Family Rights and Advocacy in Arkansas

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Internal links (5): Arkansas inmate search, send money to Arkansas inmates, Arkansas reentry resources, Staying Connected hub, how prison works hub

Voice: Formerly-incarcerated narrator. Plain, direct, honest. Written to the family member on the outside.

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Family Rights and Advocacy in Arkansas | InmateAid

On February 2, 2026, the ACLU of Arkansas and the MacArthur Justice Center filed a class action lawsuit against the Arkansas Post-Prison Transfer Board and the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC), alleging that Arkansas's parole revocation process systematically denies people their constitutional due process rights -- including the right to an attorney and the right to a fair hearing. On February 27, 2026, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction ordering changes to Arkansas's parole revocation procedures.

If your loved one has been sent back to prison on a parole violation and you believe the process was unfair, this case -- Fason v. Hamlet -- is directly relevant to them.

Arkansas calls parole "post-prison transfer." Thousands of Arkansans are accused of parole violations each year, many for technical violations, and the lawsuit documents that parole officers have been pressuring people into waiving their rights without explaining what they are waiving. This is an active, ongoing federal case with an injunction in place as of this writing.

Arkansas's ADC Constituent Services Office -- unlike most states' equivalent offices -- specifically exists to receive non-criminal complaints from family members on behalf of incarcerated people. You can call them, email them, or write to them directly. They are not an advocacy organization, but they are an official complaint pathway that is more accessible to families than most.

Phone: **870-267-6385**

Email: [email protected]

Mail: P.O. Box 20550, White Hall, AR 71612

Arkansas's phone system uses **Securus Technologies**. As of 2025, Securus launched a **Connect Me app** for Arkansas ADC -- on-demand calling with no advance scheduling required.

One administrative change affecting families: **Paper money orders are no longer accepted by ADC as of May 31, 2025.** If you have been sending money orders, they will no longer work. Use the ADC online inmate deposit service instead.

What Families Are Facing in Arkansas

Arkansas incarcerates approximately 18,000-19,000 people in state facilities scattered across the state. Major facilities include:

- **Cummins Unit** (Lincoln County, southeast Arkansas) -- one of the oldest and largest; a farm prison with a history of documented brutality going back to the Tucker Telephone era

- **Tucker Unit** (Jefferson County, near Pine Bluff)

- **Varner Unit** (Lincoln County) -- death row

- **East Arkansas Regional Unit** (Lee County, eastern Arkansas)

- **Ouachita River Correctional Unit** (Malvern, Hot Spring County)

- **McPherson Unit** (Newport, Jackson County) -- primary women's facility

ADC administrative offices are in White Hall (Jefferson County, near Pine Bluff). For a family in Northwest Arkansas (Fayetteville/Bentonville) visiting a loved one at Cummins or Tucker in the southeast: 4+ hours each way. Arkansas's prison geography concentrates facilities in the delta and southeast while most of the population lives in the northwest and central parts of the state.

The parole revocation issue is urgent context: if your loved one was released and then sent back to prison, the Fason v. Hamlet case and the federal injunction may affect their rights right now. Contact the ACLU of Arkansas (see below) if you believe the revocation proceeding was unconstitutional.

On phone: Arkansas uses Securus. The Connect Me app allows on-demand calling with no advance scheduling during designated phone hours. If a call is dropped or has poor quality, it can be redialed without financial penalty. Securus Customer Service: **(877) 578-3658**.

On money: **Paper money orders no longer accepted after May 31, 2025.** Use ADC's online inmate deposit service at doc.arkansas.gov or the InmateAid send money page.

Your Rights as a Family Member in Arkansas

Visitation rights

Arkansas ADC's visitation policy frames visits as essential to maintaining good morale, sustaining family life, and ensuring community relationships upon release -- one of the cleaner policy statements on the purpose of visitation in the series. But the same policy applies: visitation is a privilege subject to suspension.

Key rules:

- Visitors must be on the inmate's approved visitor list

- Each facility manages its own visitation schedule and contact procedures

- If an inmate is suspended from visits, all appointments are canceled

- Advance scheduling requirements have been eased with the new phone system

- No conjugal visits in Arkansas ADC

For in-person visitation: contact the specific facility. ADC facility contact information is at doc.arkansas.gov.

Video visitation

Available at ADC prison facilities. As of January 2025, cost is **$5.00 per 30-minute session**. Must schedule at least 48 hours in advance. Must be on the approved phone and visitor list. Attorneys may NOT use the ADC video visitation system.

Securus Customer Service for video visitation technical issues and billing: (877) 578-3658.

Communication rights

Your loved one must add your number to their approved phone/visitor list to receive calls or video visits. Securus Technologies is the phone vendor. Connect Me app allows on-demand calling during designated hours. All calls are recorded except calls to attorneys.

eMessaging service is available through doc.arkansas.gov for digital messaging.

