Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA

Regional Facility

Last Updated: August 21, 2021
Address
2402 Godwin Blvd, Suffolk, VA 23434
Beds
825
County
Independent City
Phone
757-539-3119
Fax
757-934-0594

Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA is for Regional Facility offenders have not been sentenced yet and are detained here until their case is heard.

All prisons and jails have Security or Custody levels depending on the inmate’s classification, sentence, and criminal history. Please review the rules and regulations for Regional Detention - low facility.

The phone carrier is Global Tel Link (GTL) - ConnectNetwork, to see their rates and best-calling plans for your inmate to call you.

If you are unsure of your inmate's location, you can search and locate your inmate by typing in their last name, first name or first initial, and/or the offender ID number to get their accurate information immediately Registered Offenders

Satellite View of Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA

You can support your loved ones at Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA on InmateAid, if you have any immediate questions contact the facility directly at 757-539-3119.

The Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA is a low/medium-security detention center located at 2402 Godwin Blvd Suffolk, VA which is operated locally by the Independent City Regional Authority and holds inmates awaiting trial or sentencing or both. Most of the sentenced inmates have been here for less than five years. Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA accepts inmates from the Independent City County Sheriff's arrests and surrounding towns, Suffolk Police Department, and the US Marshal's Service.

New detainees arrive at the jail regularly, with some being released on bail, placed under pretrial services caseloads, supervised by probation agencies, or released on recognizance with a court appearance agreement. Those who are not released await their court appearances at the jail, receiving accommodations including bedding and meals. You can see all the arrest records for Virginia here.

Inmate Programs

We offer a number or programs to our inmates to aid them in improving their life, health, and becoming better citizens as a whole. Below is a partial listing of the programs we offer and the attendees for each of these programs for the last fiscal year.

  • Special Education 30 (Teaching individuals with IEP’s or Special Needs)
  • Transition 25 (Teaching inmates not fitting normal criteria’s) Ex. Low reading ability by not Special Ed.
  • General Education 60 - Earned GED’s 4
  • Career Education 120 (Focuses on Careers, Health, Interviewing process, History etc.)
  • Career Readiness Certificate 10 (Preparing inmates for Workforce Skills)
  • Alcoholics Anonymous 77 (Focuses on recovery and detoxification)
  • Substance abuse (Provide treatment methods to help overcome additive symptoms)
  • Anger Management (Understanding life triggers and how to deal with them)
  • Community Health 30 (Teaches prevention/recognition of venereal diseases and STD’s)
  • Seeking Safety 172 (Understanding beginning trauma & coping with them)
  • Re-Entry – Life Skills 161 males and 25 females (Preparing inmates for readjustment into society)
  • Re-Entry Pathways From bondage 85 (Building resumes’, Identifying needs for release into society)
  • Re-Entry Mobil Counseling 20 (New) (Assist Individuals with mental health issues even upon release)
  • Parenting 350 (Teaches inmates the proper way to motivate and discipline youthful children)
  • Females Building Bridges 60 (Reconnecting mother and child through recorded readings of baby books)
  • Women Empowerment Workshop 50 (Helping women to believe in themselves – decision making)
  • Building Resilience in the Community “BRC” 12 (New Class) – Building Self-esteem and Fortitude
  • BOOM 10 (New Class) Domestic Violence on Women
  • Life Skills/Gang Prevention 50 (Teaches the youth coping skills and better decision making)
  • Juvenile Life Skills 60 males (Teaching effects of various topics: gang violence, interviewing process)
  • Juvenile Mental Health 30 (Group counseling sessions)

Personal Property

Inmate’s property can be picked up during normal business hours from 8am – 4pm Monday through Friday with the exception being that you have prearranged an appointment with property at 757-942-0545. Inmate property may only be released to the inmate themselves unless an inmate request form from the inmate has been turned into the proper person for approval. Approval is not guaranteed. Appointments to pick up property by non-inmates should be scheduled in advance and after the request has been approved.

Inmates may keep some limited personal property in their living spaces. All inmate property must fit inside the authorized inmate storage container. Excess items will be considered contraband. Property is either provided by WTRJ or must be purchased through the Inmate Canteen. Property will not be accepted at the jail or through the mail. The Watch Commander may grant exceptions.

Mail

A. All inmates shall be afforded the same correspondence privileges. There is no limit on the number of letters an inmate may send or receive. If the inmate is indigent, he/she will be given the opportunity to mail 5 letters weekly upon request. This includes legal mail, which will be sent by the Jail for those inmates declared indigent. Indigent inmates are those judged destitute with no outside income/support from welfare, federal assistance, etc., and have no funds in their inmate or canteen account currently or for the previous 30 days.

