ICE Detention Release Paths
The ICE detention system is a civil immigration custody network administered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, often through contracted detention sites. It is not a Chippewa County jail division. A person with Chippewa County ties may enter this system after an immigration detainer, through another agency, or at a different point in a federal proceeding. The original county record must connect the person to ICE before an immigration locator result can explain the next stage.
Leaving ICE custody can mean release under the authority and conditions shown by ICE, transfer to another immigration site, removal from the United States, movement to another government custodian, or another case-specific outcome. A locator change alone does not safely identify which occurred. The ICE record, receiving facility, and any applicable court or agency document should be read together.
No official evidence reviewed establishes the Chippewa County Jail as an ICE detention-contract facility. The county jail and the ICE system therefore need separate records. A local roster disappearance does not create an ICE record, and an ICE result does not by itself establish when Chippewa County ended its custody.
ICE Detention Locator Search
The official ICE Online Detainee Locator System, often called ODLS, is the main public search for immigration detention. It accepts a nine-digit A-number with country of birth. It also permits an exact first and last name with country of birth and an optional date of birth. Exact identity data matters because spelling, name order, and a missing country value can prevent a match.
ODLS is designed around present ICE custody. Current ICE attorney guidance also says it can include people released from ICE custody within the last 60 days. That recent window can help after a transfer from Chippewa County, but it is not a permanent release archive. The public locator does not display people under 18, and some adults may not appear because the search data do not match or the relevant information is not available through the public tool.
| Search route | Required identity data | What it can support |
|---|---|---|
| A-number search | Nine-digit A-number and country of birth | A match to current or qualifying recent ICE custody data |
| Name search | Exact first name, last name, and country of birth | A possible person match when the A-number is unknown |
| Optional refinement | Date of birth | Helps distinguish people with similar names |
| No public match | Review spelling and custodian | Does not prove there was no ICE custody or release |
Confirm an ICE Detention Release
A reliable search begins before ODLS. First obtain the Chippewa County Jail movement entry when the person was last held locally. Ask for the out date and time, movement or release code, code definition, legal authority, and receiving agency. If the record names ICE, use that dated transfer as the bridge to the federal immigration search. If it names another agency, follow that custodian instead.
Use the least amount of personal data needed for a sound match. A name alone can point to the wrong person. Compare the A-number when known, country of birth, date of birth, county booking number, court file, transfer time, and receiving facility. Preserve the date each source was checked because ODLS has a limited recent-release window and the Chippewa County roster is current-only.
- Check the Chippewa County custody record for the out event, movement code, and named receiving authority.
- Open ODLS and search by A-number plus country of birth, or use the exact name route with the required country.
- Match the result to the local booking and transfer details rather than relying on the name alone.
- Contact the listed detention site or ICE information line when the locator is unclear, missing, or changes.
- Request the originating and receiving custody records if the final release date or destination remains unresolved.
The complete Chippewa County released inmate records path explains how the county movement record, court case, and destination system fit together.
ICE Detention Records Contact
When ODLS does not resolve custody, use the official ICE detention contact channel. The Detention Reporting and Information Line can address detention questions and help route a query involving the locator. Give the A-number if known, full name, country of birth, date of birth, and the last verified facility or transfer date. Do not assume that call-center staff can provide data barred from public disclosure.
The actual detention facility is also important. ICE frequently uses contracted facilities, so a person with Chippewa County ties may be held far from Montevideo. Ask which facility held the person on the date at issue, which office controlled the case, and where an existing custody or release record can be requested. Record the representative, date, and channel used.
ICE Detention Information
Online locator: ICE Online Detainee Locator
Information line: 1-888-351-4024
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern
Official guidance: Detention Reporting and Information Line
Chippewa County ICE Detainer Transfers
An ICE detainer is a request concerning custody after the local agency would otherwise release a person. It does not itself prove that ICE took physical custody. ICE states that if it does not assume custody within 48 hours, the local agency must release the person. The key Chippewa County evidence is therefore the jail movement record showing whether a handoff occurred and naming the receiving authority.
A handoff from Chippewa County to ICE is a transfer, not a community release. This distinction remains true even though the person disappears from the county’s live In Custody table. The local record closes the county segment of custody. ODLS and the ICE detention record address the later immigration segment. Calling both events simply “released” would hide continued confinement.
Use the official ICE detainer information to understand the request, then compare it with the county out time and receiving-agency field. ODLS can cover current custody and qualifying release from ICE within the recent 60-day window. Only the county movement entry shows whether ICE actually assumed custody from Chippewa County.
ICE Detention Release Records
A useful ICE custody record should identify the person, agency number, facility, admission or transfer event, release or movement date, and the authority or destination for the change. Public access may be limited by federal law, privacy rules, case posture, or the kind of record requested. Ask for existing records with a narrow date range and precise identity rather than a broad history of unrelated people.
For the county portion, contact the Chippewa County Sheriff’s Office at 629 North 11th Street, Suite 14, Montevideo, MN 56265, telephone 320-269-2121. Request the booking number, out date and time, movement code and legend, legal authority, and receiving agency. Minnesota public-data inspection rules apply to county records, while the later ICE record follows the federal agency’s process.
Read any Chippewa County court entry as an order, not as the physical transfer timestamp. A judge may authorize release or address a local case, while the jail record shows when county staff ended custody and whether another authority received the person. The immigration docket or ICE record then explains the federal side to the extent it is public.
- Detainer
- An agency request concerning custody after the local release point.
- Transfer
- A move from one custodian to another, with no necessary return to the community.
- A-number
- The immigration identification number used in the ODLS number search.
- Community release
- An exit from confinement that is not a handoff to another custodial authority.
ICE Detention Search Limits
A no-result needs careful treatment. The person may be under 18, the search values may differ from ICE data, the person may have left the recent public window, or another agency may be the true custodian. The ICE system is not a general history of everyone who ever left the Chippewa County Jail. Search the custodian named in the county movement record.
Do not use the Federal Bureau of Prisons locator for civil ICE detention unless a separate federal prison commitment exists. BOP, ICE, and the U.S. Marshals Service serve distinct custody roles. Likewise, Minnesota VINE covers county jail events in Minnesota but is not the public locator for ICE custody. A VINE transfer alert can prompt the next check, but it does not describe the full federal event.
Reconcile conflicting dates instead of choosing the most convenient one. The county out time marks the end of county custody. An ICE admission date marks the start of the federal segment. An ICE release date marks a later event. Keeping each label intact produces a custody chain that can be verified with the office that created each record.