As of today, the Federal Bureau of Prisons does not list FCI Terminal Island among its facilities, and the prison's former profile page on bop.gov now redirects to the Bureau's general locations page. If someone you know was held at FCI Terminal Island, use the Bureau's inmate locator to find where that person is held now.
Is FCI Terminal Island still an operating federal prison?
Not as far as the Bureau's own pages show: its facility list leaves FCI Terminal Island out, and the old profile address sends visitors to a general locations page.
The Bureau's list of facilities does not include FCI Terminal Island today, and the prison's former profile address, bop.gov/locations/institutions/trm/, now redirects to the Bureau's general locations page. The Bureau's July 1, 2026 announcement of six facility closures names other institutions, not FCI Terminal Island. The same directory lists RRM Long Beach, a Residential Reentry Management field office for the Central and Southern California federal judicial districts, among its offices rather than its prisons.
How do you look up someone connected to FCI Terminal Island?
The Bureau's own inmate locator is the place to start, and it searches by the person's identifying information rather than by a former facility name.
- Open the Bureau of Prisons' inmate locator and choose Find By Number or Find By Name.
- For Find By Number, enter the eight-digit BOP register number in the format #####-###, or a DCDC, FBI, or INS number if that is what you have. For Find By Name, enter the first and last name exactly as spelled, adding race, age, or sex if known to narrow a common name.
- A result shows the person's name, register number, age, race, sex, release date, and current location. The location shown is where the Bureau lists the person today.
- If the result says "Released" or "Not in BOP Custody" with no facility shown, the Bureau says the person is no longer in its custody, though they may still be held by another law enforcement or correctional agency, or be on parole or supervised release.
- The Bureau warns that First Step Act recalculations can make a listed release date lag behind reality, so check back periodically rather than treat one search as final.
- Once you know the current facility, use the Bureau's facility search for that institution's own visiting and contact details, since those rules vary by location.
What are the rules for visiting a federal inmate?
Every Bureau of Prisons institution follows the same four-step framework, even though the exact schedule is set facility by facility.
Locate the inmate. The Bureau notes that an inmate can be moved to a different facility for programming, medical treatment, or security reasons, so confirming the current location through the locator above is the first step before planning any visit.
Be approved. You can only visit if the inmate has placed you on an approved visiting list and the Bureau has cleared you. On arrival at a new institution, an inmate gets a Visitor Information Form, completes their part, and mails a copy to each potential visitor, who fills in the rest and returns it to the inmate. The Bureau may check other law enforcement agencies before approving a visitor, and the inmate must tell a visitor who was not approved. Eligible visitors include immediate family, other relatives, up to 10 friends or associates, and categories such as clergy, employers, and attorneys.
Be prepared. The Bureau says an inmate is entitled to at least four hours of visiting time each month, though many institutions provide more; a warden can still limit the length of a visit or the number of visitors at once to avoid overcrowding.
Plan your trip. The Bureau says institutions generally hold visiting on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, and sometimes during the week, with the specific days and hours posted on each facility's own page because they can vary by institution type and location. There is no government payment or reimbursement for travel to a visit.
How do you call, write, or send money to a federal inmate?
Phone calls, electronic messages, mail, and money each follow one set of Bureau-wide rules, while the exact mailing address depends on the inmate's current institution.
Phone. Calls are ordinarily paid for by the inmate and are monitored, with a notice posted at each telephone; unmonitored calls to an attorney are permitted in certain circumstances.
Electronic messaging. The Trust Fund Limited Inmate Computer System, known as TRULINCS, lets an approved inmate exchange text-only messages, with no attachments, up to 13,000 characters per message, with people who agree to use the system; both the inmate and the outside contact must consent to monitoring before using it.
Mail. General correspondence is opened and inspected for contraband and content that could threaten institution security; mail that is specially marked as "special mail" is opened only in the inmate's presence. Letters go to the inmate's current institution, using the mailing address that institution's own facility page lists.
Money. Funds are deposited into an inmate's commissary account and should only be sent after the person has physically arrived at a Bureau-managed facility. Three methods exist:
Ways to send money to a federal inmate, per the Bureau of Prisons.
| Method | Where | Key details |
|---|---|---|
| MoneyGram | A MoneyGram agent or moneygram.com | Account number is the inmate's eight-digit register number with no spaces or dashes, immediately followed by the last name; receive code 7932; company name Federal Bureau of Prisons, Washington, D.C. |
| Western Union | A Western Union agent, online, or the Send2Corrections app | Same account-number format as MoneyGram; Code City is always "FBOP, DC"; attention line is the inmate's full committed name. |
| United States Postal Service | Mailed to the Bureau's centralized lockbox | Money order, government or certified cashier's check, or bank draft only (no cash or personal checks); payable to Federal Bureau of Prisons, the inmate's full committed name, and register number; sent to Post Office Box 474701, Des Moines, Iowa 50947-0001. |
How is a federal release date calculated?
The Bureau's Designation and Sentence Computation Center starts from the sentence the court imposed and subtracts credit the law allows, so the projected date can move as credits are earned.
