Find Burien Released Inmates

Burien released inmates records are best handled as a King County and state search, not a city-only search. Burien is a King County city with a small-town feel, well-established neighborhoods, and a long local history. It also sits near Sea-Tac, so release and booking questions can get mixed up with city notices, county court files, and state custody data if you are not careful. The quickest route is to start with DOC, then VINE, then the county court directory, and then any local city record or notice that helps you confirm the name, place, or date. That keeps the search local and practical.

The Burien homepage at burienwa.gov is a useful city checkpoint for local context, community notices, and public links before you move into release records.

That site says Burien is a vibrant King County city with diversity, arts, culture, and a small-town atmosphere, which helps frame local searches without pretending the city itself holds custody records.

Burien Released Inmates Records

The Washington DOC Incarcerated Search at doc.wa.gov/records/incarcerated-data-search/incarcerated-search is the first stop for Burien released inmates records under state custody. Search by DOC number or name. The state notes that special characters are limited, other than hyphens and apostrophes. The result can show the offender's current facility, earliest possible release date, and sentence information. If the person is no longer in state custody, DOC says a public records request can be used to seek older release and supervision information.

Burien is in King County, so the county court path matters just as much. The Washington State Courts directory at courts.wa.gov/court_dir/?fa=court_dir.county gives you the clerk and court administrator contacts for the county where Burien residents usually end up after a booking or sentencing step. That is the right place to look when a city arrest turns into a county case, a jail discharge, or a court order that affects release status. If you are trying to keep the search local, keep the county name with the city name. That is the cleanest way to avoid the wrong file.

Burien's city site adds useful context, not custody data. It says the city has been busy since incorporation in 1993 and that residents see Burien as a friendly place with well-established neighborhoods. The site also points people to a community hub, language access information, a prohibited camping map, and a report a crime option. Those links do not replace DOC or court records, but they help you narrow the place when you are trying to match a release or arrest to the right neighborhood or city notice.

How Burien Released Inmates Search Works

Start with DOC if you have a name or DOC number. That search covers current and historical incarceration data under state jurisdiction, which makes it the fastest route for a live custody check. If you want alerts instead of a one-time lookup, VINE at vinelink.com/#/state/WA lets you register for free, anonymous notices by phone or email when a person is released, transferred, escapes, or dies. The offender is not told that you signed up.

King County records often sit behind a Burien search. If a city matter moved into county court, the court directory will give you the clerk and court administrator you need to call or visit. That matters because a city booking, a county jail stay, and a DOC release can all appear in different places. A short date range and a clean spelling help a lot. So does knowing whether you are looking for a release date, a jail discharge, or a conviction history.

• Full legal name as it appears in the record
• DOC number if you have it
• Approximate booking, transfer, or release date
• Burien or King County connection

For a broader criminal history view, the Washington State Patrol criminal history page at wsp.wa.gov/crime/criminal-history/ explains WATCH, the mail route, and the in-person option in Olympia. That is not the same thing as a live release lookup, but it helps once you move past the custody search and need conviction data.

Burien City Records and Local Context

Burien's city homepage is more than a news feed. It gives you the community shape around the record. The site highlights News and Events, the Community Hub, Burien Magazine, Language Access Information, and a Prohibited Camping Map. It also points people to city services like Report a Crime, Apply for a Permit, and Contact Staff. Those pieces can help you confirm a location or date when a release question starts with a neighborhood event or a local police call.

The city also describes Burien as a vibrant and creative community where residents celebrate arts and culture and treasure the environment. That local tone matters because it tells you what kind of place you are matching against in a search. If a booking or discharge record is tied to a Burien address, local notices and city pages can help you keep the search tight and avoid mixing Burien up with another South King County city.

City council information can also be useful when you need a public-facing contact path. The city says its seven elected councilmembers establish policies and laws, adopt the budget, and approve services. That does not make them the records office for released inmates, but it does tell you where city policy lives when you are trying to understand how local notices and public services are organized.

Burien Public Records Limits

Washington's Public Records Act, RCW 42.56, is the rule that sits behind most Burien released inmates requests. It says public records include writings held by state and local agencies, and it gives agencies five business days to answer with the record, a link, an acknowledgment and time estimate, or a denial with a specific exemption. That is the basic path when you are asking for a release date, a case note, or a file copy from a city, county, or state office.

Jail records have a split structure under RCW 70.48.100. The jail register is public and must show the name of each person confined, the time and date of confinement, the cause of confinement, and the time, date, and manner of discharge. But the detailed jail file stays confidential unless another law allows access. So a Burien search may confirm that someone left custody without opening the full jail packet.

RCW 10.97.030 also matters because it separates conviction data from non-conviction data. Conviction records are open. Non-conviction data is restricted to criminal justice agencies. If you are working from an old arrest or a record that was sealed, vacated, or never ended in conviction, the public result may be short. That is normal and it is one reason DOC, VINE, and the court directory all belong in the same Burien search.

Burien Released Inmates Follow-Up

When the search needs a next step, the state contact pages help. DOC's contact page at doc.wa.gov/about-us/contact-us routes public records requests for current and historical inmate data. The Washington State Patrol contact page at wsp.wa.gov/about-wsp/contact/ points you to the Identification and Criminal History Section and the public records officer. If you need a clean explanation of how agencies handle requests and exemptions, the Attorney General's public records page at atg.wa.gov/our-work/public-records is the best state guide.

Burien also sits in a part of King County where city notices and county issues can overlap. The city has recently published items about airport-related concerns and a new mayoral term, which shows that the homepage is mainly about civic news and local government, not custody data. Use those notices for context. Use DOC, VINE, the court directory, and the county record path for the release record itself.