier in the day. When a weekday hearing has just occurred, try the status line again after 3 p.m. That advice is an update clue, not a set release schedule. The Montcalm County 24-hour release process applies this person-level workflow when no public daily feed exists.
OTIS Search for Montcalm Releases
The MDOC OTIS search covers prisoners, parolees, probationers, discharged people within the public retention period, and absconders. It is not a Montcalm County Jail booking archive. The MDOC number is the best identifier. If it is unknown, use the last name with first name, age, and a status filter. OTIS permits a wildcard after at least three surname letters.
| Search or profile field | How to read it |
|---|---|
| Offender Number | Unique MDOC identifier and strongest search key |
| Parolee | Out of prison but still under MDOC supervision |
| Date Paroled | Actual date of departure from state prison to parole |
| Discharged | MDOC jurisdiction ended for the displayed sentence |
| Discharge Date and Reason | Shows when and why the state record closed |
| Earliest Release Date | Parole Board jurisdiction point, not a promise of release |
| Maximum Discharge Date | Potential maximum under the record and applicable credits |
Read the status and dates together. OTIS defines discharge broadly enough to include successful completion, maximum discharge, and death, so a Discharged label alone should not be described as a living person's community release. A current Parolee status plus Date Paroled is the clearer state-prison departure combination.
The official OTIS form shows the status choices used for a focused Montcalm County release search.
The form's separate prisoner, parolee, probationer, discharged, and absconder categories prevent unlike custody stages from being treated as one result.
Note: Use the MDOC number when available because it distinguishes the intended person more reliably than a common name or physical description.
Montcalm County Recent Release Channels
Montcalm County publishes no official online inmate roster, released-person archive, rolling 24-hour list, rolling 72-hour list, or sheriff inmate app found in the official sitemap and jail menu sweep. Since no feed exists, there are no public feed fields, update cadence, photo column, or retention term to describe. Do not substitute a guessed vendor.
For a same-day Montcalm County release, call the jail, check MI-VINE, review the court event, and request the person-specific record if needed. The Jail Services page supplies the telephone status channel and the weekday after-3-p.m. update advice.
The official menu shows the operational fallback without pretending it is a recent-release feed.
Note: MI-VINE is useful for a recent event, but the county release record is the durable source for the exact processed time.
Montcalm Release and Court Supervision
Montcalm County has a local split after release. The local MDOC office at 627 N State Street supervises state parolees, adult felony probationers, and high-court-misdemeanor probationers. The 64B District Court Probation Department at 617 N State Street handles misdemeanor probation. A caller sent to the wrong office may receive no confirmation even when the person is lawfully in the community.
The 64B case search can show a misdemeanor disposition or preliminary felony event. The 8th Circuit MiCOURT search covers felony judgment and sentence information.
A register of actions or certified order can document the court event, but it still does not replace the sheriff's release timestamp.
Note: Match felony supervision to MDOC and misdemeanor probation to 64B before contacting an office about a Montcalm release.
Montcalm Federal Release Checks
Federal and immigration systems matter when a Montcalm County record shows a hold or transfer. The BOP Inmate Locator covers federal records from 1982 forward and updates daily. Search by name or BOP Register, DCDC, FBI, or INS number. A past release date or Not in BOP Custody status ends only the BOP inquiry. It does not exclude state, local, immigration, or supervised status.
ICE's Online Detainee Locator is mainly a current or recent detention tool. A miss does not prove release or removal. Contact Detroit Enforcement and Removal Operations when the local record suggests an immigration transfer. USMS has no public released-person locator identified in the research; the federal court order and USMS records process are the fallback for a federal pretrial case.
Released or still held? A transfer event means custody continued elsewhere. Confirm the receiving authority before planning around a community return.
Montcalm Jail Release Record Context
The current Montcalm County Jail opened in 2002. The county says it began with 119 beds, that a 52-bed remodel brought the count to 181, and that a later 24-bed addition produced a stated total of 205. The first calculation does not reconcile because 119 plus 52 equals 171. The county's stated total can be reported as its claim, but the history should not be silently repaired or used as an independent capacity calculation.
The same caution applies to a release search: preserve what the responsible agency actually reports. Do not turn a missing roster entry into an assumed release, or a county location into county control of the state prison.
Montcalm Work Release Remains Custody
Montcalm's work-release program creates a local custody trap. The sentencing order must state “Work Release Authorized,” then the person applies and waits for coordinator approval. Approval is not guaranteed and may take several days. An approved participant prepays the first week of room and board through a $115.50 inmate-account deposit.
Leaving the jail for an approved work period is not release from the sentence. The person remains legally incarcerated and returns under the program's terms. Count the event as a temporary authorized absence, not a book-out, parole, or discharge. The Montcalm work-release page documents that authorization chain.
The distinction prevents a daily trip to work from being mistaken for the end of Montcalm County custody.
Montcalm County Release Facilities
Two correctional facilities were identified within Montcalm County. They use different records and release paths. The sheriff operates the county jail for local detention and county sentences. MDOC operates Carson City Correctional Facility as a state prison. Geography does not transfer control from MDOC to the county.
- Montcalm County Jail: community release may follow bond, dismissal, time served, or sentence completion; a hold may instead cause transfer.
- Carson City Correctional Facility: parole, discharge, and prison transfers are recorded through statewide MDOC systems.
No separate municipal lockup, regional jail, federal prison, or ICE detention center was identified in the county's official facility sources. People arrested locally may still be housed elsewhere, so a receiving agency remains part of the check when the record says transfer.