Crain Unit Release Destinations
A person physically leaving Crain may begin parole or mandatory supervision under the TDCJ Parole Division. Parole is conditional release after a Board decision. Mandatory supervision is a distinct statutory form of supervised release. Someone who reaches maximum expiration can instead discharge, which means the sentence and any attached supervision have ended. The individual TDCJ record is needed to tell these outcomes apart.
A transfer remains custody. Crain’s intake and receiving work means some arrivals are beginning or continuing a prison term. Its regional-release role means people with histories at other units can also be processed there. Neither the unit name nor presence in Gatesville proves which event occurred. Confirm the audited scheduled release location, completed date, release record, and supervision result.
Confirm Crain Unit Release Status
Open the official TDCJ offender search. A seven-digit TDCJ number or SID number gives the strongest first query. If neither is known, enter the last and first name, then narrow by gender or race. Select a result and compare the identifiers, offense, conviction county, court, and dates. A name alone is not enough.
The lookup sequence should remain tied to the question being asked:
- Confirm the person’s identity and current or last listed unit.
- Read the Projected Release Date as conditional, not final.
- Look for Scheduled Release Date and Scheduled Release Location after an approved release is audited.
- After physical exit, check whether parole or mandatory-supervision status remains active.
- If the online record is absent or incomplete, use TDCJ information or public-record routes.
A person on supervision may stay visible in TDCJ data after leaving the prison gate. That continuing record can help confirm post-custody status. The Coryell County release search overview separates state-prison results from county-jail and federal records.
Crain Unit Scheduled Release Fields
TDCJ advertises location, offenses, and Projected Release Date. The projected field is the Classification and Records Office estimate for when incarceration would end if parole does not occur sooner, based on the offense title and date. It can move as the legal or administrative record changes. It is not a promise, gate appointment, or proof of departure.
After a favorable decision and receipt of the release certificate, TDCJ audits the record. Scheduled Release Date and Scheduled Release Location may then appear. Even a scheduled date can change without notice. A past scheduled date should be checked against later status, because a hold, revised calculation, program condition, or transfer can affect the path.
| Field | What it supports | What it cannot prove alone |
|---|---|---|
| Current location | The listed TDCJ placement | Community release |
| Projected Release Date | A conditional sentence calculation | A guaranteed exit |
| Scheduled Release Date | An audited release plan | That exit occurred |
| Scheduled Release Location | The planned processing site | Where the person lives later |
| Supervision status | A post-exit TDCJ connection | Full discharge |
Crain Unit Records and Contact
The unit can answer location-specific questions, but individual release proof belongs in TDCJ’s record system. For general locator information, TDCJ lists 936-295-6371 and 800-535-0283 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Before a release vote, BPP status is available at 844-512-0461. After a favorable vote, Parole Division release status is available at 512-406-5202.
Christina Melton Crain Unit
Operator: TDCJ Correctional Institutions Division
Unit code: GV
Address: 1401 State School Road, Gatesville, TX 76599-2999
Phone: 254-865-8431
When no TDCJ or SID number is known, a phone inquiry requires the exact date of birth. TDCJ’s free information email route can supply a TDCJ number, location, current and prior incarceration information, offense information, and a projected date. It does not supply photographs. Formal release certificates and other records follow the Office of General Counsel public-information route.
Crain Regional Release Site
Crain’s official operations list both offender intake and receiving work and a Regional Release Site. This pairing is locally distinctive. A person can reach the complex for intake while entering state custody, or reach Crain during the last stage of a release plan. Those movements point in opposite directions, so the facility role cannot substitute for an individual record.
Check Scheduled Release Location only after the TDCJ audit. Do not assume every woman housed at Hilltop, Murray, Woodman, or another unit exits through Crain. Likewise, a move to Crain for processing is not the completed community release. The later TDCJ status, release certificate, and supervision record supply the needed confirmation.
Crain Parole and Discharge Records
A favorable Board result can carry conditions that must be met before release. TDCJ must receive the release certificate and audit the file. Programs, detainers, or other record issues may affect the timing. The unit’s CHANGES, pre-release, and reentry planning work shows preparation, but program participation does not prove that a release has occurred.
Once outside, parole or mandatory supervision keeps the person connected to TDCJ and an assigned district office. Full discharge is different. If a fully discharged person no longer appears online, request TDCJ records and check the conviction court. Do not switch to the Coryell Sheriff roster, which covers current county-jail bookings rather than state sentence history.
- Parole
- Conditional release under supervision after a Board decision.
- Mandatory supervision
- A separate supervised-release path governed by Texas law and sentence rules.
- Discharge
- Completion of the sentence and attached supervision.
- Release certificate
- The official document used in the approved release process.
Crain Unit Facility Profile
Christina Melton Crain Unit is a TDCJ Correctional Institutions Division prison for women. The official unit page lists a capacity of 1,440 and places it three miles north of Gatesville on Highway 36. Crain shares a 1,283-acre complex with Hilltop, Murray, and Woodman. These figures describe the institution and grounds, not current population or release volume.
Co-location can create confusing search results and family assumptions. Unit names matter. A record showing Hilltop or Woodman is not a Crain confinement record, even if all are near Gatesville. Verify the exact current unit and the scheduled release location separately.
Coryell’s Six-Prison Release Network
Coryell County contains six TDCJ prisons plus its county jail. Woodman performs female diagnostic intake. Crain performs intake and regional release work. O’Daniel retains code MV from its former Mountain View name. Hilltop, Hughes, Murray, and the other units have their own roles and records. This dense network makes transfer language especially important.
Movement among the Gatesville units is not a release. Intake is not release. A planned date is not release. Use the person-specific TDCJ fields, then verify the completed event and any supervision. That chain is more reliable than inferring status from which institution appears nearby.
Note: Facility capacity, programs, or release-site designation provide context but never replace the individual’s audited TDCJ release record.