Ask The Inmate. Real answers from people who've been there.

When you send a letter through InmateAid, we handle the printing and mailing on your end. Your letter is printed, properly addressed, and sent directly to the US Postal Service, which delivers it to the facility's mail room just like any other piece of mail. From there, staff opens and inspects it for contraband before it reaches mail call and gets handed to your inmate. The reply process is straightforward and works the same way regular mail always has. When your...

It is a reasonable thing to want. Someone heading into jail or prison for the first time is walking into an environment with its own rules, culture, and unwritten codes, and getting it wrong in the first few weeks can create problems that follow an inmate for their entire sentence. The honest answer is that most books on this topic are not very good. The ones that do exist tend to be dated, and many carry a tone of resentment or...

Your fiancé does not need any money on his books to receive what you sent. There is no charge to the inmate for incoming mail. When you send a letter or photos through InmateAid, you pay for the service on your end. That covers the printing, any attachments, and the postage to get it to the facility. Once it arrives, it goes through the mail room the same way any other piece of mail does, staff inspects it, and then it...

A court-appointed investigator is a legal right, not a service you purchase. It falls under the same constitutional framework as the right to a public defender. If your son cannot afford to hire a private investigator to assist with his defense, the court can appoint one at no cost. The catch is that this right is rarely volunteered by the system. You have to ask for it. The process starts with a petition to the court. Your son's attorney should be...

Your number does not expire just because it took a while to get approved at the facility. Once your account is active and in good standing, the number stays live on a monthly billing cycle regardless of whether your inmate has started using it yet. Facility approval can take time. Some jails and prisons process new numbers quickly, others take weeks, and in some cases the inmate has to submit the number through the proper channels and wait for it to...

The difference between USP, FCI, and FPC comes down to security level and custody classification within the Federal Bureau of Prisons. USP (United States Penitentiary): This is the highest security level. These facilities house inmates with more serious charges or higher risk classifications. Movement is tightly controlled and security is strict. FCI (Federal Correctional Institution): These are medium or low security prisons. They still have controlled movement, but conditions are less restrictive than a USP. Many inmates serve the bulk of their sentences here. FPC (Federal Prison Camp): This...

What you discovered is exactly how many families reduce the high cost of inmate calls, especially in Arizona facilities. Instead of funding accounts through Securus Technologies, which often includes extra fees just to add money, using prepaid calling cards purchased inside the facility can be a much more cost-effective option. Here is why this method works well: Inmates buy calling cards directly through commissary Calls are made at a flat rate per call (around $1.84 in your case) There are no deposit fees like the $7 to $8 charges often added by...

CCA stands for Corrections Corporation of America, which is a private company that operates correctional facilities under contract with federal and state agencies. Today, it is commonly known as CoreCivic. They manage dozens of facilities across different states, so when someone says an inmate was sent to “CCA,” it does not point to one specific location. It simply means your son has been placed in a privately operated prison. To find out exactly where he is, you will need a bit more information,...

Yes, and we want to make sure every customer understands exactly what they signed up for before any confusion sets in. After you place an order with InmateAid, you will receive a confirmation email that walks through how the service works, what to expect, and what steps come next. Whether you have set up a discount phone line, sent a letter, or arranged another service, that follow-up communication is designed to answer the questions most people have before they think to...

Yes, that is exactly how it works. The number you received is a local phone line that forwards directly to the phone number you provided when you signed up. When your inmate dials it, the call routes straight to you. Before that first call can happen, there is one step that needs to be completed on the facility's end. Your inmate needs to register the new number through the prison's phone system. In the federal system that means submitting it to...

Processing delays on new discount phone numbers are usually tied to order volume, and holidays are the most common cause. When a holiday falls the day before, overnight and same-day orders back up and take longer to work through than normal. It is not a technical issue with your account, just a queue that is running behind. If your number is still showing as pending, it is actively being processed. Orders do not get lost in the system, they just take...

Pending means your phone line has been ordered and is in the queue waiting to be assigned. It is not active yet, but it is being processed. Under normal circumstances, you can expect to receive an email confirmation with your new number within one to two hours of placing your order. If there was a holiday the day before, processing may run a bit longer than usual due to backlogged orders. It will clear, just not on the standard timeline. You do...

There are no true unlimited calling plans in jails or prisons like you would see with regular cell phone service. Facilities like East Carroll Detention Center contract with one phone provider only (such as Securus Technologies), and that company controls all calling options. Because of that setup, there is no competition and no outside company can offer unlimited calling. What you may be hearing about are subscription-style plans, not unlimited calling. For example: Some Securus plans allow a set number of calls per month (like up to 100 calls), not unlimited  Calls still have time...

Legal mail is protected. Facilities cannot hold it, restrict it, or prevent it from going out. That protection exists under federal law and applies to correspondence with attorneys, courts, and government agencies. If your boyfriend is sending legal mail, it should be leaving the facility. That said, there are a few practical things worth checking if he feels like something is not moving. Legal mail typically has to be identified as such when it is handed in. In most facilities, the inmate...

Yes, mail generally continues even during a lockdown in a federal prison camp. Lockdowns usually restrict movement, visitation, phone access, and commissary, but mail is considered an essential service. Inmates are still allowed to send and receive personal mail, although there can be delays. Here is what typically happens during a lockdown: Incoming and outgoing mail still moves, but more slowly Mailroom processing may be delayed due to limited staff movement Delivery to inmates may take longer than usual Federal prison camps are typically lower security environments, and lockdowns...