How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Hawaii

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*** VOLATILE / RESTRICTIVE - RECHECK BEFORE PUBLISH ***

Hawaii DCR (renamed from Dept of Public Safety, Jan 1 2024). Per HRDC censorship lawsuit filed 7/24/2025 (US Dist. Ct. Hawaii) and contemporaneous reporting: SEVEN of DCR's EIGHT facilities have policies stating books/magazines/food "may not be sent to an inmate" - a near-blanket ban on mailed publications. Kulani Correctional Facility (min-security, Hawaii Island) is the lone exception (no incoming/outgoing mail restriction). DCR returned 56 HRDC items Apr 2024-Jul 2025. Litigation ongoing; outcome may force policy change. ~1,000+ Hawaii men held out of state at Saguaro Correctional Center (CoreCivic) in Eloy, ARIZONA, governed by Hawaii DCR policy COR 15.05 (NOT Arizona ADCRR). Publications policy = COR 15.05; mail = COR 15.02. RE-VERIFY current policy and case status at publish; this is the most restrictive state in the series and is in active litigation.

How to Send Books and Magazines to an Inmate in Hawaii

A good book is one of the most valuable things you can put in the hands of someone you love inside a Hawaii prison. It fills the long, empty hours, it keeps the mind working, and it is a piece of the outside world they get to hold. But I have to be straight with you: Hawaii is the hardest state in the country right now to send a book into, and you need to understand why before you spend a dime.

I am going to explain it the way someone who has done time would, plainly and without the runaround.

The Hard Truth Right Now

Here is what you need to know first. As of recent reporting and a federal lawsuit filed in July 2025, most of Hawaii's prisons have been refusing mailed books and magazines outright. The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the DCR, runs eight facilities, and according to the lawsuit seven of those eight have policies saying that books, magazines, and similar items may not be sent to an incarcerated person at all. A publisher that has mailed magazines to Hawaii prisoners for decades sued the state, alleging dozens of its items were returned, and argued the blanket ban is unconstitutional.

What this means for you is practical: at most Hawaii facilities, a book you order and mail will likely be refused right now, no matter how correctly you send it. The one facility the lawsuit identifies as an exception is Kulani Correctional Facility, a minimum-security prison on Hawaii Island, where mail is not restricted the same way.

This is also a moving target. Because the ban is being challenged in court, the rules could change, and a court order or settlement could reopen the mail. So the single most important thing you can do in Hawaii is confirm your person's specific facility's current policy before you order anything. Do not assume, and do not spend money on a book until you know it will be accepted.

The One Rule, Where Books Are Allowed

At a facility that does accept mailed publications, Hawaii follows the same core rule as the rest of the country: you cannot buy a book yourself and mail it in. Books and magazines must come directly from a publisher, bookstore, or approved vendor, shipped straight to the facility, in new condition, and paperback is the safe format. A package that looks like it came from a person's home is refused. So even where the door is open, order from a seller, not from your own shelf.

Check the Facility First, Every Time

Because Hawaii is in flux, your first step is always to confirm the current rule for the exact facility holding your person. Call the facility or check the DCR site, and ask plainly: are mailed books and magazines being accepted right now, and if so, from which sources and in what format. If your person is at Kulani, mail is generally open. If they are at one of the other facilities, you may be told no for now, in which case lean on the tablet and the facility library, covered below, until the policy changes. You can confirm where your person is housed on Hawaii's inmate locator.

The Out-of-State Wrinkle: Saguaro in Arizona

Here is something unique to Hawaii: a large share of Hawaii's incarcerated men are not in Hawaii at all. They are held at the Saguaro Correctional Center in Eloy, Arizona, a private prison operated under contract for Hawaii. If your person is at Saguaro, two things matter. First, they are still governed by Hawaii's correctional publication policy, not by Arizona's state prison rules, so do not follow Arizona's ADCRR guidance for them. Second, Saguaro has its own mail and publication procedures under that Hawaii policy, so you address publications to Saguaro in Arizona and confirm the facility's specific current rules before ordering. The distance also means longer shipping times, so plan ahead.

Where to Order, If Your Facility Allows It

If, and only if, you have confirmed your person's facility is currently accepting mailed publications, the simplest path is a major online bookseller that ships the book itself. Amazon works for this when allowed. Choose a copy that is sold and shipped by Amazon, not by a third-party marketplace seller, and look for "Ships from Amazon" and "Sold by Amazon."

