Check Preston E. Smith Unit Releases

Preston Smith Unit Release Paths

Preston E. Smith Unit is a Texas Department of Criminal Justice state prison in Dawson County. A person can leave the unit through transfer to another TDCJ facility, parole, mandatory supervision, discretionary mandatory supervision, or discharge at sentence expiration. These outcomes must remain distinct.

An inter-unit transfer changes the place of confinement without ending TDCJ custody. Parole and mandatory supervision end prison confinement but continue the sentence under state supervision. Full discharge ends the TDCJ sentence. A favorable Board vote starts release processing; it does not prove the person has walked out.

Confirm Preston Smith Unit Release

The TDCJ Inmate Information Search includes only people currently incarcerated in a TDCJ facility. It is updated on working days, and its information is at least a day old. Search by TDCJ or SID number when possible.

1. Enter the TDCJ or SID number, or use exact surname and first initial.
2. Compare age, gender, race, conviction county, offense, and current unit to avoid a false match.
3. Record the current unit, Projected Release Date, parole information, maximum sentence date, and check date.
4. If a favorable release vote exists, call the Parole Division release-status line at 512-406-5202.
5. After the person leaves the current search, request actual historical release or discharge information from TDCJ.

The Dawson County released-inmate search helps identify the correct custody system before starting. A Dawson booking number is not interchangeable with a TDCJ number.

Preston Smith Unit Contact

The unit can answer facility-specific operational questions, but statewide Classification, Public Information Act, Board, and Parole Division channels govern release records and processing.

For free listed inmate information, email pia@tdcj.texas.gov with the full name and seven-digit TDCJ number. If unknown, supply the exact date of birth, or approximate age and conviction county. For a former inmate, request actual release date, release mechanism, discharge date, final unit, and incarceration history from TDCJ Public Information, P.O. Box 4017, Huntsville, TX 77342.

Before a Board vote, the BPP status line is 844-512-0461. After a favorable vote, the release-status line is 512-406-5202. Both operate weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The post-vote route requires a TDCJ number, SID, or date of birth.

Preston Smith Unit Facts

The official Smith Unit directory identifies a male Correctional Institutions Division facility opened in October 1992. TDCJ places it three miles on FM 827 East off Highway 87 South. Listed custody levels are G1 through G5 and Security Detention.

The manifest capture of the unit directory shows the facility details and listed preparation programs.

Those facts establish the prison's identity but do not certify a named person's release. The listed capacity is not a count of people due to leave, and the unit code is an administrative identifier rather than a release status.

Preston Smith Projected Release Dates

TDCJ's official field is “Projected Release Date.” It depends on the offense date and nature, sentence data, eligibility rules, credits, Board action, detainers, and administrative processing. It is not an appointment time or an actual release certificate.

For eligible offenses before September 1, 1996, TDCJ says release occurs on the projected date if the person is not paroled. For eligible offenses on or after that date, mandatory supervision is discretionary and the Board may deny it. If that release is denied or the person is ineligible, TDCJ describes the projected date as the discharge date.

Disciplinary credit loss, recalculation, new sentence facts, parole action, or a detainer can affect the practical result. Recheck the record and call the post-vote line after a favorable decision. Do not calculate a date from sentence length alone.

Preston Smith Pre-Release Programs

The unit directory lists CHANGES/Pre-Release and Reentry Planning. This is a genuine preparation layer at the Dawson County state prison. It does not publish an individual's date and does not promise placement, transportation, or a specific benefit.

Use the listing as a question route. The person can ask unit staff which programming applies, while family members should keep release-date inquiries with the proper statewide TDCJ information channel. Program participation and release authorization are different facts. A favorable parole decision can still require prerequisites, placement work, detainer review, or other processing before physical exit.

After release to parole in Dawson County, official county routing points to the Midland District Parole Office, subject to the person's actual assignment. The office is at 3900 East Highway 158, Midland, TX 79706, and lists 432-684-4590. Discharge at sentence expiration is different because state confinement and supervision have ended.

Dawson County's Two Custody Systems

Dawson County contains both the county jail and the 2,098-capacity Smith Unit. Both use a Lamesa address, so location alone can send a search to the wrong agency. The systems do not share one release archive.

A gap can occur between a county transfer and state intake display. Preserve each agency's timestamp rather than treating the gap as release. A county judgment can establish the prison sentence, but TDCJ controls the later state calculation and actual exit. Likewise, the sheriff cannot certify a Smith Unit discharge merely because both facilities sit in Dawson County.

Preston Smith Search Fields

The TDCJ search accepts last name, first name, TDCJ number, SID number, gender, and race. Its hints require at least an exact last name plus first initial, a TDCJ number, or a SID number. Number-based searches are strongest. A name result should still be checked against age, race, gender, conviction county, offense, and current facility.

The public record can show the current unit, offense and sentence facts, parole eligibility information, maximum sentence data, and Projected Release Date. Each field has limits. The current unit may change through transfer. Conviction county is not the same as facility location. A projected date can change, and a blank result after discharge is not the historical record.

The official TDCJ search screen shows the accepted fields and current-incarceration scope.

Use the live result to capture a dated custody snapshot. For a past exit, move to TDCJ's historical information and public-record channels instead of treating no match as proof.

Smith Unit Release and ICE

An immigration detainer or transfer can affect where a person goes after the state-prison term. A TDCJ release milestone does not by itself establish return to the community when another custodian may receive the person. Request the actual state release mechanism and destination, then check the named receiving authority.

ICE's Online Detainee Locator System is designed for current civil custody, not a permanent released-person archive. It uses an A-number with country of birth or a set of biographical fields. A no-result can reflect lag, a name variation, transfer, release, wrong identifiers, or custody elsewhere. It does not erase the need for the TDCJ exit record.

Keep the event labels narrow. “Released from TDCJ to ICE” means the state confinement ended and immigration custody followed. It is not the same as parole into the community or full freedom from custody. If ODLS does not resolve the matter, use ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations or detention information channels.

Preston Smith Historical Release Records

Once discharged, a former Smith Unit prisoner may no longer appear in the live TDCJ search because that tool is expressly current-custody only. Use the TDCJ information-by-email route for listed data and a written Public Information Act request for actual historical facts.

Government Code section 552.029 identifies basic releasable TDCJ information, including identifiers, facility, offenses, possible release dates, parole date, and release date. Ask narrowly for the actual date, mechanism, sentence-discharge date, final unit, and incarceration history. Other protected material may be withheld.

TDCJ accepts requests by email at PIA@tdcj.texas.gov, by mail at TDCJ Public Information Request, P.O. Box 4017, Huntsville, TX 77342, or through its online form. Keep the former prisoner's TDCJ or SID number with the request. Ask for code meanings when the response uses a release term that is not clear.

TDCJ states ordinary paper copies under 50 pages generally cost $0.10 per page plus delivery, while larger requests may include labor and overhead. An estimate above $40 requires a written response under its posted process. Electronic inspection or copies can differ.

Search Preston Smith Release Records

Use the public-record search as a lead, then verify the Smith Unit status through the statewide TDCJ channel responsible for it.

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