ICE Detention Release Destinations
ICE custody is relevant to Rock County only when an immigration detainer, transfer, or federal immigration action actually applies. The detention facility can vary and may be outside Minnesota. An exit from Nobles County Jail to ICE is a handoff between custodians. It is not a community release from all custody.
An ICE custody change can mean release under immigration supervision, transfer to another detention site, removal from the United States, or another agency's custody. “Released from ICE custody” states only that ICE detention ended. It does not prove a return to Rock County, freedom from all supervision, or the status of the Rock criminal case.
Nobles owns its physical release or movement fields. ICE owns detention and ICE-release information. Rock County District Court owns the state criminal orders. An immigration court or federal record may explain the immigration case. The receiving agency owns any later custody result. Keep those facts separate.
Confirm an ICE Detention Release
Use the ICE Online Detainee Locator System, commonly called ODLS. It offers two search routes. One uses an exact nine-digit A-number with country of birth. The other uses exact first and last name, country of birth, and an optional birth date. The public tool excludes people under 18.
Follow a careful check:
- Confirm that case or movement records actually point to ICE before using the immigration system.
- Search by exact A-number and country of birth when available. Preserve leading zeros.
- Otherwise use exact name and country of birth, then compare any lawful identifying details.
- Read the result as an ICE-only status and note the retrieval date.
- Call the Detention Reporting and Information Line if the result is unclear, then request the county movement record for the handoff.
Official ICE guidance says ODLS can include current detainees and people released from ICE custody within the prior 60 days. Later absence proves nothing about older ICE custody. A blank search can also reflect spelling, identity, age exclusion, processing, transfer, or records limits.
ICE Release Search Fields
Exact identity data matter because immigration searches are narrow. An A-number is the strongest search key when known. Name matching is less certain, especially with compound names or variant spellings. Do not merge an ODLS result with a Rock booking on name alone.
| Search route | Required information | Key limit |
|---|---|---|
| A-number search | Exact nine-digit A-number and country of birth | Leading zeros and exact country matter |
| Name search | Exact first name, last name, country of birth | Birth date is optional but can narrow |
| Recent-release result | Person within ICE's stated recent window | Does not explain destination or full history |
| No result | No current match returned | Not proof of no prior ICE custody |
The Detention Reporting and Information Line is 888-351-4024, with published hours Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern. Callers should have the A-number, full name, country of birth, and date of birth where appropriate. Ask for the correct public channel rather than private case information.
ODLS is not the BOP Locator, Minnesota VINE, or MN DOC Locator. Each covers a distinct agency population. Choosing the wrong tool can create a false absence.
Rock to ICE Custody Chain
The distinctive Rock County path can involve several counties and levels of government. Rock Sheriff creates arrest and transport records. Nobles County Jail creates the contract booking, photograph, jail status, and exit or destination fields. Rock County District Court creates the bond, sentence, dismissal, and hold-related state case entries. ICE creates the immigration detention record after a handoff.
If a person disappears from the Nobles live listing, search VINE for the county booking and ask Nobles whether the exit was a release or transfer. A movement field naming ICE directs the next check to ODLS. If VINE reports transfer, wait for receiving-system processing and do not call the event a release to the community.
A court order in the Rock case may resolve the state charge while an immigration detainer still results in ICE custody. Conversely, an ICE release does not close the Rock criminal matter. The Rock County released-inmate records path helps establish the county side before the immigration branch begins.
Note: Every statement should name the custodian whose custody ended and any receiving agency shown.
ICE Release Meanings
“Release,” “transfer,” and “removal” are not synonyms. Release from ICE detention can include immigration supervision or another non-detained status. Transfer means detention continued at another site or under another custodian. Removal concerns departure from the United States under immigration authority. ODLS may not provide the full legal explanation or destination.
A county-jail “hold released” label also requires context. It can mean one hold was lifted while another case kept the person in custody. A Nobles exit with an ICE destination indicates transfer. An ICE recent-release result confirms only the end of ICE detention within the system's stated window. Follow other known holds separately.
- Immigration detainer
- A request or basis tied to possible transfer into immigration custody.
- ICE release
- The end of ICE detention, which may still carry immigration conditions.
- Transfer
- A move to another facility or custodian.
- Removal
- An immigration action distinct from release into the Rock County community.
Literal labels prevent a county event from being confused with an immigration outcome. When the result lacks detail, the maintained movement record and case-specific legal channel are stronger than inference.
ICE Release Records Contact
No single ICE detention address serves all Rock County inquiries because placement varies. Use ODLS to identify the facility when it returns one. Call the information line for locating help. Confirm office and visiting details before travel, since a person may have moved by the time a page is checked.
Online Detainee Locator: locator.ice.gov
Detention Reporting and Information Line: 888-351-4024
Monday through Friday
8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern
For the county handoff, ask Nobles County Jail for existing public release or movement data: the exit date and time, release or transfer type, and destination or receiving agency. Ask Rock Sheriff only for Rock arrest and transport data it owns. A formal request should identify the person, booking number, approximate dates, and precise existing fields.
The official ICE attorney-information page documents the recent-release scope used by ODLS. That source is stronger than an unsourced claim about long-term retention. No full public historical ICE release locator was identified.
ICE Release Proof Limits
ODLS is a current and recent status tool. It is not a certified release record, full immigration case file, or permanent archive. Save the retrieval date, exact search mode, and result wording. A current detention result is strong evidence that ICE reports custody. A blank result after the 60-day window is weak historical evidence.
When records conflict, compare update times. Nobles may post the transfer before ICE intake becomes searchable. ODLS may show a release while a separate state or federal hold remains. A court order can end one legal basis without controlling another custodian. Do not declare a source wrong until processing time, identity, and parallel cases have been checked.
A robust confirmation pairs compatible sources. A Nobles movement record naming ICE plus a later ODLS custody result confirms the handoff. An ODLS recent-release result plus case-specific ICE information can confirm the end of ICE detention. If community location matters, no public tool should be used to guess it.
The federal BOP route is different. BOP covers sentenced federal custody and may show “Released” or “Not in BOP Custody,” but those labels do not establish ICE status. Search only the agency that the record chain identifies.
ICE Detention Facility Planning
Research identified no fixed ICE detention center in Rock County and no local ICE release door, pickup point, routine release hours, property-return process, or transportation guarantee. Facility placement varies. Treat any address found in an older record as historical until ICE confirms current placement.
Before travel, use ODLS and the information line. Ask the actual facility about public visiting or pickup rules only after confirming custody. Do not use Rock County service-desk hours or Nobles County counter hours as ICE processing hours. Those agencies do not control federal immigration release.
If the person left Nobles for ICE, secure the county movement record first. It gives the handoff date and receiving agency if maintained and public. Then use the A-number and immigration route. If ICE reports release, record that exact agency-specific fact. Avoid stating that the person returned to Luverne or Worthington unless an authoritative record says so.