Excel

The South Dakota Department of Corrections maintains a searchable public database of all of the inmates they have in custody.

In addition, the offender search contains information about prisoners, parolees, and probationers who are currently under supervision, and who have been discharged. It also contains those inmates who have absconded, or escaped.

The actual prison that an inmate is assigned to depends on factors such as security classification, remaining time of their sentence, gang affiliation, and location of their residence.

The South Dakota Department of Corrections began in 1881, when the first state prison, South Dakota State Penitentiary, was built in Sioux Falls.

Today the state of South Dakota's Prison System maintains 6 state correctional institutions.

With a staff of 775 correctional workers, as of the end of 2023 they oversee approximately 3,250 inmates, with another 11,000 on parole and probation.

The following will explain the instructions, tricks and hacks you can use to find any inmate in custody with the South Dakota Department of Corrections.

South Dakota Department of Corrections Inmate Search Instructions

The South Dakota Department of Corrections provides a limited amount of information you may want to know about any inmate in their system, however they do list every inmate and offenders released. Inmates in custody have their crimes listed, as well as previous convictions. To look up an inmate (or parolee), you need the full last name.  

• You can also list any and all inmates (or parolee) by just filling in the fields.
• You can also list all inmates (or parolee) who share the same first letter of the last name.

The first set of results if you used the full last name will list their Name and DOC Number. Click on the linked DOC# to get to the inmate's page.  

The inmate's page has limited information, and does NOT include the inmate's mugshot.

There are FOUR options for putting money on an inmate's books:

NOTE: ** Deposits for phone and tablets cannot be made through this set of directions. For phone and tablets, scroll down for instructions or visit the section for phone or tablets.

Option 1 - Deposit Inmate Money Online
Excel uses Jail ATM to process all online deposits to an inmate's account. The company charges you a small fee for doing so.

Option 2 - Mail the Inmate Deposit to the Facility
Never send cash or personal checks. Offenders may receive payroll checks, business checks, U.S. Treasury issued checks and tribal checks after signing an Admission Document. Offenders can also receive cashier's checks or money orders (MUST be in U.S. dollars and issued by a bank located in the U.S) for deposit through the Offender Banking System.Money orders from those individuals on the offender's approved visit list, their attorney or others approved by the warden or designee.
Make the Money Order out to the inmate's name and put their Inmate ID# in memo section of the Money Order.
Confirm Mailing Address here.

Option 3 - Make an Inmate Deposit with Jail ATM over the Phone by calling 877-810-0914
To do this you will need the inmate's offender # (inmate ID #) and full legal name.

Excel Inmate Visitation Information and Schedules

Step 1

Your inmate must add you to their official visitation list.

You must fill out and mail the three visitation application forms to the SD DOC at:

South Dakota Department of Corrections
3200 East Highway 34, c/o 500 East Capitol Avenue
Pierre, SD 57501
Phone: (605) 773-3478

Step 2

Once approved for visits, for both in-person and video visits, you need to register an account with GTL / Viapath Technologies.

All Visitation schedules start on Mondays and ends on Sundays.

VISITATION SCHEDULES

For questions about visits, please contact the facility: 

SD State Penitentiary 605 367-5051

Mike Durfee State Prison 605 369-2201

Yankton Community Work Center 605 369-2201

Rapid City Community Work Center 605 369-2201

SD Women's Prison 605 773-6636

REMOTE VIDEO VISITATION

Excel offers Video Visitation for Inmates using the Services of GTL, aka ViaPath Techologies

In order to schedule and then visit an inmate using GTL you need to first register with GTL.

Next Steps:

• Register yourself and all visitors.
• Select Excel
• Select your inmate.
• Schedule your preferred time for the visit.

For at-home video visits: Sign in to the visitation scheduling site 15 minutes prior to your scheduled visit. Test your connection, and follow the steps to start your visit.
For on-site video visits: Arrive at the facility at least 15 minutes prior to check-in. A valid photo ID is required. 

All your questions can be answered after you register, at the Frequently Asked Questions page, or call 855-208-7349 during the following hours:
6AM – 4PM MST Monday – Friday, or 
7AM – 4PM MST Saturday – Sunday

Costs for Visits are subject to change but generally run less than $10.00 for a 30 minute visit.
Payment can be made with Visa, Mastercard debit, credit or gift cards.

REMOTE VIDEO VISITATION

Excel offers Video Visitation for Inmates using the Services of GTL, aka ViaPath Techologies

In order to schedule and then visit an inmate using GTL you need to first register with GTL.

