How to Send a Letter to a Juvenile in Detention

Juvenile detention facilities operate under much stricter privacy rules than adult jails and prisons. In most states, the names and ID numbers of juveniles in the system are not available to the general public, even to people trying to send mail. This is by design and is not something InmateAid is able to work around.

That said, there are still some practical options worth trying.

Call the facility directly. If you are a family member or legal guardian, call YDC Marietta and identify yourself. Related parties often get more information than the general public, and staff may be able to confirm placement and point you toward the right process for sending mail or setting up communication.

Send a letter without an ID number. If you know the person's full legal name and approximate date of birth, you can attempt to send a letter addressed to the facility using 000000 as a placeholder for the ID number. It does not always work, but mail room staff at juvenile facilities will sometimes route letters by name if the individual is in their system.

Set up a Personal Inmate Page. InmateAid can create a Personal Inmate Page for your contact, which gives you a dedicated place to manage correspondence and send photos. This can be especially useful when formal ID information is not yet available to you.

If you need help getting any of this set up, reach out to InmateAid directly and we will walk you through it.