Good conduct time. Under 18 U.S.C. section 3624(b), a prisoner serving more than one year, other than a life term, may earn up to 54 days of credit for each year of the sentence the court imposed, if the Bureau determines the prisoner displayed exemplary compliance with institutional rules that year.
First Step Act time credits. Under 18 U.S.C. section 3632(d)(4), a prisoner earns 10 days of credit for every 30 days of successful participation in evidence-based recidivism reduction programming, plus 5 more days for every 30 if the Bureau rates them minimum or low risk for recidivism and that risk has not risen over two consecutive assessments. A prisoner serving a sentence for an offense listed in section 3632(d)(4)(D) earns none of this. Eligible credits move a prisoner into prerelease custody or supervised release sooner, and can let supervised release start up to 12 months early for a minimum- or low-risk prisoner who has earned enough of them.
The Bureau will release a prisoner's court of jurisdiction, imposed sentence, and projected release date without a formal public-records request; details such as prior arrests or earlier periods of custody need a written request and the prisoner's own signed authorization. See the Bureau's sentence computations page for the full process.
Can RDAP, compassionate release, or prerelease custody change how a sentence ends?
Beyond the credits above, three narrower routes can change how a federal sentence ends: a drug treatment program, a court-ordered reduction, and time in prerelease custody.
Residential Drug Abuse Program (RDAP). The Bureau's most intensive treatment program typically runs about nine months. For a nonviolent offense, successful completion can lead the Bureau to reduce the time a prisoner has left to serve, but under 18 U.S.C. section 3621(e)(2)(B), that reduction cannot be more than one year from the term the prisoner would otherwise serve, and the decision belongs to the Bureau.
Compassionate release. Under 18 U.S.C. section 3582(c)(1)(A), a federal court may reduce a sentence for extraordinary and compelling reasons, or for a prisoner who is at least 70 years old, has served at least 30 years on a sentence imposed under section 3559(c), and whom the Bureau has found is not a danger to others. The motion can come from the Bureau's director, or from the prisoner after exhausting the Bureau's administrative process or 30 days after the warden receives a request, whichever is earlier. The court decides; filing a motion does not guarantee a reduction.
Prerelease custody. Under 18 U.S.C. section 3624(c), the Bureau must, to the extent practicable, let a prisoner spend part of the final months of a sentence, not to exceed 12 months, in conditions that prepare for reentry, which can include a community corrections facility such as a halfway house. Home confinement under that same subsection is capped at the shorter of 10 percent of the sentence or six months. RRM Long Beach, mentioned above, is the Bureau's field office for coordinating these programs across the Central and Southern California federal court districts.
What should you do right now?
Confirm the person's current location in the Bureau's inmate locator first, then gather the federal case papers and call a lawyer about the charge and the sentence.
- Search the Bureau's inmate locator by register number or full name to find the person's current institution and projected release date.
- Use that institution's own facility page for its visiting list process, mailing address, and phone rules once you know where someone is held.
- Do not send money until the person has arrived at the new facility; the Bureau's deposit instructions assume the transfer is complete.
- Gather the federal case documents you have (an indictment, a judgment, correspondence from the Bureau) before calling a lawyer.
- Talk to a federal criminal defense lawyer about the charge, the sentence, and whether RDAP, compassionate release, or prerelease custody might apply.
Frequently asked questions
What does an "RRM" location mean in the inmate locator?
RRM stands for Residential Reentry Management, a Bureau field office. The Bureau's RRM pages count the people these offices manage in residential reentry centers, also known as halfway houses, in home confinement and in jail placements, and those offices administer the halfway house contracts.
Is the Long Beach Residential Reentry Management office a place to visit someone?
No. The Bureau's directory lists RRM Long Beach among its offices, administering contracts for community programs such as halfway houses, not among its prisons. Use the inmate locator to find where a person is actually held in custody.
Do California remedies such as expungement or compassionate release reach a federal case?
No. California's conviction-dismissal process under Penal Code section 1203.4 and its state compassionate release statute, Penal Code section 1172.2, work through California courts on California convictions; neither one reaches a federal sentence. Federal compassionate release is a separate motion filed in the federal court that imposed the sentence. See the firm's California expungement and California compassionate release pages.
What if a family member is under federal investigation but has not been charged yet?
The inmate locator will not help, since it only holds records of people already in Bureau of Prisons custody. See the firm's federal crimes page for how a federal case moves through court once charges are filed, and the firm's answer on state and federal charges for the same case if a related state charge is also involved.
Do you need to wait before sending money to a transferred inmate?
Yes. The Bureau's instructions for MoneyGram, Western Union, and mailed funds each say to wait until the person has physically arrived at a Bureau-managed facility, so check the inmate locator first and send funds only once the new location is confirmed.
Talk to a lawyer
The Law Offices of David S. Chesley offers a free consultation and is available 24/7, including for a family member trying to locate someone who was held at FCI Terminal Island. Call (800) 755-5174 to speak with a lawyer about a federal case, or request a free consultation online.