Search Bridgeport Correctional Center Inmates

Bridgeport Correctional Center Overview

Bridgeport Correctional Center is run by the Connecticut Department of Correction. It is a state correctional center that works as both a jail and a prison. The facility holds adult males only. Some are pretrial, which means they are accused and awaiting a court outcome, not yet convicted. Others are sentenced and serving time. A small group is held under a federal status. The center serves the Superior Courts of Ansonia, Derby, Milford, Bridgeport, Danbury, Norwalk, and Stamford, so men from a wide stretch of southwestern Connecticut can pass through it.

The facility is rated Level 4 high security. It also runs a sentenced Level 2 minimum-security unit for an inmate workforce that qualifies for outside-clearance jobs and community-support work. Housing is split across several areas: the New Center, the Madison Unit, the Memorial Unit, the North Wing, the Hospital Unit, and Protective Custody. A 2024 federal audit listed a designed capacity of 925. The warden of record is Jesus Guadarrama, with Deputy Wardens Jamel Linen and Mark Bonaventura.

The official Connecticut DOC page for the facility carries its address, phone, leadership, visiting notice, and programming. You can review the source page for Bridgeport Correctional Center on the state DOC site.

That official page is the most reliable source for current leadership, the visiting notice, and program lists. It updates as the facility changes, so it is worth checking before you rely on any older printout.

Bridgeport Correctional Center Capacity and Population

Population figures come from state sources and shift week to week. The 2024 PREA audit listed a designed capacity of 925, a current population of 665, and an average daily population of 584 over the prior 12 months. More recent state data shows the count well below those marks. On June 2, 2026, open data put the facility at 578 total, with 481 accused or other and 97 sentenced. The June 1, 2026 monthly report listed 573 total, all male.

The mix here leans heavily pretrial. The June 1, 2026 monthly report broke legal status into 96 sentenced, 464 accused, and 13 federal. That is close to the reverse of the statewide pattern, where most confined people are sentenced. This balance reflects the center's role as a pretrial and intake facility that serves several courts. The quarter ending March 31, 2026 showed an average population of 624 against 797 permanent beds, a density of about 78 percent. The 2024 audit reported no point of over-capacity in the prior 12 months. The recorded age range was 18 to 74, with no youthful inmates.

The rated capacity above is the designed figure from the 2024 PREA audit, and the population is that audit's header count. Day-to-day totals run lower in the 2026 data, so treat the stat block as a benchmark, not a live number.

Who Is Held at Bridgeport Correctional Center and How Do I Look Them Up

Bridgeport Correctional Center holds adult men in Connecticut DOC custody. Because the facility sits inside the state system, you do not use a county sheriff roster to find someone. You use the statewide inmate search. The Connecticut DOC inmate search lets you look up people currently held by the department. The state describes the search as accepting a CT DOC number, a name, and a date of birth. It updates daily.

Keep two limits in mind. The search shows people currently incarcerated, so a record there does not prove a conviction, since the DOC also holds accused people. Records for youthful offenders and people held for federal immigration custody are not included. For questions beyond what the search returns, the DOC Public Information Office answers at (860) 692-7780, Monday through Friday.

1. Open the Connecticut DOC inmate search at ctinmateinfo.state.ct.us.
2. Search by name, or by CT DOC number if you have it, and add a date of birth to narrow results.
3. Confirm the result lists Bridgeport Correctional Center as the current location.
4. Open the profile for status, controlling offense, admission date, and any release or detainer information.

A profile may show the name, inmate number, date of birth, accused or sentenced status, controlling offense, current location, admission date, and sentence dates. If the person bonded out fast or was never moved into DOC custody, they may not appear at all. In that case, the arrest may show first in police or court records. People arrested in Bridgeport may first pass through the Bridgeport Police Department Holding Facility before DOC custody, so an early arrest may surface there or in court dockets before it reaches the state search.

Bridgeport Correctional Center Address and Contact

The facility sits at the corner of North Avenue and Madison Avenue. Use the main line for general questions about the center. For records and broader inmate questions, the DOC Public Information Office handles calls during weekday business hours.

Drivers reach the facility from a few directions. From Hartford, the route runs down I-95 to Route 8/25 north and off at Lindley Street to North Avenue. The Merritt Parkway also feeds in by way of Park Avenue or Route 8. The official DOC page for directions to Bridgeport Correctional Center lays out each approach step by step.

Following the posted routes saves time, since the facility is set back at a busy intersection. Confirm visitor parking before you arrive, as the official sources do not detail it.

How Do I Visit, Write, or Send Money Here

Visits at Bridgeport Correctional Center must be planned ahead. The facility offers both in-person and video visits. A visitor may have one in-person visit and one video visit per week. Both kinds must be pre-scheduled through the online Visit Request Form, and the visitor must be on the inmate's approved, active visiting list. No visit is set until the facility sends a confirmation, so check your email, including junk mail, before you travel.

