Sumter Correctional Institution Overview
Sumter Correctional Institution is operated by the Florida Department of Corrections at 9544 County Road 476B in Bushnell. The current state institution page lists it as a male prison with an adult and youthful age-18 mission, which means it houses sentenced state prisoners rather than people awaiting trial. The institution carries a broad campus mission, with the Sumter Work Camp as a satellite unit and a Basic Training Unit program on the same campus.
This is a state prison, not a county jail. A person appears here only after being convicted and sentenced to Florida prison and processed through state reception and classification. The county jail handles the arrest and pre-trial stage, and once a sentence to state prison begins, custody moves from the Sheriff to the Department of Corrections.
Sumter Correctional Institution Capacity and Population
The current Florida DOC institution page lists Sumter Correctional Institution at a capacity of 1,551 for a male adult and youthful population. The state does not post a live daily count on that page in the same way a county roster shows current bookings, so the capacity figure is the reliable published number for the prison's size.
The institution profile is published on the Florida DOC site. The Sumter Correctional Institution page lists the address, phone, warden, capacity, visiting hours, and programs.
That official page is the source for the prison's capacity, warden, and visiting hours used here.
How to Look Up an Inmate at Sumter Correctional Institution
The correct tool for a state prisoner is the Florida DOC offender search, not the county jail roster. The locator covers sentenced Florida inmates and supervision cases statewide, so a person held at Sumter Correctional Institution is found there.
- Open the Florida DOC offender search.
- Search by the prisoner's committed name or by a DC number.
- Confirm the current facility shows as Sumter Correctional Institution.
- Open the profile for the offense, sentence, reception date, and any release date.
A state profile shows a DC number, name, custody and location, physical identifiers, offense and sentence details, county of sentence, and a release date when available. It does not show a county booking number, county bond, or a county jail pod, because those belong to the jail stage. A person's underlying county court case can still be searched through the Sumter Clerk even after transfer to prison.
Florida DOC Offender Search Fields
The state offender search accepts a few fields and offers several search types from its menu. A DC number gives the most exact result, while a committed name is the common starting point. The menu also separates current population from release, escape, absconder, and supervision searches. The table lists the main fields.
| Field Label | Type | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| DC Number | Text | Optional | The Florida DOC prisoner identifier. |
| Last Name | Text | Optional | Use the committed name. |
| First Name | Text | Optional | Narrows a name search. |
| Search type | Menu | Varies | Population, release, supervision, and other menus. |
A search by DC number avoids the name collisions that come with a common last name, so collect the number first when it is known.
Sumter Correctional Institution Address and Contact
The prison is reached from Interstate 75 at Exit 309, then west on CR-476B for about two miles. Visiting and inmate questions should go to the institution directly or through the statewide DOC pages.
Sumter Correctional Institution
9544 County Road 476B
Bushnell, FL 33513-0667
(352) 569-6100 or (352) 568-4600
Florida Department of Corrections; Warden Robert Mercado
Visiting Someone at Sumter Correctional Institution
State prison visiting works differently from county jail visiting. A visitor must be on an approved visiting list, and visits follow statewide DOC rules for scheduling, dress, and conduct. The current institution page lists visiting hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern, and those hours and any day restrictions should be confirmed before traveling. The table sums up the key points.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Visiting hours | 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern, per the current FDC page |
| Approval | Visitor must be approved on the inmate's visiting list |
| Rules | Statewide DOC dress code and conduct rules apply |
| Confirm first | Verify the schedule with the institution before traveling |
The statewide DOC visitation information page explains approval and scheduling in detail and should be read alongside the institution page. Getting on the visiting list usually takes time, since the inmate must add the visitor and the department must approve the application, so plan ahead rather than arriving unannounced. The institution lists its nearest airports as Orlando and Tampa for visitors traveling a distance, and the campus is reached from Interstate 75 at Exit 309 and then west on County Road 476B.
Mail, Phone, and Money at Sumter Correctional Institution
State prisons use statewide Department of Corrections rules for mail, phone, and inmate funds, not the county jail's process. Mail follows the institution's address and DOC contact-an-inmate rules, money is deposited through the DOC send-funds process, and phone and visitation services follow statewide DOC vendors. The county commissary and deposit process used at the Detention Center does not apply here.
| Service | Provider / Detail |
|---|---|
| Use the FDC contact-an-inmate rules and the institution address | |
| Money Deposit | Use the FDC send-an-inmate-funds process, not the county kiosk |
| Phone / Visitation | Statewide DOC vendors and visiting rules |
Because state and county systems are separate, sending money or mail through the county jail will not reach a state prisoner at Sumter Correctional Institution.
Reception and Classification at Sumter Correctional Institution
A state prisoner does not arrive through street-arrest booking. After a county court sentences a person to Florida prison, the Department of Corrections receives the person through reception and classification, assigns a DC number, and places the person at an institution such as Sumter Correctional Institution. The county jail roster may show a DOC hold before the transfer, then stop listing the person once they leave county custody for the state system.
This movement is the reason a person can vanish from the Sumter County jail roster and reappear in the Florida DOC locator. The two systems track different stages of the same case, so a search that fails in one often succeeds in the other.
Families watching for a transfer or a release can register for notifications instead of checking the locator over and over. Florida VINELink sends custody and release alerts and works as a supplemental channel for victims and family members, though it is not the official DOC profile. The Florida VINELink registration covers state custody status changes, while the offender search remains the place to read the full sentence and facility details.
About Sumter Correctional Institution
The current Florida DOC page lists a wide set of programs at Sumter Correctional Institution. Academic and vocational options include Adult Basic Education, GED study, Building Maintenance Management, and a law library, along with a Basic Training Unit program track. Reentry and wellness programs include Faith and Character Dorm, AA and NA, Life Skills, Anger Management, Veterans Program, Thinking for a Change, and PRIDE work assignments such as Braille translation and wood products. Substance-abuse programming includes outpatient and intensive-outpatient options.
The institution also carries chaplaincy and faith-based programming, peer programs, and a Veterans Program, and the Department of Corrections has published PREA audit reports for the facility as part of its safety oversight. Program access is shaped by classification, security level, and conduct, so not every inmate qualifies for every program. The current institution page lists Robert Mercado as warden, which is the kind of detail that can change, so the official page should be checked for current staffing.
Sumter Correctional Institution is one part of a crowded custody map. The county holds a sheriff-run jail, this state prison campus, and a large federal complex, all inside the same county lines, which is why local inmate searches so often start in the wrong place. A person sentenced here is a state inmate even though the prison sits in the same county as the jail, so the state locator, not the sheriff's roster, is the tool that finds them.
The prison sits on a campus that also includes the Sumter Work Camp and the Sumter Basic Training Unit, all under Florida DOC. For the arrest and pre-trial stage that comes before a state sentence, the jail inmate records page covers the county roster.
Note: Confirm an inmate's custody and the current visiting schedule with the institution or the Florida DOC before traveling or sending funds.