Perform Free Alabama Probation Search (Record Access)

Free Alabama Probation Search
Find out if someone you know or love is on probation in Alabama, free of charge.

Running a free Alabama probation search is an efficient way to know if someone you know has been released as an alternative to incarceration. To ensure that you don’t have to spend hours in a court administration building or sifting through multiple resources, users can perform the search entirely online with the guidance this streamlined resource provides.

This article also offers access to search tools and databases that help perform a probation search to gain details of anyone under this type of supervision in Alabama. Users can also look into other relevant matters, such as the supervising officer and possible violations.

How To See Who Is a Probationer: Run a Free Alabama Probation Search

The Alabama Open Records Law states that every citizen of the state has access to inspect and copy all public records.1 This means that a probation search in Alabama is readily available for all citizens. Some records may be sealed or inaccessible if covered under certain exclusions.

One way to conduct a state probation search is to perform an inmate search on the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) website. The ALEA allows searchers to find probation information via the Alabama Background Check System.2 The applicant is required to file the request in person or by mail in the following format:

In-person:

Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
301 South Ripley St.
Montgomery, AL, 36104

Phone: 334-676-6002

Mail to:

P.O. Box 1511
Montgomery, AL

Phone: 36102-1511, 334.676.7870

To apply for a background check, the applicant needs to provide the following:

If applicants have any questions, they can contact the ALEA.

Screenshot of the form provided by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency for criminal history record check, displaying the first two sections: personal information (full name, sex, aliases, current address, date of birth, driver's license number, issuing state, race, and phone numbers) and work information (employer, contractor and state agency's names and corresponding phone numbers, work email address, job role or classification, supervisor's name, and an item checklist).
Source: Alabama Law Enforcement Agency3

When applicants perform a probation search in Alabama on the internet, they may be presented with numerous options to access the records, including those offered by various agencies and organizations. Many of these may offer a free search, but that’s available only because they scrape the information from the official sites.

These free searches may also contain only parole information, with no probation information included. This is because the free source for inmate searches in Alabama – the Alabama Department of Corrections – only provides parole and pardon information. Applicants can perform searches on:

  • Inmates
  • Released sex offenders
  • Inmates on death row
  • Executions
  • Escapees

While these provide vital information such as the full names, aliases, last known addresses and more, unfortunately, they don’t disclose any probation information.

Look up Probation Records on the County & Municipal Levels in Alabama

Probation records may be included in city or county parole records. It’s important to verify that the probation information is available on the requested search, especially if payment for the service is required. Other ways to look up probation records on the County and Municipal level in Alabama include:

Jefferson County offers Juvenile Probation Services to guide families through the family court process.4 Each child is appointed a Probation Officer when charged with a crime. Contact (205)325-5824 for more information.

The Mobile Probation Department has a $60 monthly reporting fee for all persons required to report to their Probation Officers.5 Parolees are also required to provide supervised urine samples for drug testing. Call 251-208-7055 for more details.

The Juvenile Detention Center in Madison County is a 48-bed juvenile detention facility that works under the District Court Juvenile Judges direction.6 The Neaves-Davis Center for Children is operated in accordance with licensing standards set by the Alabama Department of Youth Services. Contact 256-532-0300 to learn more.

How To Track Down Alabama Probation Violations & Supervising Officer Contact Details

The hearing officer unit of the Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles assists with probation and parole violations. This unit determines whether to continue probation, revoke probation or levy a sanction. Their contact details are:

Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles
100 Capitol Commerce Boulevard
Montgomery AL, 36117

Phone: 334.242.8700

While there is no standard procedure outlined on this portal to request violations, the records will reflect on the report requested from the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA).7

If the county or city where the inmate was incarcerated is known, the process may be more efficient. Different counties have probation offices that oversee probation execution within that particular county. These offices can be contacted regarding violations. However, they may refer applicants to the ALEA.

Alabama has two distinct districts that house its probation offices.

Northern District: The Probation & Pretrial Services Office Northern District of Alabama site offers valuable information on its site to probation applicants, including forms and electronic supervision reporting.

Screenshot of the status report form provided by the U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services for Northern District of Alabama showing the first three sections including personal information, employment information, and general supervision information, with both answer fields and "yes or no" options depending on the required details.
Source: Northern District of Alabama Probation and Pretrial Services Offices8

The northern district has five probation offices to assist applicants:

Anniston
1100 Gurney Avenue
Anniston, AL 36201

Phone: (833)963-2494

Birmingham
1800 5th Avenue
North Birmingham, AL 35203

Phone: 205-716-2900

Florence
210 North Seminary Street
Florence, AL 35630

Phone: (256)766-2566

Huntsville
101 Holmes Avenue
Huntsville, AL 35801

Phone: (256)534-6495

Tuscaloosa
2005 University Boulevard, Suite 1400
Tuscaloosa, AL 35401

Phone: (205)561-1600

Southern District: The United States Probation Office Southern District of Alabama covers the probation activities in that region.

