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

There is no single, universal brand of prepaid calling card that works across all jails and prisons. Most facilities do not use traditional calling cards at all. Instead, they rely on their own contracted phone providers, and inmates must use the system set up by that specific facility. If your husband says the card is blocked, it is likely because: The facility does not accept third-party calling cards The phone system only works with its approved provider Funds need to be added to his...

To send books from Amazon to an inmate at SCI Pine Grove, you will enter the inmate’s information as the shipping address during checkout. Here is how to do it step by step: Add the book(s) you want to purchase to your cart Go to checkout Under “Shipping Address,” select Add a new address Enter the inmate’s information in this format: Inmate’s full name and ID number (on the name line) Facility name Facility mailing address Select Ship to this address and complete your order A few important tips: Make sure the name and ID number match...

This is a situation that requires careful consideration before taking any action and we want to give you a genuinely useful answer rather than simply telling you to consult an attorney and leaving you with nothing. The legal picture If the protection order has been formally lifted or expired you are generally not legally prohibited from contact. However domestic violence cases often involve conditions attached to the defendant's bond, plea agreement, or pretrial release that may restrict contact with the victim regardless...

In most city and county jails, inmates are allowed to update their approved visitor list, but it is not always immediate and must follow the facility’s process. Your boyfriend can usually request to add or remove people from his list by submitting a form or making the change through his counselor or classification officer. Some facilities allow updates regularly, while others only allow changes during certain time periods. If someone is not on the approved list, they will not be allowed to visit,...

What you are running into is a common mailroom rule that is not always clearly explained. Many facilities reject photos that are printed on regular paper, even if they are not actually “scanned” in the way you are thinking. When a prison says “no scanned photos,” they are often using that as a catch-all term for images that are: Printed on standard printer paper Pulled from the internet and printed at home Not on true photo-quality paper Mailrooms prefer or require actual photo prints because they are...

There is no publicly available, regularly updated commissary price list for the Arizona Department of Corrections. Most state systems, including Arizona, do not publish detailed pricing online, even though they may list available items. That said, commissary pricing is fairly consistent across facilities because most prisons purchase from the same limited group of vendors. Looking at federal commissary lists can give you a very close estimate of what things cost. Here is a realistic pricing range to help you budget: Ramen and basic food...

When you send a letter through InmateAid, it is printed and mailed through the US Postal Service, so delivery times are similar to standard mail. In most cases, the letter will arrive at the facility within 1 to 3 business days after it is sent. However, that does not always mean the inmate receives it immediately. Once the letter reaches the jail or prison, it must go through the mailroom where staff: Open and inspect it for contraband Review it for compliance with facility rules Process it...

Inmates will not be notified electronically that you sent them a letter through InmateAid, and there is no email system involved in this process. InmateAid’s “e-letter” service simply means you write the letter online, and it is then printed and delivered through the US Postal Service as regular mail. Since inmates do not have internet access, they cannot check email or receive digital notifications. Your letter will arrive just like any other piece of mail during mail call. Once it is delivered,...

To see if the person you want to stay in contact with is already on InmateAid, you can use the Search InmateAid Profilesfeature on the site. Just type in their name and check the results. If a profile already exists, you can select it and click “Follow Inmate” to connect. This allows you to send letters, photos, and other services directly to them. If you do not find a matching profile, that just means no one has created one yet. You can easily...

At Kirkland Correctional Institution, there are several common reasons why your boyfriend may have missed a scheduled call, and most of them are routine rather than serious. The most likely possibilities include: No funds or minutes available in his phone account Phone restrictions or limits on how many calls or minutes he can use in a set period Unit lockdowns or schedule changes that temporarily prevent access to phones Equipment issues with the phone system Work assignments or count times conflicting with call hours It is also possible he simply did not get...