Order new and paperback, address it to your person with their full name and DCR identification number, then the confirmed facility address, and send the book by itself with nothing tucked inside. If you have not confirmed the facility accepts mailed books, hold off, because an order sent into a facility that is refusing publications is money lost.

Magazines and Newspapers

Magazines and newspapers are subject to the same restriction, and in fact the lawsuit centers on blocked magazine subscriptions, so confirm acceptance before starting one. Where a facility does accept them, a subscription must ship directly from the publisher in your person's name.

Stick to mainstream titles, since sexually explicit content is rejected everywhere, and keep your receipt in case a facility that should accept a subscription returns it, which has been happening in Hawaii.

What Hawaii Rejects

Where publications are allowed, Hawaii reviews each one and rejects material that describes escape methods or facility security, that explains how to make drugs, alcohol, or weapons, that encourages violence or criminal activity, or that is sexually explicit in a way that threatens security or order. When a publication is found unacceptable, the facility is supposed to advise your person in writing of the decision and the specific reasons. Keep in mind that the broader, blanket refusals described above go beyond these ordinary content rules, which is exactly what the lawsuit challenges.

Tablets, the Library, and the Realistic Path

Given how restrictive mailed publications are in Hawaii right now, the reliable ways to get your person reading are often the tablet and the facility library. Hawaii facilities provide tablets that may carry some e-books and media, and every facility has a library your person can request from. These are not as good as sending the exact paperback you want, and tablet catalogs are limited and can carry charges, but until the mail rules open up they are frequently the dependable option. Encourage your person to use the library and to tell you what the tablet offers.

Free Books and Book Programs

Nonprofit book programs mail free books to incarcerated people in many states, but in Hawaii their packages face the same facility restrictions as anyone else's right now, so a program's book can be refused at the facilities that are blocking mail. Where mail is open, such as Kulani, these programs can help, usually after your person writes to request titles. We keep current pointers to programs and the latest Hawaii access information on our Hawaii reentry resources page, which is the place to watch as the litigation plays out.

Get It Right the First Time

Here is the whole thing in a breath. Hawaii is the hardest state to send a book into right now, because most of its facilities have been refusing mailed books and magazines, a practice being challenged in federal court. Before you spend anything, confirm your person's specific facility is currently accepting mailed publications. If it is, order new paperback, sold and shipped by Amazon, with their name and DCR number, and use InmateAid for an allowed subscription. If your person is at Saguaro in Arizona, follow Hawaii's policy, not Arizona's. And until the mail opens, lean on the tablet and the library. Watch for the rules to change as the case proceeds.

Get it right and you become the person who reliably gets good books to someone who needs them. On the inside, that means more than you can know from out here.

FAQ

**Can I mail a book to a Hawaii inmate right now?** Often no. As of a 2025 federal lawsuit and recent reporting, seven of Hawaii's eight DCR facilities have been refusing mailed books and magazines. Kulani Correctional Facility is the exception. Confirm your person's specific facility's current policy before ordering, because the rules are being challenged in court and may change.

**Why are books being refused in Hawaii?** Most DCR facilities have had policies stating that books, magazines, and similar items may not be sent to an incarcerated person. A publisher sued the state in July 2025, arguing the blanket ban is unconstitutional. Until that is resolved or a facility confirms otherwise, expect mailed publications to be refused at most facilities.

**Does Amazon work for sending books to a Hawaii prison?** Only if the facility is currently accepting mailed publications. Where it is, choose a copy sold and shipped by Amazon, new and paperback. Where the facility is refusing mailed books, an Amazon order will be returned, so confirm acceptance first.

**My person is at Saguaro in Arizona. Whose rules apply?** Hawaii's. Saguaro is a private prison in Arizona that holds Hawaii inmates under contract, governed by Hawaii's correctional publication policy, not Arizona's state rules. Address publications to Saguaro, confirm its current procedures, and expect longer shipping times.

**How do I send a magazine?** Where a facility accepts periodicals, set up a subscription that ships directly from the publisher, and InmateAid can do this for you. Confirm acceptance first, since blocked magazine subscriptions are the heart of the current lawsuit, and keep your receipt.

**How does my person read if mail is blocked?** Through the facility library and the tablet, which may carry some e-books. These are the dependable channels at facilities that are refusing mailed publications, until the rules change.

**Will the rules change?** They might. The blanket refusal is being challenged in federal court, and a ruling or settlement could reopen mailed books and magazines. Watch our Hawaii reentry resources page and confirm the current policy with the facility before ordering.

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