Check the prison's math in Louisiana

1. Get the official document

Official name: unknown. We did not find the document's name in an official source. Ask the records office for "the official time computation" or "time sheet."

Usually the incarcerated person can ask the records office or their counselor for it with a written request. Families often cannot get it directly; the person can share their copy.

Official online lookup (some dates appear here): [Louisiana VINELink offender search] (opens in new tab)

2. Which credits should appear

• Crimes on or after Aug 1, 2024: felony prisoners may earn good time for good behavior up to 15% of the sentence imposed. [La. R.S. 15:571.3.1 (good time for crimes on or after Aug 1, 2024)] (opens in new tab)
• They may earn more credit for programs under R.S. 15:828 (except people convicted of sex offenses). [La. R.S. 15:571.3.1 (good time for crimes on or after Aug 1, 2024)] (opens in new tab)
• Earlier crimes: R.S. 15:571.3 sets rates. Most DOC felony prisoners earn 13 days for every 7 days in custody. Different rates and exclusions apply for crimes of violence, repeat offenses and sex offenses. [La. R.S. 15:571.3 (diminution of sentence, earlier crimes)] (opens in new tab)

Full credit rules

3. Common-errors checklist

• Jail (pretrial) credit: days spent in county jail before sentencing are missing or miscounted. Compare with the jail booking record and the judgment.
• Sentence start date: the computation begins on the wrong day.
• Concurrent vs. consecutive: the judgment says one thing and the computation does the other.
• Multiple cases: credit applied to the wrong case, or a case missing. Rules on splitting credit between cases vary by state.
• Earned credits not posted: months of work, school or programs, or completed certificates, do not appear.
• Losses and restorations: credits taken without a finished disciplinary hearing, or restored credits never added back.
• Wrong law version: credit rules applied from a different date than the offense date.
• Revocation time: time on parole or supervision handled differently than the rules say.
• Detainers or holds: another case or agency may keep the person past the computed date (see detainers).
• Typos: sentence length, number of counts, or dates copied wrong from the judgment.

Have ready: the judgment, jail booking records, program certificates and disciplinary decisions.

4. If you find an error

• Write to the records office naming the exact error, with copies (never originals).
• If it is not fixed, use the agency's official grievance or dispute process.
• If the error is in the judgment itself (for example jail credit), the court may need to correct it. Talk to a lawyer or the public defender.

OutSooner explains the process; it does not prepare legal filings.

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