Getting on the visiting list takes time. The inmate gives a counselor the visitor's name and address, the counselor mails an application to the inmate, and the inmate forwards it to the visitor to complete and return. The DOC says this can take two to three weeks. Plan for it. Once approved, an in-person visit runs 30 minutes, allows up to two visitors including children, and requires a valid photo ID. Arrive at least 15 minutes early. Cell phones and electronic devices are not allowed inside, and visits are not held on state holidays.

The state visiting page explains the full rule set. You can read the Connecticut DOC visiting rules and start a request through the DOC Visit Request Form.

Because the facility does not publish fixed weekday public hours, the table below sorts visits by type rather than by day. Video visits run on Microsoft Teams, are free, and allow up to three approved adults. Professional and legal visits follow a separate schedule and contact path.

Note: Regular visiting periods are set by the inmate's housing unit, such as New Center 37 and 39 Blocks with the Hospital Unit, 38 Block Protective Custody, the Memorial Unit, the North Wing, and the Madison Unit.

Mail, Phone, and Money at Bridgeport Correctional Center

Mail must use the right format to reach an inmate. Write the person's name and inmate number on the envelope, then the facility address. Incoming general mail is opened and inspected for contraband under DOC Administrative Directive 10.7, and a clear sender return address is required, or the letter may be discarded. Phone service is outgoing only. Inmates cannot receive calls. They place calls through Securus and can use JPay or Securus tablets for e-messaging and Microsoft Teams video.

Money reaches an inmate through the Inmate Trust Fund. You can mail a money order, use JPay, use TouchPay at the state account site, or send funds by Western Union. For Western Union, the pay-to name is Connecticut DOC, the code city is CTDOC, and the account is the inmate's 8-digit number plus last name. Allow at least 10 working days for a mailed money order to post. The account line is 860-692-7670. Families cannot send clothing, since the DOC issues it and inmates buy extras from commissary.

The state account page lists each channel and the remitter details needed for a deposit. You can review the Connecticut DOC inmate accounts page for the full instructions.

Tablet media accounts can be funded directly and are capped at $150. For tablet rules and e-messaging setup, the DOC keeps a current tablet information page.

Note: Do not tuck cards, letters, or photos in with a money order, because the trust fund will not forward them and the deposit may be delayed.

Admission and Classification at Bridgeport Correctional Center

People arrive at Bridgeport Correctional Center in two main ways. Some come after a Bridgeport arrest and arraignment, when a judge sets bond they cannot post. Others come from court already sentenced. Because the center is a state facility, intake is an admission and classification process, not a street-arrest booking. Staff record the admission date, note whether the person is accused or sentenced, log the controlling offense, and screen for medical and mental-health needs.

Classification sorts each person by security level. The 2024 audit recorded a custody snapshot on February 1, 2024 of 10 at Level 1, 38 at Level 2, 144 at Level 3, and 470 at Level 4. That mix shows a mostly high-security population with a smaller minimum-security workforce group. Cash carried at admission is placed in the inmate account for commissary, and clothing worn in is swapped for a uniform.

The path from arrest to DOC custody is not always direct. A Bridgeport arrestee usually appears in DOC records as accused, not sentenced. After sentencing, the person's listed location may change to another DOC facility based on classification, sentence length, programs, or security needs. For the custody and court basics that come before this stage, the jail inmate records page walks through the wider lookup process.

About Bridgeport Correctional Center

The facility has a long history in the city. It opened in 1958. In 1974 the New Center was built to hold about 310 Level 4 inmates. The older Old Center, once used as chambers for judges and housing for men awaiting judgment, was demolished in 1997 after a 1990 fire left it beyond repair. Today the center runs as one of Connecticut's busy pretrial and intake hubs, drawing men from courts across the southwestern part of the state.

Programming aims to help men adjust to confinement and prepare for release. The DOC groups it into Addiction, Recreational, Educational, Volunteer, and Religious Services. The program list for the facility includes 12-Step groups such as AA and NA, Catholic Bible Study in English and Spanish, Taleem, a Tier I addiction program known as Beat the Streets, biohazard cleaning training for tier workers, and a security risk group phase. The facility page lists present staffing of 325, while the audit counted 316 staff who may have inmate contact, along with 36 volunteers.

Conditions get a regular outside check. The 2024 PREA audit, conducted on-site March 27 through 29, 2024, found the facility met all 45 standards reviewed, with none unmet. The audit also reported the center was not over capacity in the prior 12 months. You can read the full 2024 PREA audit report for Bridgeport Correctional Center for the detailed findings. For a fuller view of the local inmate population and how to search it, the Bridgeport inmate population home page pulls the figures together.