Notification rights

ADC is not required to notify family members of transfers. Use the ADC Inmate Search at doc.arkansas.gov to confirm current location. For serious medical emergencies or deaths, ADC notifies next of kin as designated in the inmate's file. Make sure your loved one has updated their file with your contact information.

For sexual misconduct: family members can call the **ADC PREA Report Line at 1-870-267-6533**. This is one of the few direct family-accessible hotlines for reporting serious misconduct inside Arkansas facilities.

Grievance rights

Internal ADC grievances must be filed by the incarcerated person. But Arkansas's Constituent Services Office explicitly handles non-criminal complaints from family members about conditions of confinement. This is meaningful. The Constituent Services Office is the appropriate channel for family complaints and operates as a genuine point of contact rather than just a redirect.

Contact Constituent Services at 870-267-6385, [email protected], or P.O. Box 20550, White Hall, AR 71612.

ADC Constituent Services: The Official Family Complaint Channel

The ADC Constituent Services Office was specifically created for family members, advocates, and concerned citizens who want to report concerns on behalf of incarcerated people. Their own website says they handle "non-criminal complaints about conditions of confinement" and that "providing accurate information about inmate housing, transfers, visitation, programs and disciplinary actions can ease many concerns."

Phone: **870-267-6385**

Email: [email protected]

Mail: P.O. Box 20550, White Hall, AR 71612

This office is housed within the Public Information Office. It is not an independent oversight body, and it cannot compel changes in security classifications or override disciplinary decisions. But it is an accessible and named official channel for family-initiated complaints -- which is more than most states offer. Document your contact: write down when you called, who you spoke to, and what you were told.

For FOIA requests (records requests): [email protected].

Arkansas Family Advocacy Organizations

Arkansas Justice Reform Coalition

arjusticereform.org

Email: sarahmoorenwa@gmail.com

The Arkansas Justice Reform Coalition works to end mass incarceration, led by the voices of families and individuals directly impacted. They envision community-based alternatives to incarceration and center safety and prevention of harm. For families who want to connect with other directly impacted Arkansans and engage in legislative advocacy, this coalition is the entry point.

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF)

aradvocates.org

1400 W. Markham, Suite 600, Little Rock, AR 72201

AACF is a nonpartisan policy advocacy organization that works on issues affecting Arkansas children and families. They engage on criminal justice policy as it affects children -- particularly children of incarcerated parents. If you are raising children while a co-parent is incarcerated, or if your children's parent's incarceration is affecting their access to services or stability, AACF's policy work may be relevant. They are an advocacy organization, not a direct services provider.

Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM)

famm.org

FAMM's national network includes Arkansas members. They advocate for sentencing reform, second-look sentencing, and compassionate release. If your loved one is serving what you believe is an excessive mandatory minimum or life sentence for a nonviolent offense, FAMM connects families to advocacy and peer support.

ADC Family Support Facebook Group

Search "Arkansas Department Of Corrections Family Support" on Facebook.

This is a peer community of thousands of families of people incarcerated in the Arkansas Department of Corrections. It is not affiliated with ADC. It is moderated by directly impacted families and provides a space for questions, resource-sharing, and support. For families who are new to the ADC system and need peer guidance, this is often the most immediately accessible community.

Prisoner Rights Organizations Families Can Contact on Their Loved One's Behalf

ACLU of Arkansas

acluarkansas.org

904 W. 2nd Street, Suite 1, Little Rock, AR 72201

Phone: 501-374-2842

The ACLU of Arkansas is the most active prisoner rights litigation organization in the state. Their current and recent case work directly relevant to families:

- **Fason v. Hamlet (filed February 2, 2026)**: Class action against the Post-Prison Transfer Board and ADC challenging parole revocation procedures. A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on February 27, 2026, ordering changes. Active case. If your loved one was sent back to prison through what you believe was an unfair parole revocation -- no attorney, pressured into waiving rights, rushed hearing -- this case is directly relevant.

- **Holt v. Payne**: Challenge to retaliatory transfer of incarcerated person to an out-of-state federal prison. Relevant for families whose loved one has been transferred as possible retaliation.

The ACLU of Arkansas does not take individual grievance cases routinely. Contact them when the issue involves a pattern of rights violations or when you believe a specific constitutional right has been violated.

MacArthur Justice Center

macarthurjustice.org

Co-counsel with the ACLU in Fason v. Hamlet. Handles strategic civil rights litigation including prisoner rights. Based in multiple cities including Chicago. Contact through their website.

Arkansas Legal Services

arlegalaid.org

Phone (statewide intake): 800-952-9243

Arkansas Legal Services provides free civil legal services to low-income Arkansans. While their primary focus is not prisoner rights, they can provide referrals and may assist with civil matters connected to incarceration. Call for an intake screening.

