California Institution for Men Release Search

Where CIM Releases Go

California Institution for Men is located in Chino, inside San Bernardino County, but it belongs to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. That means a person released from CIM is leaving state-prison custody, not the county jail system. The release trail can involve CDCR case records, CIRIS, Board of Parole Hearings results, DAPO parole assignment, county PRCS, the sentencing court's abstract of judgment, and later court minute orders.

CDCR's CIRIS service is the state-prison search path. The CA.gov service page says CIRIS results for incarcerated persons currently in CDCR custody can include name, CDCR number, age, current location, commitment counties, admission date, and Board of Parole Hearing dates and outcomes. The CDCR number is the state-prison identifier. It is not the same as a San Bernardino County jail booking number.

Once a person leaves CIM, the next status depends on the legal route. Some people release to DAPO parole. Some release to Postrelease Community Supervision, or PRCS, which CDCR describes as county supervision after release from a CDCR institution. Once released to PRCS, the person is discharged from CDCR and is no longer under CDCR jurisdiction. Others may have detainers, resentencing processing, or court orders that must be reconciled before release is complete.

Confirm a CIM Release

Use the CDCR lane first. County JIMS is for San Bernardino County jail bookings, not CIM state-prison releases. Only search JIMS if the person had a separate county booking before or after the CDCR term.

1. Search CDCR CIRIS by name or CDCR number. Use the CDCR number when available because names can be duplicated.
2. Review current location, commitment county, admission date, and Board of Parole Hearing information when shown. A current CIM location indicates state custody; a release or absence from current custody may require records confirmation.
3. For parole-eligible cases, check BPH hearing schedules and hearing results. A parole grant or hearing outcome is not always immediate release because CDCR still must process legal and placement requirements.
4. Use court records for abstracts of judgment, resentencing minute orders, and case changes that affect release. CDCR's release-processing material says case records staff process court abstracts and minute orders while checking detainers, notices, parole or PRCS assignment, and other requirements.
5. For supervision after release, use DAPO if the person is on state parole and county PRCS channels if the release was to PRCS. San Bernardino-area parole assignments may include units in Riverside, Pomona, or Victorville depending on the case.
6. For search-access help, the CDCR Identification Unit is listed at (916) 445-6713, Monday through Friday excluding holidays, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Pacific Time.

CIM Records and Contact

The research section for CIM identifies the release path but does not provide a CIM-specific public facility phone or street address. Use CDCR's statewide contacts and records channels for state-prison release verification, and use court records for commitment and resentencing documents.

A CDCR records request should include the person's full name, CDCR number if known, date of birth if known, institution, commitment county, and the release or hearing date range. Ask for the specific record needed: release/discharge confirmation, parole or PRCS assignment record if disclosable, BPH hearing outcome, or case-record processing status tied to a court order.

About California Institution for Men

CIM is one of two CDCR prisons in Chino that matter for San Bernardino County release searches. Its location can mislead users into starting with county jail records. The governing question is custody authority. If CDCR held the person, CDCR and state-prison supervision systems control the release record. If San Bernardino County Sheriff held the person, JIMS controls the county jail record. If both happened at different times, each system may have a separate record.

CDCR release dates and parole-eligibility dates use state-prison terms such as Earliest Possible Release Date, Minimum Eligible Parole Date, Nonviolent Parole Eligible Date, Youth Parole Eligible Date, Elderly Parole Eligible Date, and controlling parole eligible date. These are not the same as a county jail projected-release field. The Inmate Release Date page explains those differences in more detail.

BPH and Release Processing

The Board of Parole Hearings lane matters when the person is parole-eligible. BPH schedules include date, time, location, and hearing mode, and the research notes that schedules are updated weekly. A hearing result can help explain why release may be expected, delayed, or denied, but it is not the same as a completed physical release from CIM.

CDCR release processing can include checking other cases, following up on detainers, assigning a parole or PRCS office, drafting parole conditions, processing mental-health-disorder or sexually violent predator procedures when applicable, arranging specialty housing, issuing notices, and ensuring release funds. A court resentencing order or parole decision may therefore take time before CIRIS and supervision records show the final status.

After CIM Release

DAPO parole and PRCS are different post-release paths. CDCR's PRCS material says eligible inmates released from CDCR after October 1, 2011 may be supervised by a county agency under Penal Code section 3451, and once released to PRCS the person is discharged from CDCR jurisdiction. DAPO supervision remains for specified categories, including current serious felony, violent felony, life term, high-risk sex offender, and Offender with Mental Health Disorder criteria.

For San Bernardino County, DAPO's Southern Region directory places some San Bernardino parole units in Riverside and Pomona, and Victorville units in Victorville. A release from CIM to an address in San Bernardino County may therefore not map neatly to a San Bernardino city office. Use court records, CDCR/DAPO assignment information, and PRCS sources to confirm supervision rather than guessing from residence.

County JIMS Limits

JIMS is still useful if the person had a separate San Bernardino County booking, such as a local arrest before prison transport or a later county case after release. But JIMS does not prove release from CIM. A state prisoner may have been committed from another county, housed in Chino, released to parole elsewhere, or transferred before release. The county out-of-custody list will miss that state-prison event unless it overlaps with a county booking.

This separation prevents false negatives. Searching only San Bernardino County JIMS for a CIM release can make it appear that no release occurred when the correct record is in CDCR systems. Searching only CDCR for a local jail release can create the opposite problem. Match the database to the custody authority.