FCI Terminal Island operated in the Los Angeles Harbor area for many decades and housed thousands of federal prisoners. Over its long history, a number of nationally known defendants, organized-crime figures, writers, public figures and people involved in major federal cases spent time at the institution.
The names below represent only a small selection of historically notable prisoners associated with Terminal Island. This is not a complete inmate roster.
For searchable historical inmate records, BOP Register Numbers and release dates, visit the FCI Terminal Island inmate records.
Al Capone
Al Capone, one of the best-known organized-crime figures of the Prohibition era, spent the final portion of his federal imprisonment at Terminal Island after previously being incarcerated at other federal institutions. FBI historical records state that Capone was released from the Federal Correctional Institution at Terminal Island in January 1939.
Capone had been convicted on federal income-tax charges in 1931.
Charles Manson
Charles Manson served federal prison time at Terminal Island years before the crimes that later made his name nationally known.
He spent portions of the 1950s and 1960s in federal custody at Terminal Island and was released from the institution in March 1967. He later became notorious as the leader of the group whose members committed a series of murders in California in 1969.
Timothy Leary
Timothy Leary, the former Harvard lecturer and counterculture figure, was incarcerated at Terminal Island during the 1970s while serving a federal sentence.
His time there became particularly notable because another nationally known prisoner, G. Gordon Liddy, was also housed at the institution during the same period.
G. Gordon Liddy
G. Gordon Liddy served part of his federal prison sentence at Terminal Island during the 1970s following his conviction in connection with the Watergate burglary and related offenses.
Years later, Liddy and Timothy Leary appeared together publicly and discussed the unusual fact that the two men, who represented very different public and political worlds, had once been fellow federal prisoners at Terminal Island.
Edward Bunker
Edward Bunker spent part of his incarceration at Terminal Island before becoming known as a novelist, screenwriter and actor.
During the 1970s, Terminal Island had an inmates’ writers workshop. Bunker participated in the program and later built a successful writing career. His novel No Beast So Fierce was adapted into the film Straight Time, and he later appeared as an actor in several films.
Anita O’Day
Anita O’Day, a prominent American jazz singer, spent time at Terminal Island during the 1950s following a federal narcotics conviction.
Her imprisonment represented only a short period in a music career that extended for decades.
The Port Chicago 50 and the Navy Period
Terminal Island also has an unusual history that predates its later operation as an all-male Bureau of Prisons institution.
During World War II the site was under U.S. Navy control and operated as a Naval Disciplinary Barracks. Members of the group historically known as the Port Chicago 50 were confined at Terminal Island following their military convictions.
Because this occurred while the property was controlled by the Navy, these men should be distinguished from later Bureau of Prisons inmates at FCI Terminal Island.
Sam Bankman-Fried
Sam Bankman-Fried, the former cryptocurrency executive convicted in federal court on fraud-related charges, was housed at FCI Terminal Island during 2025.
He was among the high-profile federal prisoners reported to be at the institution shortly before the Bureau of Prisons suspended operations at Terminal Island in November 2025.
Michael Avenatti
Michael Avenatti, a former attorney convicted in several federal criminal cases, also served part of his federal sentence at FCI Terminal Island.
He was reported as being housed at Terminal Island shortly before operations at the institution were suspended in 2025. His later custody location changed, illustrating why historical association with Terminal Island should not be treated as evidence of a prisoner’s current location.
Finding Other Former Terminal Island Inmates
The people above represent only some of the better-known prisoners associated with Terminal Island. Thousands of other federal inmate records are connected with the institution.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons online locator generally covers people incarcerated in federal custody from 1982 to the present. As a result, older historical inmates may not appear in today’s BOP online search even when other historical sources confirm that they were imprisoned at Terminal Island.
Browse FCI Terminal Island inmate and release records →
For information about the prison itself, including its former address, security level, history and the infrastructure problems that resulted in the suspension of operations, see FCI Terminal Island prison information and history.
Historical incarceration information does not establish a person’s present custody status. Current federal inmate locations and release information should be verified through the Federal Bureau of Prisons.