Human Rights Defense Center (HRDC)

humanrightsdefensecenter.org

Phone (for family members): 561-360-2523

HRDC advocates on prison phone costs, publications access, and free speech in facilities. If your loved one has had mail or publications wrongfully blocked, or if you have concerns about how communications are being handled by Securus, HRDC has specific expertise. Family members can call directly.

How to File a Complaint on Your Loved One's Behalf

Step 1: Document everything specific

Date, facility, name of staff if known, what happened, any witnesses. Specific documentation gives any complaint weight.

Step 2: ADC Constituent Services

870-267-6385 | [email protected] | P.O. Box 20550, White Hall, AR 71612.

Arkansas's Constituent Services explicitly handles family complaints about conditions of confinement. This is the correct first external contact. Document your contact.

Step 3: ADC PREA Report Line

For sexual misconduct: **1-870-267-6533**. Available to both inmates and family members.

Step 4: Contact your Arkansas state legislators

Your state senator and state representative have oversight authority over ADC. Arkansas's parole revocation litigation is a current legislative issue. Find your legislators at arkleg.state.ar.us.

Step 5: Contact the ACLU of Arkansas

501-374-2842 or acluarkansas.org. If the situation involves constitutional rights violations -- particularly parole revocation process, retaliatory transfer, or other documented civil rights issues -- the ACLU is the appropriate legal contact.

Step 6: Federal escalation

For civil rights violations inside ADC state facilities: U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division (justice.gov/crt). For federal facilities in Arkansas: BOP South Central Region.

What families cannot compel: You cannot file an internal grievance on your loved one's behalf (they must do that themselves). You cannot override facility decisions on discipline or security classification. External organizations can document, litigate, and advocate -- they cannot guarantee outcomes or timelines.

Staying Connected: The Practical Guide for Arkansas Families

Phone

Securus Technologies is the Arkansas ADC phone vendor. Create a prepaid account through the Securus platform (securustech.net). **Connect Me app** is now available -- on-demand calling during designated telephone hours, no advance scheduling required, no financial penalty for dropped calls.

Securus Customer Service: **(877) 578-3658**

All calls are recorded except legal calls to attorneys.

Post-FCC rate caps (April 2026) apply to interstate calls. Verify current rates at the InmateAid Arkansas phone page.

Video visitation

Available at ADC prison facilities through Securus.

Cost: **$5.00 per 30-minute session** (as of January 2025).

Schedule at least 48 hours in advance.

Must be on approved phone and visitor list.

Attorneys cannot use the ADC video visitation system.

Technical issues and billing: Securus Customer Service (877) 578-3658.

eMessaging

eMessaging service is available at doc.arkansas.gov.

Mail

Arkansas ADC has not announced a system-wide digital mail scanning transition. Mail goes to the facility. Confirm current mail policy and address with the specific facility or check doc.arkansas.gov.

Sending money

**Paper money orders are NO LONGER ACCEPTED after May 31, 2025.** Use ADC's online inmate deposit service at doc.arkansas.gov, the InmateAid send money page, or through the Securus platform.

Inmate Package Program

ADC offers a twice-yearly package program through Walkenhorst's (walkenhorsts.com) and arinmatepackage.com. Dollar limit per period: approximately $100-$150. Ordering windows are announced on the ADC website.

Securus SecureView Tablet Program

Families can lease a tablet for their incarcerated loved one through Securus. Tablets allow music, reading, games, job searching, and phone calls (subject to phone rules).

Locating your loved one

ADC Inmate Search: doc.arkansas.gov

InmateAid Arkansas inmate search: [internal link]

Supporting Yourself While Supporting Them

Arkansas's family advocacy infrastructure is limited but growing. The Arkansas Justice Reform Coalition is the primary organization organizing directly impacted families at the state policy level. The ADC Family Support Facebook group is the most immediately accessible peer community for new families navigating the ADC system.

The Fason v. Hamlet parole revocation case is worth following. If your loved one has been sent back to prison through what you believe was an unfair process, the injunction is in place and the case is active. The ACLU's updates on the case are at acluarkansas.org/cases/fason-v-hamlet/.

FAMM (famm.org) connects Arkansas families to a national network of people navigating mandatory sentencing.

Worth Rises (worthrises.org) tracks and fights Securus's financial practices across the country. If the costs of phone calls, video visits, or tablet leasing are a burden, Worth Rises is the organization documenting and challenging it.

Arkansas has a history of prison conditions that predate most people's awareness -- the Cummins Unit has been the subject of federal scrutiny since the 1960s. The families dealing with ADC today are dealing with a system that has a long institutional history. The advocacy organizations above are fighting that history. Find the one that fits your situation.