New Mexico Inmate Search
The jail system in New Mexico comprises 8 state-operated correctional facilities, 2 privately-owned facilities, and 31 jails in 33 counties. The majority of these facilities cater to male offenders but the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility (WNMCF) in Grants has a women's facility, while the Springer Correctional Center transitioned to a women's facility in 2016.
The National Institute of Corrections estimated that more than 4,500 inmates were held in state prisons, private prisons, and local jails in New Mexico in 2022. The NIC also put the incarceration rate in New Mexico at 231 inmates per 100,000 population.
New Mexico Department Corrections Inmate Search
The New Mexico Corrections Department (NMCD) is the state agency in charge of administering the operations of correctional facilities in the Land of Enchantment. The NMCD has more than 2,500 full-time employees who strive to achieve a mission of creating professional environments and safe communities.
The NMCD is the official custodian of inmate information, and it makes the information considered publicly available to requesters via public record requests and online via an offender search portal.
Find Inmate by Name
The New Mexico Corrections Department offender search portal affords law enforcement agencies and the general public with information about offenders incarcerated.
To find an inmate by name, you must provide at least one of the inmate's names: last name or first name. By providing both names, you can get a more accurate search result. Other filters that you may use to narrow the search result include offender status information (whether the inmate is active or inactive) and the age range of the offender.
Find Inmate by Number
The offender search portal provided by the New Mexico Corrections Department not only allows the public to find inmates by name, it also enables users to find inmates by number if an inmate's offender number is known. Once you have the number, provide it in the "offender number" field and select the search button. The portal will return a matching result.
What Information is Contained in a New Mexico Inmate Record?
The following information is available when you conduct an inmate information lookup via the NMCD's offender search portal:
- Offender's ID number
- NMCD Number
- Inmate's last name, middle name, and first name
- Offender status
- Inmate's holding facility
- Inmate's mugshot
- Inmate's demographics, such as age, height, weight, hair color, eye color, religion, education, complexion, ethnicity, and aliases
- Current offenses and court judgment
- Past offenses and status
New Mexico Inmate Records by Counties
To access New Mexico inmate records by county, you may check the website of the county sheriff to verify if the office of the sheriff provides a list or portal to search persons incarcerated in county jails. Note that inmates in county jails are under the jurisdiction of the county sheriff's office and not the Corrections Department. The offices of the following county sheriffs provide online access to individuals held in their jails:
- Bernalillo County
- Catron County
- Chaves County
- Cibola County
- Colfax County
- Curry County
- De Baca County
- Dona Ana County
- Eddy County
- Grant County
- Guadalupe County
- Harding County
- Hidalgo County
- Lea County
- Lincoln County
- Los Alamos County
- Luna County
- Mckinley County
- Mora County
- Otero County
- Quay County
- Rio Arriba County
- Roosevelt County
- San Juan County
- San Miguel County
- Sandoval County
- Santa Fe County
- Sierra County
- Socorro County
- Taos County
- Torrance County
- Union County
- Valencia County
Are Incarceration Records Public Information in New Mexico?

Incarceration records are considered public records following the state's Inspection of Public Records Act. The Act provides members of the public the right to inspect government records, except those exempted from public disclosure.
Some incarceration records exempted from public disclosure include those that have been ordered sealed or expunged by a court and most juvenile incarceration records.
Federal Prisons in New Mexico
There are currently no federal penitentiaries in New Mexico.
Frequently Asked Questions about Inmate Records
Per the New Mexico IPRA (Inspection of Public Records Act) , every person has the right to inspect the public records of the Corrections Department. A public record request to the NMCD may be submitted orally or in writing. Written requests must contain the name, address, and telephone number of the individual making the request. It must also identify the records sought with reasonable particularity.
To make a public record request, submit the request via the NCMD's NextRequest Portal . For further information about IPRA request to the NMCD, contact the department at:
Records Custodian
New Mexico Correction Department
PO Box 27116
Santa Fe, NM 87502-0116
Phone: (505) 827-8248
E-mail:
nmcd-ipra@state.nm.us
Where to look up inmate information in New Mexico depends on the type of jail where the inmate is housed. If the inmate is held in a county jail, you may look up the individual via a county sheriff's online jail search. Otherwise, the state's offender search portal is the official means by which New Mexico inmates may be found.
New Mexico's Correction Department maintains information on released inmates on its online offender search portal . To find information on a released inmate, select "include inactive" under the "offender status" menu on the portal. If the information is not available on the portal, you may submit a public record or IPRA request to the NMCD.
In addition, the New Mexico State Archives is a central repository of government records, housing records from all branches of the state government. You may perform a search of the archives to see if you may be able to find old inmate records.
To obtain a public death record for an inmate under the jurisdiction of the NMCD, you may submit an IPRA request to the Corrections Department. However, if the inmate died in a county jail and not a state prison, your request must be submitted to the county sheriff's office. Alternatively, if you are a surviving family member, or legal representative, or have obtained a court order, you may submit a request to the New Mexico Vital Records and Health Statistics office in Santa Fe, to obtain the inmate's death record.
If an inmate is held in a local county jail, it typically takes only a few hours for their information to appear in the county inmate locator. However, for persons incarcerated in state-managed correctional facilities, it may take a few business days for their information to be published on the state inmate locator.
You may transfer funds to an inmate in a New Mexico state-managed prison using any of the following methods:
JPay: The following options exist under JPay:
- Online: Visit JPay's website and create an account . Access your account and follow the prompts to make a funds transfer.
- Mobile App: Download the JPay app (available for iOS and Android), log in, and follow the instructions to transfer funds.
- Phone: Call JPay's customer service at 1-800-574-5729, and a representative may assist you.
- MoneyGram: You can also visit a MoneyGram location, such as Walmart, to deposit cash. You will need JPay's receive code and the inmate's ID number.
Access Corrections
- Online: Visit Access Corrections' website and set up an account. After, log in to your account and follow the prompts.
- Mobile App: Download the Access Corrections app (available for iOS and Android), log in, and follow the steps to send money.
- Phone: Call Access Corrections at 1-866-345-1884 to send money over the phone with assistance from a representative.
Western Union: To send money to an inmate in New Mexico through Western Union, start by finding a Western Union agent. You may do this using their online agent locator or by calling 1-800-325-6000. Fund transfers may be done with cash or a debit card.
Note that it is important to have the correct inmate ID and name for a successful transfer. Also, all these vendors charge service fees which vary depending on the amount to be transferred to the inmate and the payment method chosen. In addition, processing times vary slightly; therefore, you should contact each vendor or check their websites to review typical funds processing times and other limitations that may apply.