SCI Benner Township Release Paths
SCI Benner Township is an active medium-security PADOC prison for adult men. A person leaving can enter state parole and community supervision, complete PADOC custody and discharge, move to a prerelease or community-corrections setting, transfer to another institution, or pass to another authority under a detainer. These events do not carry the same meaning.
A supervised-person result can support a transition from prison to state community supervision. A new SCI result usually shows transfer. A blank result in both PADOC modes remains inconclusive because full discharge is outside the locator's stated current populations, while search spelling and identity can also cause a miss. For exact history, obtain the PADOC release or discharge record.
Confirm an SCI Benner Release
The PADOC locator is the primary public search, with PA SAVIN as a second status and notification source. The Centre County jail's VINE instruction page is not the record holder for a state-prison release.
- Open the PADOC Inmate Locator and search by inmate number when known, or use name plus age, birth date, or committing county.
- Open the result and compare the DOC number, aliases, birth information, committing county, current institution, and update time.
- Switch to the Department Supervised Individual Locator and search by parole number or matching identity fields.
- Check PA SAVIN for a matched state-prison or state-parole event. Treat movement as transfer unless the event says release.
- Use the sentencing docket and PADOC records for the exact discharge date, method, detainer, or historical status.
The Centre County released-inmate guide compares county, state, federal, and immigration paths when the original custody type is uncertain.
PADOC Fields for SCI Benner Searches
The public PADOC search supports several fields. Exact agency numbers are stronger identifiers than a common name or a photograph alone.
| Field | How it helps |
|---|---|
| Inmate or parole number | Narrows directly to a PADOC identity. |
| Name and aliases | Finds records under commit or alternate names. |
| Date of birth or age | Separates similar names. |
| Committing county | Connects a result with a Centre County case when applicable. |
| Current institution or district | Shows prison custody or the state supervision office. |
| Update timestamp | Marks when the displayed data was refreshed. |
The inmate detail reviewed did not display a projected, tentative, minimum, maximum, or release date. Do not create such a field from another state's interface. A “Release Date” label on the supervised-person side concerns that PADOC record and is not a CCCF custody-end record.
SCI Benner Township Contact
The institution can address facility-specific questions, but official historical release and discharge records belong with PADOC records or the state RTKL office.
301 Institution Drive
Bellefonte, PA 16823
814-353-3630
Operator: Pennsylvania Department of Corrections
Records: RA-centechrecords@pa.gov
RTKL Office: 1920 Technology Parkway, Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
717-728-7763
RA-docrighttoknow@pa.gov
Use the DOC number, full name, approximate release year, and institution if known. Ask for the existing record field showing custody release or discharge date and method. A focused request is more useful than “all records,” which can create delay, exemptions, and cost.
SCI Benner Transportation Hub Movements
SCI Benner operates PADOC's Centralized Transportation Hub, and transfers are coordinated through the Office of Population Management. This local function makes location changes especially easy to misread. Movement through Benner can be logistical, not a step toward community release.
If a PA SAVIN alert reports movement or the locator replaces Benner with another institution, label it transfer unless a distinct parole, discharge, or community placement record says otherwise. Preserve the search date because facility assignments change.
Note: Benner's transportation role means an institution change can reflect routing rather than a release decision.
SCI Benner Reentry Office Milestones
The institution's Reentry Service Office works with people within 18 months of a minimum or release date. That planning period is a service milestone, not proof that the person has a fixed walk-out day or that parole has been granted.
Pennsylvania uses minimum and maximum sentence dates. The minimum is generally the first ordinary parole-eligibility point, and the Parole Board may deny or defer release. Detainers, program status, court changes, recommitment, and processing can also affect the next event. A reentry-office contact therefore cannot replace a PADOC or Board release record.
SCI Benner Parole Versus Discharge
State parole changes the person from prison custody to conditional PADOC supervision. The Department Supervised Individual Locator may then show a district office and a release-date label. Full discharge is different: once the person is outside both PADOC jurisdiction and current PADOC supervision, neither public locator mode may return a result.
A Board grant or a minimum date is not the physical release. Conditions and institutional processing may remain, and a detainer may send the person to another authority. When the exact event matters, ask PADOC records for the release or discharge date and recorded manner rather than relying on a projected milestone.
SCI Benner Minimum and RRRI Dates
Under 61 Pa.C.S. § 6137, the Parole Board generally cannot grant ordinary parole before the court-fixed minimum, subject to statutory exceptions or commutation. Reaching that date creates eligibility, not a right to leave SCI Benner Township. The maximum is a different sentence boundary. Pennsylvania's Parole Board expressly rejects the common claim that an inmate must serve 85 percent of the maximum before parole.
RRRI under 61 Pa.C.S. Chapter 45 can create an earlier statutory minimum for an eligible sentence. The court determines eligibility and enters the RRRI minimum, while PADOC must certify continued eligibility and completion. The official example uses an 18-month RRRI minimum for a typical two-to-four-year sentence. Even then, Board action, processing, and any detainer still matter.
Do not estimate an SCI Benner release from arithmetic alone. The public inmate detail does not expose the relevant projected field, and institutional reentry planning does not confirm a Board decision. Use the sentencing docket and an official PADOC or Board record for a named case.
PA SAVIN for SCI Benner Status
PA SAVIN through VINELink covers state prison and state parole as well as participating county jails. Search a named person, match the offender ID and facility, and read the event rather than just noting that the result changed. A movement alert from SCI Benner Township can mean transfer through the hub. A release alert should still be confirmed when the date, method, or receiving authority matters.
Notification choices include phone, text, email, and app. Telephone registration uses a four-digit PIN to acknowledge calls. The service is a fast alert layer, not the historical PADOC record. Save the event date and follow with PADOC records when documentary proof is needed.
Benner and Rockview Record Reassignment
Rockview's 2026 closure created an unusual administrative link to Benner. Reporting states that the final forestry-camp records were shifted electronically onto Benner's roster. A Benner location can therefore reflect administrative reassignment rather than a physical arrival, and neither fact establishes release.
Former Rockview prisoners should be searched statewide. If a result now shows Benner, Albion, or another SCI, treat it as PADOC movement until a separate status proves parole or discharge. This is why institution history and the current status must be read together.
Detainers After an SCI Benner Sentence
A sentence date can arrive without community release when another authority has lodged a detainer. PADOC custody may end as county, federal, or immigration custody starts. A release record that identifies the receiving agency is more precise than a general “released” label.
If BOP, ICE, or another county becomes relevant, search that authority after confirming PADOC's custody-end event. Release to a detainer shows an interagency handoff, not unconditional freedom.
An ICE handoff is especially easy to mislabel. The ICE locator covers current detention and, under its published scope, people released from ICE custody within the last 60 days. That window belongs to ICE, not PADOC. After it ends, a missing name does not explain whether the person was conditionally released, removed, or transferred.
About SCI Benner Township
SCI Benner Township opened in 2013 and operates as an active medium-security Pennsylvania state prison for adult men. It is not a Centre County jail and does not use CCCF Inmate Records for its releases. Its state role includes both a reentry office and the transportation hub.
The image below comes from the official SCI Benner Township page, the source for its current status, contact, and operating roles.
Use that page for current institution information, then use the statewide locator and PADOC records for person-specific custody or release history.