Search TDOC Release Records

TDOC Release Status Paths

A person leaving a TDOC institution may begin parole, determinate release, another form of community supervision, or reach sentence expiration. Parole is Board-authorized community release before the sentence expires. Probation is court-ordered supervision and can arise without a prison term or after a split sentence. An inactive TDOC record may mean custody and supervision ended, but “inactive” does not explain the legal reason by itself.

TDOC and the Tennessee Board of Parole have different roles. The Board conducts hearings and makes parole decisions. TDOC runs institutions, maintains felony offender data, calculates sentences, processes releases, and supervises assigned people in the community. A parole grant is not the physical release event because it may depend on an approved plan and final processing.

Confirm a TDOC Release

The Felony Offender Information Lookup, known as FOIL, covers people currently or formerly in TDOC custody or supervision. That makes it useful after state release. It does not cover every person booked at the Overton County Jail. A county charge that never led to TDOC felony custody or supervision may leave no FOIL record.

1. Open FOIL and choose the name or identifier search route.
2. Use a TOMIS ID when known. The form also accepts a State ID Number, while name search offers last name, first name, race, and an aliases option.
3. Complete the CAPTCHA and compare the photo and lawful identifiers before selecting a result.
4. Read status, location, offenses, sentence data, parole hearing status, and release information as one record.
5. Record the exact labels and the lookup date. Ask TDOC for archived or formal release records when the public detail is unclear.

The Overton County released inmates search path explains when a sheriff record or court file is needed instead. FOIL should never be presented as a county-jail release list.

TDOC Archived Release Records

When FOIL lacks enough history, use the TDOC Archived Record Request portal or write Records Management. Include the offender's full name, TOMIS number, date of birth and other available identifiers, requester contact information, and a narrow description of the record sought.

A focused request can seek the actual release date and type, sentence-expiration or discharge entry, and the releasable portions of Release Authorization CR-1947 and Release Checklist CR-3835. TDOC says not to send payment with the first archive request. The agency will advise if charges apply. Protected personal or operational fields may be redacted.

For a state sentence, these institutional records are stronger proof than a screen capture alone. Save the FOIL wording as a lead, then ask for the source record when the exact legal status or date matters.

TDOC Serves Overton Cases

No Tennessee Department of Correction prison was identified within Overton County. The system belongs on the Overton custody map because felony sentences, later prison releases, and community supervision can arise from Overton cases. A state-sentenced person may also appear in FOIL while temporarily held in a county jail awaiting transfer or under a local custody agreement. The Overton jail page and sheriff visitation guidance establish the local side of that record chain.

FOIL may display a photograph, status, location, offense, sentence information, parole hearing status, and release information. The fields differ by record. Capture the label that is actually shown rather than promising that every record contains a “projected release date.” MyTN also offers FOIL under Public Safety, but it remains the same state felony channel, not an Overton sheriff app.

The official TDOC page describes current and former offender coverage.

This source explains why a former state offender can remain searchable after release, while a local jail-only booking may never appear.

TDOC FOIL Search Fields

FOIL provides three practical search routes. The name form uses last and first names, with race and an option to include aliases. Identifier searches accept a TDOC or TOMIS ID or a State ID Number. A CAPTCHA is required. Common names demand care because a name match alone does not identify the person.

The live FOIL form shows these controls.

The blank form illustrates access without exposing a private person's record. FOIL warns that data may not be complete or timely, so formal proof still comes from the responsible record office.

TDOC Release Date Meanings

Tennessee sentence records contain several dates that answer different questions. A release eligibility date marks when parole consideration may become possible under the controlling law. Sentence expiration reflects the end of the sentence calculation. A projected or probable date, when actually displayed, is an estimate based on the current structure and credits. None proves the physical exit by itself.

Tennessee does not apply one universal 85 percent rule. The governing percentage can depend on the offense, offense date, judgment, statutory category, and later amendments. Some specified offenses have a 100 percent service rule with limited credit effects. Sentence-reduction credits under Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-236 also depend on eligibility, conduct, programs, forfeiture, and the sentence law.

A defensible date review starts with the judgment. Identify each count, sentence length, offense date, range, concurrent or consecutive structure, and jail credit. Then identify the controlling subsection of Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-35-501 and obtain the TDOC calculation. Detainers, disciplinary credit loss, revocation, appeal, escape, and amended orders can all alter the result. The final release authorization and event remain the proof of actual exit.

Changes can follow an amended judgment, added jail credit, earned or lost credits, a new consecutive term, parole action, detainer, or revocation. Request the agency's current calculation rather than making an independent promise from arithmetic.

Note: Date the FOIL observation because public status and sentence calculations can change.

TDOC Supervision After Release

A person released to parole or probation remains under an active legal status. Use the FOIL record and the current Community Supervision field-office directory together. The current directory places Overton County in District 31, with the district office at 851 S. Willow Avenue, Suite 202, Cookeville, TN 38501, telephone (931) 526-7165. For the local judgment that produced the state sentence, use the Overton County Circuit Court Clerk.

The displayed assignment should still be checked before travel or reporting. Residence alone does not prove which office is responsible. Overton County has no verified county-run parole office, and the Tennessee Board of Parole should not be confused with the TDOC staff who supervise people in the field.

The Board's county-jail hearing schedule expressly includes Overton County Jail and is updated weekly, normally on Monday or Tuesday after a Monday holiday. Schedule fields include facility, TOMIS number, name, hearing type, and date. A listing proves only that a hearing was planned. A recommendation is nonbinding, and a grant can remain subject to an approved release plan and processing. FOIL, the Board decision, and the final TDOC release event should be reconciled.

Parole

Conditional community release authorized before sentence expiration.

Probation

Court-ordered community supervision, sometimes without a prison term.

Discharge

The end of the applicable custody or supervision obligation.

Detainer

A request or hold that may lead another authority to take custody.

Note: FOIL status is the public starting point, while the assigned office resolves current reporting instructions.