Next Steps:

• Register yourself and all visitors.
• Select Excel
• Select your inmate.
• Schedule your preferred time for the visit.

For at-home video visits: Sign in to the visitation scheduling site 15 minutes prior to your scheduled visit. Test your connection, and follow the steps to start your visit.
For on-site video visits: Arrive at the facility at least 15 minutes prior to check-in. A valid photo ID is required. 

All your questions can be answered after you register, at the Frequently Asked Questions page, or call 855-208-7349 during the following hours:
6AM – 4PM MST Monday – Friday, or 
7AM – 4PM MST Saturday – Sunday

Costs for Visits are subject to change but generally run less than $10.00 for a 30 minute visit.
Payment can be made with Visa, Mastercard debit, credit or gift cards.

There are three Ways to Communicate with an Inmate in the Excel by Phone

To get started you must first open an account with GTL Connect Network (aka Viapath Technologies)

• Advance Pay - This phone account allows you to prepay so that your inmate can call you (and only you) whenever he/she wants and the cost of each call is deducted from your balance. You can even be notified by text when your balance gets low. You still have the option of accepting or rejecting each call.
• Pin Debit  -  This option allows you to fund an inmate's commissary account and lets him pay for phone calls to you and others with the money. You will have no control over who your inmate calls.
• Voicemail  -  You can leave a secure voicemail without having to contact the facility. When you call the local phone number for a facility offering Inmate Voicemail (call Customer Service at 877-650-4249 to get the local voicemail number for Excel, you will be informed of the cost for leaving a message. To leave your message, simply select the inmate by ID number. Then, record your voicemail.

How to deposit money for Inmate Communications:

• Online
• By phone by calling 877-650-4249
• Deposit by cash, visa or mc debit and credit cards in the Excel lobby kiosk
• By mail... Check or Money Order made out to:
  AdvancePay Service Department
  P.O. Box 911722
  Denver, CO 80291-1722
• Cash deposits to ConnectNetwork are also available at 26,000 retail locations nationwide including Walmart, ACE, Kmart, Kroger, and more. You’ll start the payment process online in your ConnectNetwork account, then complete your transaction with cash at a participating local retail store. Plus, many of these stores are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Find a retail store near you.

Excel Inmate Mail Guidelines

Postcards
The Excel allows inmates to receive pre-metered postcards like the type purchased from the post office. They may also allow certain photo postcards as long as they have not been tampered with or contain images that may be considered to be obscene or violent in nature. It is best to only use blue or black ink. Always include your name and return address.

Envelopes
The Excel also allows envelopes to be mailed to inmates. It is best to only use blue or black ink.

Postcards and envelopes MUST HAVE the sender's full name and return address on the envelope. 

Postcards and envelopes MUST be mailed to the following address:
Inmate Name, Inmate ID#
Confirm Mailing Address here.

Legal Mail

Send all Legal Mail to this Address:
Inmate Name, Inmate ID#
Confirm Mailing Address here.

Newspapers
Newspapers may also be mailed to an inmate as long as they are shipped directly from the publisher.

Magazines
News, special interest or sports magazines may also be mailed to an inmate as long as they are shipped directly from the publisher. Any magazines that contain profanity, weapons, pornography or other content that is adult in nature will be confiscated by the jail staff and will NOT be delivered to the inmate.

Books
The Excel allows books to be mailed directly to the jail from a reputable source such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million. You can order them directly from your computer and have them shipped to the inmate at the address noted.
Books must NOT contain images or content that are considered excessively violent, pornographic or obscene. Any book that does not meet the Excel standards will be disposed of. 
Hard cover books will not be accepted by the jail due to their potential to be used as a weapon.

All newspapers, magazines and books are to be shipped to:
Inmate Name, Inmate ID#
Confirm Mailing Address here.

JailATM – Send Commissary Gift Packs to Excel

Search for JailATM services for Excel.

Make an inmate deposit with JailATM for Excel. 

Note: While JailATM offers the following inmate services, Excel may not allow all of them. Check on the JailATM website to confirm. Services available through JailATM are subject to change with no notice.

Send Gift Packs

Excel has an agreement with JailATM, which ships predetermined Gift Packs of candy, snacks and hygiene products to the inmate. Check the JailATM website to see if they allow Gift Packs.

These can be ordered by you online and are delivered directly to the inmate.

How to Email an Inmate at the Excel

Follow these instructions on how to arrange secure messaging (aka email and texting) of an inmate at the Excel

• Sign in to GTL, or Register if you haven't already.
• Select Excel.
• Select your Inmate.
• Using a credit or debit card, purchase credits to send messages, and, depending on the facility, purchase additional credits to receive responses from your inmate.
  Compose a message, attach credits for a reply…and send!