B. Mail is subject to inspection and may be opened and read by officials when there is reasonable suspicion that a particular item of correspondence threatens the safety or security of the institution, the safety of any person or is being used to further illegal activities. Legal mail may be opened and inspected, but not read, by jail officers and will be opened in the presence of the inmate. Glued seams of envelopes may be opened or cut off and examined for contraband. Stamps may be cut off the envelope.

C. Notice of seizure of mailed contraband will be given to sender and inmate.

D. All mail sent out by inmates may be sealed by the inmate; however, the inmate's full return address must be listed on the outside of the envelope. Mail without the full return address will not be mailed. The return address is:

Inmate’s Name
Western Tidewater Regional Jail
2402 Godwin Blvd.
Suffolk, VA 23434

E. Inmates may not receive packages.

F. Publications must be in the publisher's package mailed direct from the publisher i.e. Readers Digest, Random House Publisher, Amazon.com etc…. Packages from bookstores (Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million) will not be accepted. Publications advocating civil disobedience, the overthrow of any level of government in the U.S.A., or behavior which could threaten the good order and discipline of this facility will not be given to an inmate. Additionally, publications depicting what are considered sexually explicit, or printed pictures of sexual acts of any type will not be given to an inmate. These publications will be placed in the inmate's property and he/she will be given a receipt.

G. Inmate mail processing will be done daily except on Saturday, Sunday and holidays. Incoming mail will be delivered within 24 hours and forwarded or returned to sender if the inmate has been transferred.

Inmates are prohibited from corresponding with another inmate incarcerated in the Western Tidewater Regional Jail. Inmates may communicate with another inmate incarcerated in another facility providing the administrator of each facility has granted permission. Submit your request to the Director of Security.

Money

Released inmates can pick-up their inmate account balance from the Administration Office in the Main Lobby of the Jail between the hours of 8:00 am and 3:45 pm on Monday through Friday excluding holidays and special events if money is owed to the inmate. If the Office is closed during normal working hours of a regularly scheduled work day, a sign will be posted on the door to the Lobby stating the length of time the office will be closed. No other family member can request funds or pick up funds without first getting approval from the front office and the Superintendent. Contact 757-942-0531 for any such requests. We are not allowed to give out balance information to anybody but the inmate. Any issues concerning kiosk deposits should be directed to GTL through the GTL tab under the Inmate Information Tab or calling 1-800-306-2957. Any issues with iCare or Oasis should be resolved through Aramark at 1-888-439-5020 or Oasis at 1-800-956-2747 respectively or by using the contact information provided on their respective links under the Inmate Information Tab . Unless the inmate is being transferred to another facility, funds distributed to the inmates will be done using a debit card unless under $5.00 which will be with cash. When requesting and picking up the debit cards, the process and fees will be discussed with the released inmate.As a reminder, an inmate, in most cases, is charged for Room & Board, Medical Co-Pays, and Damaged Jail Property among other possible items while incarcerated and the balance due to the jail is due and payable upon release. Unless special arrangements are made upon release, the inmate has 30 days in which to fully pay off any balance owed. Failure to do so will result in being turned over to a collection agency and then possible other forms of recourse may come into play like withholding of tax refunds or other legal remedies. If an inmate is not able to pay off what is owed within 30 days, it is best to come to the Administration Office and work with one of the staff to develop a repayment plan that suits both the Jail and the inmate. Inmates transferred to another facility will have a check mailed to the new facility when the inmate leaves WTRJ.

Inmate Locator

To utilize the Inmate Search page on InmateAid, begin by selecting the relevant prison facility in Virginia. This allows you to view the current list of inmates housed at Western Tidewater Regional Jail (WTRJ) - VA.

The second section features the InmateAid Inmate Search tool, providing a user-generated database of inmates. You can access this resource to utilize any of InmateAid's services. If you require assistance in creating an inmate profile to maintain communication, please contact us at aid@inmateaid.com, and we'll gladly help you locate your loved one.

As a last resort, you might have to pay for that information if we do not have it. The Arrest Record Search will cost you a small amount, but their data is the freshest available and for that reason, they charge to access it.

