Inmate Mail Policy

Inmates are permitted to send and receive unlimited letters each day in order to maintain communications with their legal representatives, families, friends, business associates, and government authorities. Two categories of mail are defined as:

Regular Correspondence - Communication to or from inmates through letters, postcards, and greeting cards. Incoming mail is inspected to prevent the following:

Transmission of contraband, i.e. drugs or any other prohibited materials or substances into the facility.
Escape plans.
Criminal conspiracies.
Any other type of threat or compromise to the over-all security of the facility and/or the safety of staff and inmates.

Legal or Special Correspondence - Mail between an inmate and:

All state and federal elected officials.
All state and federal officials appointed by the Governor or the President of the United States.
All city, county, state, and federal officials having responsibility for the inmate's present, prior, or anticipated custody, parole, or probation supervision.
All state and federal judges and courts.
An attorney at law registered with a state bar association.
The State Corrections Standards Authority.
Facility Commander.

Incoming Legal mail is opened and inspected in front of the inmate. Outgoing Legal mail may be inspected in the presence of the inmate then sealed and processed with other outgoing mail.

Contraband

Narcotics, marijuana, handcuff keys, hacksaw blades, postage stamps, stickers, etc.
Pictures or Polaroid photographs depicting nudity, gang graffiti and/or groups raised decorative stickers, personal checks, etc.
Mail tainted with perfume, cologne, or any other type of substance, including correction fluid, gel ink. or written in crayon etc.

Contraband that is illegal will result in criminal chages being filed. Contraband that is not of a criminal nature will be returned to the sender.

Rules for Regular Incoming Mail

All inmate mail must have:
1. Return address
2. Inmate’s full name under which he or she is booked
3. Correct booking number

Any mail that is dirty or stained will be considered contaminated and returned to the sender.

Mail that contains any of the following will be rejected:

Not Allowed (Regular Mail)
Care packages Greeting cards. Flowers or candy Post cards. Mail written in crayon Mail written in gel-type ink Mail with lipstick imprinted on it Items containing glue or white-out Stationery, envelopes, Post-it Notes, or any type of craft materials. Plastic Glitter Tape Craft materials Parchment paper Black paper Staples Paper clips Ribbons	Cash or personal checks (U.S. Postal money orders are accepted) Mail containing more than 10 individual photos per letter regardless of how the photos are printed. The pictures may not contain nudity, violent acts, and/or gang related activities. Odor-causing substances like perfume or cologne that permeate the mail Polaroids Marking pens Felt-tip pens Phone cards Postage stamps (loose or book) Hardback or leather-bound books (see below for details) Stickers and labels * Stick-on return address labels **
* Stickers and/or labels refers to the generic decorative, adhesive type of sticker and has nothing to do with postage. If a sticker is on a letter, the letter is returned to the sender. If a sticker is on an envelope, the inmate is given the letter inside, but not the envelope. If the inmate requests the return address from the envelope, the address is torn off and given to the inmate. ** If a return address on an envelope is a sticker label, the envelope is not given to the inmate, but the inmate may copy down the return address.

Books & Magazines

All books, magazines, and periodicals must be prepaid and delivered to the facilities by the United States Postal Service. The publication/subscription shall be mailed directly from the publisher or originate from a verifiable and reputable internet/mail order company or a bookstore via their internet or mail order facilities.

All newspapers not sent from the publisher by mail must be delivered to the Facility by an employee of the publisher. All newspapers must have the inmate's name clearly marked thereon.

Not Allowed (Books & Magazines)

Hardback or leather-bound books.
Obscene, or sexually oriented publications or writings (including magazines such as Playboy, Penthouse, Hustler, etc.) and mail containing information concerning where, how or from whom such matter may be obtained.
Any matter of character tending to incite murder, arson, riot, racism, or any other form of violence (including anything which may adversely affect jail security due to a gang-type theme or pictures depicting gang activity).
Any other matter concerning unlawful gambling or an unlawful lottery.

Mailing Addresses for Jails

All mail addressed to inmates must contain the inmate's full name and booking number. Use this link to look up the booking number: Inmate Booking Number

Blythe Jail	Indio Jail
(Inmate Name & Booking Number) Blythe Jail P.O. Box 1270 Blythe, CA 92226	(Inmate Name & Booking Number) Indio Jail P.O. Box 1748 Indio, CA 92201
Robert Presley Detention Center	Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility
(Inmate Name & Booking Number) Robert Presley Detention Center P.O. Box 710 Riverside, CA 92501	(Inmate Name & Booking Number) Smith Correctional Facility 1627 S. Hargrave Street Banning, CA 92220
Southwest Detention Center
(Inmate Name & Booking Number) Southwest Detention Center 30755-B Auld Road Murrieta, CA 92563

Inmates

Jail Visiting Schedules

Criminal Courts

Work Release Program (WRP)

Supervised Electronic Confinement Program (SECP)

- County Jail Contacts -
Blythe:	760-921-5780
Indio:	760-863-8252
Presley:	951-955-4500
Smith:	951-922-7300
Southwest:	951-696-3050

Inmate Mail Policy

Rules for Regular Incoming Mail

Books & Magazines

Mailing Addresses for Jails

All mail addressed to inmates must contain the inmate's full name and booking number. Use this link to look up the booking number: Inmate Booking Number

Blythe Jail

Indio Jail

Robert Presley Detention Center

Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility

Southwest Detention Center