Formby Unit Release Outcomes
Formby Unit is a Texas Department of Criminal Justice Correctional Institutions Division prison. Its unit code is FB. A departure is controlled by the statewide TDCJ record, not by the Hale County Sheriff. Community outcomes can include discharge at sentence completion, parole, or mandatory supervision. Parole and mandatory supervision allow release from confinement while state supervision continues. Discharge may refer to the end of confinement or, depending on the record, completion of the sentence.
Another common outcome is an inter-unit transfer. That move ends the person's placement at Formby but does not end TDCJ custody. A court action, detainer, new case, Board prerequisite, or receiving-agency hold can also affect the practical event. The current facility, actual status, release history, and supervision source must be read together before describing someone as released.
| Formby departure | Meaning | Verification |
|---|---|---|
| Inter-unit transfer | TDCJ custody continues elsewhere. | Current Facility and TDCJ history |
| Parole | Confinement ends while the sentence continues under supervision. | Release event, Board information, and parole office |
| Mandatory supervision | State-law supervised release, subject to eligibility and review. | TDCJ and Board records |
| Discharge | The recorded state-prison or sentence event is complete. | Historical release information |
Confirm a Formby Unit Release
Use an exact seven-digit TDCJ number or SID when available. Those identifiers are more reliable than a name. The TDCJ offender search otherwise requires an exact last name and at least a first initial, with gender or race refinements available. Compare age, county of conviction, offense, sentence, and unit. Record the date checked because the official form says information is updated on working days and is at least 24 hours old.
- Search the TDCJ number or SID. If neither is known, use the exact name fields and compare all identifiers.
- Read Current Facility first. A different unit points to transfer, not community release.
- Separate Projected Release Date, Maximum Sentence Date, and Parole Eligibility Date from an actual release event. Each has a distinct meaning.
- Request prior incarceration and release history when the live result is absent or no longer supplies the past event.
- If parole or mandatory supervision followed, check Board status and the Plainview District Parole Office.
Formby Unit Historical Records
The public TDCJ search centers on current incarceration. For the retrospective event, use the official TDCJ email information route. The instructions accept a full name and TDCJ number at pia@tdcj.texas.gov. If the number is unknown, include exact date of birth or approximate age and county of conviction. TDCJ states there is no charge for the listed information.
Ask for prior incarceration and release history, the actual release or transfer date, status, and the last unit. Do not ask staff to turn an eligibility field into a guaranteed date. If a live result was saved, include its capture date and identifiers so staff can locate the same record. A TDCJ release history is the proper state source; a Hale County Jail release sheet cannot establish departure from Formby.
The official Formby Unit directory record identifies the prison and its operator:
Formby Unit Records Contact
The official unit directory lists Formby Unit at 998 County Road AA, Plainview, Texas 79072, with telephone number (806) 296-2448. The unit can route a current operational question, but statewide offender information and public-information channels control release history. Call before relying on visiting or office hours because the research does not verify a public records counter schedule.
Formby Unit (FB)998 County Road AA
Plainview, TX 79072
(806) 296-2448
Verify current contact procedures
Provide the full name and TDCJ number or SID. Ask which state office holds the requested release, transfer, or discharge record. Personal case details and protected data may not be public. The goal is to confirm the official status and event, not to infer private conditions from a unit program or a projected date.
Formby Projected Release Fields
Projected Release Date is an administrative calculation. Maximum Sentence Date reflects the sentence endpoint in the agency calculation. Parole Eligibility Date means review may become legally possible; it does not show approval or gate release. Texas does not apply one universal “serve 85 percent” rule. Eligibility depends on the offense, date, sentence, actual time, governing statute, and Board action.
A projected date can change after credit review, disciplinary forfeiture or restoration, an amended judgment, concurrent or stacked sentence decisions, a detainer, a new case, or Board action. Government Code Chapters 498 and 508 govern good-conduct time and parole or mandatory-supervision issues. For a date falling on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, Government Code §501.016(b) permits TDCJ release on the preceding workday. That state rule does not establish Hale County Jail practice.
Use Projected Release Date for the full distinction between state calculations and county-jail terms. Actual release should be verified after it occurs.
Formby Release Supervision
The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles decides parole and mandatory-supervision matters. TDCJ Parole Division supervises after release. A favorable Board vote is not the physical release event. Some favorable actions require programs or other prerequisites, and later holds can still affect the date.
When the state record shows release to supervision in Hale County, the Plainview District Parole Office is the local routing point. It is at 1001 North Interstate Highway 27, Suite 232, Plainview, Texas 79072, telephone (806) 293-5989. Probation is different: Hale County CSCD handles court-ordered adult community supervision. See Parole & Probation for the correct office and status sequence.
Formby's directory lists Reentry Planning and CHANGES/Pre-Release among its programs. Those listings describe available unit programs. They do not prove that a named person enrolled, completed a program, received parole approval, or passed through the gate.
Formby and Wheeler Release Records
Formby and J.B. Wheeler Unit are co-located five miles east of Plainview on Highway 70, yet they are distinct state prisons. Formby uses code FB, a separate street address, and an official capacity of 1,100. Wheeler uses code WR and has its own directory record. The shared acreage cannot substitute for the exact unit name in a search or records request.
A person can leave Formby for Wheeler, leave Wheeler for Formby, or move from either site to another TDCJ unit without being released. This makes the Current Facility field and the historical destination vital. Start with the last known unit code, then trace the state record. The J.B. Wheeler Unit release page covers the separate WR path.
About Formby Unit Releases
TDCJ identifies Formby as a male prison in its Correctional Institutions Division. It is five miles east of Plainview and has an official capacity of 1,100. Capacity describes the institution, not the number of people released or presently confined. No annual Formby release count is supplied in the Hale research.
The TDCJ unit directory shows how Formby fits the statewide system:
For a complete cross-system search, use Hale County released inmate records. That path separates county, state, city, federal, and immigration custody.