Houston ICE Release Outcomes
Houston Contract Detention Facility is an ICE contract detention facility operated by CoreCivic. Research supports current operation through an August 2024 ICE inspection, but facility contracts can change. Verify the site in ICE's current facility finder before relying on an old address or operator listing.
Leaving this building can mean transfer to another ICE center, removal from the United States, conditional release under immigration authority, delivery to USMS, BOP, Texas, Harris County, or another jurisdiction, or release into the community. Those results have different legal and practical meanings. Name the outcome shown by ICE or an order instead of treating every exit as freedom.
A person can also leave HCSO on an out date and enter ICE custody. That is release from county control to immigration custody. The HCSO and ICE records are linked agency events, not one community release.
Search Houston ICE ODLS
Start with the ICE Online Detainee Locator System. Search by the nine-digit A-number plus country of birth. Pad leading zeros if the number has fewer than nine digits. The alternate route uses exact name, country of birth, and optional date of birth. Spelling and name order matter.
- Confirm the A-number or exact biographical data.
- Read the facility and custody result exactly.
- Record the access date because ICE movements can change quickly.
- Check whether the result says current custody or a recent release.
- Contact ICE when no result, transfer, removal, or another-agency custody remains possible.
Some people may be absent because they are still processing, under age rules, protected for safety or security, transferred, removed, or beyond the system's recent-release window. A blank result is not proof of release.
ICE Sixty-Day Release Window
ICE's official attorney resources state that ODLS contains people currently in ICE custody or released within the last 60 days. That feature can sometimes affirm a recent immigration release after an HCSO transfer. It does not turn ODLS into a permanent list of former detainees.
Once the short window passes, a genuine past result may disappear. Even within the window, exclusions and data lag can prevent a match. Preserve an A-number, the exact displayed status, facility, and access date. For an older event, use authorized ICE records, the immigration court record where relevant, or FOIA rather than claiming that absence erases the custody history.
Houston ICE Phone Fallback
When ODLS is unclear, contact the ICE Houston Field Office or the Detention Reporting and Information Line. DRIL is 888-351-4024, Monday through Friday excluding holidays, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern. Ask whether ICE currently holds the person, whether a transfer or release occurred, and what office can lawfully confirm the outcome.
Have the A-number, full name, date of birth, country of birth, and last known facility ready. ICE may restrict information based on identity, authorization, safety, or privacy. That limit should not be translated into a claim that the person was released. Immigration court automated case information can show hearing posture, but it is not a detention release record.
Houston ICE Detainer Transfers
ICE describes a detainer as a request that another agency give notice and hold a person for up to 48 added hours beyond the time the person otherwise would be released so ICE can assume custody. If ICE does not take custody in that time, ICE says the holding agency must release. The detainer is not itself a criminal sentence.
If HCSO shows an out date followed by ICE admission, describe the move as release from HCSO to ICE. If ICE later delivers the person to BOP, USMS, TDCJ, or another county, describe another transfer. The BOP locator, TDCJ search, or HCSO inquiry can test the next system when the record identifies it.
Removal is also distinct. It is an immigration enforcement outcome, not a community release in Harris County. Conditional release may include ongoing immigration duties. Use the exact order or agency term.
Confirm Houston ICE Release
Strong confirmation combines the ODLS event or ICE answer with an applicable release or order record. An immigration judge's case information can explain proceedings, but ICE controls detention and movement records. A disappearance after 60 days is not equivalent to an order.
| Result | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Conditional release | Outside detention under stated immigration terms |
| Transfer | Custody continues at another site or agency |
| Removal | Immigration removal outcome, not local community release |
| No ODLS result | Outcome unconfirmed without follow-up |
Ask for both the event date and destination. A facility exit, end of ICE detention, and end of all legal obligations can occur at different times.
Request Houston ICE Records
For a retained record, use the authorized ICE FOIA or Privacy Act process and identify the A-number, full name, date range, and Houston Contract Detention Facility. Ask for existing releasable records that show custody dates, transfers, release type, release date, or destination. Authorization or identity proof may be required for protected information.
Use immigration court channels for court orders and hearing records, not as a substitute for ICE movement data. If HCSO transferred the person first, request the county release or disposition sheet separately. The HCSO out record proves the county event; ICE proves what followed.
Do not ask a contract-facility employee to create a narrative history. The facility can address present physical custody, while ICE is the federal record authority.
Houston ICE Release Contacts
Houston Contract Detention Facility
ICE contract detention
Verify current listing before travel
Locator: ICE ODLS
Field office: ICE Houston ERO
DRIL: 888-351-4024
Call before travel because contract status, location, and transfers can change. DRIL and ERO are better routes for an unclear custody result than inference from silence. Emergency, legal, and records inquiries may use different ICE channels.
Houston ICE Release Evidence
A careful statement names the source and event: “ICE reported conditional release,” “ODLS showed a recent release,” or “ICE transferred the person to another agency.” Avoid the unqualified phrase “released” when the record shows removal or transfer.
The Harris County release-record guide can help reconstruct an HCSO handoff, but the county cannot certify a later ICE event. Preserve the SPN for county custody and the A-number for immigration custody. Those identifiers connect two systems without merging them.