You can also send photos and videos to your inmate, along with your message. These can only be sent from the GTL app. (iphone, Android)
The cost to send messages and photos is approximately $1.00, and videos are $3.00.
If you have any questions, call customer service 24/7 at 877-650-4249.

Excel either allows, or may soon be allowing inmates access to tablets to use for the services provided by GTL (aka Viapath Technologies)

Follow the instructions below to get a tablet for your inmate at Excel

The devices are similar to common handheld tablets, but are made exclusively by GTL and Viapath.
Tablets offer specialized content and services for inmates to use during their stay at Excel, such as:

• Music
• Books
• Games
• Education
• News
• Radio
• Television
• Read mail and messages
• Video visits

Free services are already available for use on the device at Excel.
Subscription services are funded separately by family and friends with deposits made into an inmate’s Debit Link account.
Excel Inmates will then be able to purchase subscription services and premium content to enjoy.

What It Costs
Tablet devices include some services and the content is free.
The subscription services require additional funding.
There may be multiple options such as 7-day or 30-day subscriptions.
Costs are dependent upon the available services and what the Excel charges.

To estimate costs for tablets and other services such as phone calls, sign in to your account and click “Rate & Fees Calculator” in the footer (bottom of the page).

Once an inmate is convicted and sentenced for a violation of that state’s felony laws (and their sentence is more than one year in length), they are moved from the City or County Jail and sent to a State Prison in South Dakota. If the violation they are convicted of is a federal crime, they will be sent to a Federal Prison, but will not necessarily be doing their time in South Dakota.

South Dakota State Prisons are operated and maintained by the state government and are used to confine and rehabilitate criminals. State prisons are funded by state tax money. The fund is used to provide food and clothes to inmates and to hire employees to keep the prison running. Inmates in state prison enjoy certain privileges such as TV use and recreation, both indoor and outdoor. The number of privileges allowed depends on the security level of the prison, the inmate and the overall needs of the prison on a specific day.

South Dakota has minimum, medium and maximum security prisons. The Corrections Department in South Dakota also maintains low (or no) security residential settings and camps where inmates assist in state property maintenance and duties such as fighting fires. Almost all prisons provide ‘jobs’ where an inmate can earn a small hourly wage and even learn a trade. Some prisons even contract with call centers and handle phone calls on issues related to their state government. Criminals who have committed a violent crime or killed someone are likely housed in a maximum security prison. If the inmate in these prisons behave, they are also eligible to recreate and/or work as well.

In South Dakota Prisons rehabilitation is the stated goal but the reality is that they exist to punish inmates for their crimes and keep them from hurting or harming innocent people on the outside who follow the laws and live and act responsibly. The fact is that most prison systems are underfunded, overcrowded and are not able to spend time and money rehabilitating offenders. This is not the fault of the people hired to work in prisons, they are just victims of the lack of resources due to budgeting constraints.

State Inmate

Most states have Department of Corrections websites that allow you to type in a felon's first and last name and pull up inmates in that state.

If you need to find a sentenced inmate serving time in a state other than South Dakota, go here. To find an inmate in South Dakota, just scroll to the top of the page and click on the Inmate Search button.

Once you locate them click next to the inmate's name or on the link provided and it will show you which prison the inmate is housed in. If the inmate is no longer incarcerated, but is on parole/probation or discharged, it will tell you that as well. In addition, many state prison inmate pages show recent mug shots.

Federal Inmate

The federal prison system has its own inmate locator called the Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator.

Type in the inmate's name and it will tell you where he or she is incarcerated and their projected release date. It also lists released federal prison inmates and the date they were released.

Federal inmates who are moved from one prison to another will show as "No longer in federal custody" on the system until they reach their next federal prison destination. This movement can take a few days to several months to complete, so keep checking back to find out where the inmate was taken.

ICE Inmates

The ICE Detainee Lookup allows friends, family members and interested parties to locate illegal and/or undocumented immigrants that are in the United States without permission.

Has the Inmate been recently arrested?... Try a County Jail

In many cases, the person you are looking for has either not been convicted or sentenced or has been sentenced and is awaiting transport to a State or Federal Prison and is still incarcerated in a City or County Jail.

To locate that person, go here to first find the State, and then the County where they were originally arrested or have been transported to. From there you can begin your search in our databases that contain the names and information of millions of inmates.

Jailexchange.com has all information on every jail and prison in the United States.