Visitation Information

Western Tidewater Regional Jail - VA - Visitation

Housing Unit Visitation Schedule

DAY BLOCK SECTION TIME Monday Bravo 1 7:00pm 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm 4 8:30pm 5 9:00pm Tuesday Charlie 1 7:00pm 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm 4 8:30pm 5 9:00pm 6 9:30pm Wednesday Delta 1 7:00pm 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm 4 8:30pm 5 9:00pm 6 9:30pm Thursday Echo 1 7:00pm 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm 4 8:30pm 5 9:00pm 6 9:30pm Friday Foxtrot (non worker) 1 7:00pm 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm Saturday *Alpha 1 7:00pm *Alpha Block Only 2 7:30pm 3 8:00pm Sunday **Work Programs F-4 9:00am *Juveniles *F-5 10:00am E-7 1:00pm E-8 3:00pm B-6 & B-7 7:00pm

B. Attorneys 7:30am - 9:30pm Monday through Sunday

C. Others

Clergy, religious volunteers, social workers and representatives of volunteer organizations may be granted visiting privileges in accordance with current procedures and schedules. Contact the Director of Treatment with any questions or to schedule a special visit time.

D. Holiday visiting will be prescribed according to staff mandates.
E. Former WTRJ Inmates are not permitted to visit other inmates in the Jail until 30 days have transpired since their release.
F. Inmates may decline visits by particular individuals, news media, etc.

G. Restrictions to Visiting:

Inmates in disciplinary segregation, cell restriction, medical isolation, close observation, or suicide watch will be denied personal visits with family or friends. This does not apply; however, to attorneys or court related personnel in the performance of their duty.

H. Visitors may not bring items for inmates. The Director of Security or Treatment may grant exceptions.

Visiting Rules

A. Visiting is a privilege and will be extended to inmates as described below.

a. Visitor Guidelines

WTRJ is committed to encouraging relationships between inmates, their family and friends. We strongly feel that visitation is an important part of inmate rehabilitation. At the same time WTRJ must provide for the safety/security of the facility, staff, inmates, and most importantly, the safety of other visitors, the public and you.

b. Visitation Termination

Your visit will be terminated if:

  1. The inmate violates any established rules and regulations.
  2. The visitor does not comply with the rules and regulations governing visitation.

Note: ALL visitors are subject to search. Refusal to be searched will cancel your visit.
Note: All visitors must acknowledge that visitation is a privilege and may be suspended. Violation of the privilege may result in disciplinary action against inmate/visitor. Inmates on administrative/disciplinary segregation or in control status may be denied visitation.

c. Visitors Per Inmate

Due to increased occupancy and limited visitation space, WTRJ limits lobby and visitor panel access only to authorized visitors.
NO MORE THAN TWO (2) AUTHORIZED VISITORS PER INMATE ARE ALLOWED.

d. Inmate and Visitor Rules and Regulations

  1. Inmates are allowed one (1) twenty (20) minute visit.
  2. Visitors must be on the inmates Request for Visitation Privileges form (RVP).
  3. Visitors MUST be signed in thirty (30)minutes prior to the start of the visitation time (see schedule).
  4. ALL visitors MUST be 16 years of age or older with a valid drivers license, ID, military ID, passport or school ID.
  5. Visitors will NOT be allowed to switch phones AT ALL.
  6. When the phone is terminated, visitor must immediately exit the facility.
  7. Visitors are prohibited from leaving personal items unattended in the lobby area. Items may be stored in provided public lockers or secured in vehicles.
  8. NO unattended children in the lobby.

e. Items Allowed in Visitation Panel/Building Keys - Example: Car Keys or House Keys

f. Items NOT allowed in Visitation Panel/Building

  • TOBACCO
  • TOBACCO RELATED PRODUCTS
  • PARAPHERNALIA
  • LIGHTING DEVICES
  • POCKET BOOKS
  • HAND BAGS
  • BACK PACKS
  • FOOD
  • BEVERAGES
  • COMMUNICATION DEVICES
  • PHOTOGRAPHIC DEVICES

NO EXCEPTIONS

g. Dress Code

  • Shirt and shoes mandatory
  • Clothing that expose an undue amount of flesh(ex. exposing chest, back, br breast,thighs, or midsections) is prohibited. Sleeveless shirts will NOT be allowed
  • Bermuda-length shorts may be worn provided they are NOT to exceed no more than (3”) above the kneecap.
  • NO sleeveless dresses will be allowed, dresses and skirt hems are NOT to exceed more than (3”) above the kneecap.
  • Any article of clothing with a picture or language that may be considered profane or offensive by the current public or WTRJ staff will NOT be allowed.
  • Clothing designed or intended to be tightly worn, to excessively accent the body (ex. spandex, tights, leggings, tank tops, etc.) is prohibited.

NO EXCEPTIONS

Visitors may wear casual dress that is reasonable and appropriate.
WTRJ reserves the right to refuse admittance to inappropriately dressed visitors.

Ask The Inmate

Ask a former inmate questions at no charge. The inmate answering has spent considerable time in the federal prison system, state and county jails, and in a prison that was run by the private prison entity CCA. Ask your question or browse previous questions in response to comments or further questions of members of the InmateAid community.