The offices are located in:

Mobile
113 St. Joseph Street
Mobile, AL 36602

Phone: 251-441-6800

Selma
908 Alabama Avenue
Selma, AL 36701

Phone: 334-875-6609

How To Determine Who Is a Parolee in Alabama

The Alabama Department of Corrections streamlines the process of looking up whether an individual is on parole.

Applicants merely need the person’s Automatic Identification System (AIS) number or their first and last name. If the applicant uses only a few letters in the first or last name to search for parolees, the search results will populate all the inmates with those letter combinations.

The Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles also provides Parole Hearing results for the current and previous year, where the searcher can get the AIS number or name of parolees, making it a convenient and more accurate way to get parole results.9

Screenshot of the December 2023 parole hearing results from the Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles, displaying a searching tip, followed by the list of decisions with the following details arranged accordingly in columns: last name, first name, AIS number, date, and parole result.
Source: Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles10

Once the information populates, the applicant has access to information that includes:

  • The full name of the inmate
  • Their race, date of birth and gender
  • Their physical features
  • Known aliases
  • Last-known address and contact number

The information will also contain incarceration details, whether the inmate has a parole consideration date and what the outcome of the parole hearing is. The information on the site is readily available and free of charge, but there’s no way to know when the information was last updated.

Screenshot of the details of an inmate who was granted parole, taken from the database held by the Alabama Department of Corrections, displaying the offender's mugshot, name, AIS number, institution, race, sex, eye and hair colors, weight, height, birth year, custody, aliases, and identifying marks, followed by the incarceration details arranged in a table with the following information: admission date, total term, time served, jail credit, good time received, good time revoked, minimum release date, parole consideration date, and parole status.
Source: Alabama Department of Corrections11

Applicants can also request the information through the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) via a physical application. While this application might take longer than the online search, the information provided should be accurate and up-to-date.

The applicant can access the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles public records and download the Request to View Public Records Form.12, 13 The completed form can then be sent to the following address:

Alabama Bureau of Pardons & Paroles
Attn: Communications Office
100 Capitol Commerce Boulevard, Suite 310
Montgomery, AL 3611

The request can also be emailed to [email protected]. A fee is charged only if the cost incurred is more than $25.

Finding out the correct process to request probation and parole information in Alabama is seamless once you know where to look. Access to public records in Alabama is readily available to citizens. The state of Alabama encourages applicants to request the information only under lawful conditions.

This resource streamlines the Alabama probation search process to ensure applicants know the right route to follow through trusted official sources.


References

1National Freedom of Information Coalition. (n.d.). Alabama FOIA Laws. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.nfoic.org/alabama-foia-laws/>

2Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. (n.d.). Alabama Background Check. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.alea.gov/sbi/criminal-justice-services/criminal-records/alabama-background-check>

3Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. (2017, October 1). Application To Review Alabama Criminal History Record Information. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.alea.gov/sites/default/files/inline-files/SBI-ApplicationReviewALCHRI%20NEW_16.pdf>

4Jefferson County Juvenile Intake and Probation Services. (n.d.). Juvenile Probation. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.jccal.org/Default.asp?ID=665&pg=Juvenile+Probation>

5The City of Mobile Probation Department. (n.d.). Municipal Court Probation Department. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.cityofmobile.org/government/municipal-courts/municipal-court-probation-department/>

6Madison County Juvenile Probation Office. (n.d.). Juvenile Detention Center. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.madisoncountyal.gov/services/juvenile-detention-center>

7Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. (n.d.). Criminal Records. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.alea.gov/sbi/criminal-justice-services/criminal-records>

8Northern District of Alabama Probation and Pretrial Services Offices. (2018, April). U.S. Probation Office Status Report. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://www.alnp.uscourts.gov/sites/alnp/files/StatusReport.pdf>

9Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. (2023). Parole Results. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://paroles.alabama.gov/parole-results/>

10Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. (2023). Parole Results December 2023. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://paroles.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/December-2023-Parole-Name.pdf>

11Alabama Department of Corrections. (2024). Incarceration Details. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://doc.alabama.gov/InmateHistory>

12Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. (n.d.). Public Records Requests. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://paroles.alabama.gov/public-records-requests/>

13Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles. (2020, October). Request To View Public Records. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from <https://paroles.alabama.gov/wp-content/uploads/ABPP-6-Request-to-View-Public-Records-Form-Fillable-1-2.pdf>