Difference Between Louisiana Prison and Federal Prison

What is the Difference Between Federal Prison and Louisiana State Prison?

State and federal prisons are facilities where the freedom, movement, and access to individuals are restricted as punishment for their crimes. Louisiana state prisons house inmates charged with violating state criminal laws, and federal prisons house offenders convicted of federal criminal violations. As a result, the Louisiana prison facilities are managed by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections (DPS&C), while the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) controls the activities of the federal prisons.

Generally, inmates in federal prisons are considered less violent than offenders incarcerated in Louisiana state prisons. This is because federal prison inmates are typically charged with financially motivated crimes. In contrast, Louisiana state prison inmates are typically accused of crimes against humanity, such as murder, rape, and gun-related crimes committed within state limits.

The Louisiana Prison System

Facilities in the Louisiana prison system are part of the state's criminal justice system. These facilities are established to ensure that offenders are brought to justice for their crimes.

The prison system upholds the rule of law by providing sanctions for crimes while assisting offenders with rehabilitation.

Louisiana's Department of Public Safety and Corrections manages the correctional facilities in the state, including private and parish facilities. The department is divided into:

Public Safety Services
Office of Juvenile Justice
Corrections Services

The correctional facilities in Louisiana include:

Allen Correctional Center
3751 Lauderdale Woodyard Road
LA 70648
Phone: (337) 639-2943

B.B. Rayburn Correctional Center
27268 Highway 21 North
Angie LA 70426
Phone: (985) 661-6300

David Wade Correctional Center
670 Bell Hill Road
Homer, LA 71040
Phone: (318) 927-0400

Dixon Correctional Institute
5568 LA-68
Post Office Box 788,
Jackson, LA 70748
Phone: (225) 634-1200

Elayn Hunt Correctional Center
6925 Highway 74
St. Gabriel, LA 70776,
Phone: (225) 642-3306

Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women
7205 Highway 74
St. Gabriel, LA 70776
Phone: (225) 319-2701

Louisiana State Penitentiary
17544 Tunica Trace
Angola, LA 70712
Phone: (225) 655-4411

Raymond Laborde Correctional Center
1630 Prison Road
Cottonport, LA 71327
Phone: (318) 876-2891

Winn Correctional Center
180 CCA Boulevard
Atlanta, LA 71483
Phone: (318) 628-3971

Altogether, these facilities house over 35,000 offenders. Individuals interested in obtaining information about inmates incarcerated within these facilities may sign up with the Louisiana Automated Victim Notification System (LAVNS). This notification system periodically provides updates on every inmate's movement within the prison system. Individuals who sign up will receive notifications about an offender's case status via text message, email, or telephone call.

How to Lookup Inmates in Louisiana

To obtain Louisiana inmate records or related information on an offender, members of the public can contact the Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Correction (DPS&C) directly or locate offenders within the system using the 24-hour offender locator. Interested individuals can access this feature by calling (225) 383-4580. It dispenses updated information about all inmates in the state prison system, including DPS&C offenders and offenders under probation.

DPS&C Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 94304
Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9304

DPS&C Physical Address:
504 Mayflower Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
Phone: (225) 342-6740
Fax: (225) 342-3095

The BOP also maintains a database of every inmate incarcerated in federal prison since 1982. Inquirers can locate any offender within the system using the BOP inmate locator. This online database can either be searched using the offender's full names or inmate registration numbers.

Louisiana County Jails

The U.S State of Louisiana has 64 parishes and 19 county jails. However, Louisiana county jails are called parish jails. Louisiana parish jails are smaller units of the state's prison system and are under the county sheriffs' jurisdiction. They serve a smaller population of offenders than Louisiana state prisons. These jails hold individuals who have committed minor crimes, individuals in the pre-trial stage, and individuals who have been denied or are unable to make bail.

The counties in Louisiana that house the parish jails provide online search platforms with general inmate information. Some of these search platforms provide information such as an offender's age, race, sex, full name, etc. Inquirers can contact the local sheriff's office for extensive details not available on these online inmate rosters.

Unlike state prisons that are located in remote areas within the state, the Louisiana parish jails are located close to the courthouse. This is because they usually hold offenders in the pre-trial phase of their cases or are awaiting sentencing.

The following are the parish jails in Louisiana:

Ascension Parish Jail
Bossier Parish Jail
Caddo Correctional Center
Calcasieu Parish Correctional Center
East Baton Rouge Parish Prison
Iberville Parish Jail
Jefferson Parish Jail
Lafayette Parish Correctional Center
Livingston Parish Detention Center
Orleans Parish Prison
Plaquemines Parish Jail
Pointe Coupee Detention Center
Rapides Parish Jail
St. Bernard Parish Jail
St. Charles Parish Jail
St. Landry Parish Jail
Tangipahoa Parish Jail
Terrebonne Parish Jail
West Baton Rouge Detention Center

How Does the Federal Prison System Work?

Individuals accused of committing federal crimes are incarcerated within federal prisons. In most situations, these offenders are convicted of white-collar crimes, drug-related crimes, or political crimes.

There are 122 federal prisons in the United States, two of which are within Louisiana. They include:

Federal Correctional Institution, Oakdale, and
United States Penitentiary, Pollock

These penitentiaries are secure and controlled environments designed to turn offenders into law-abiding citizens and are managed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP).