Writing to an inmate in jail...

[neotrad]

One of my favorite musicians in California(I'm sorry, I cannot mention his name here for his privacy and all) is in jail now. And I looked up for the details of writing to an inmate section on the jail website, but I couldn't find what I want to know. What I want to know is if they will read my letter to him before they give it to him? Do you know if there's any type of thing that I should not write in it? The website only says that they don't allow you to send inmates any items even envelopes/stamps. I really hope someone here can help me with this, because I'm thinking about writing him.

 

[Hawkeye]

More than likey it is probably wise not to give him your phone number or any contact information.

 

[neotrad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by youbeabitch More than likey it is probably wise not to give him your phone number or any contact information.

Yes. I'm not giving him my phone number of course, but do you know if they will open my envelope and they will give him only the letter, not the envelope?

 

[brandiisamonkey]

I wouldnt think they would give him the envelope since it would have your return address on it...

 

[meagannn]

hey

I have too much experience writing somebody in jail (long story)

Im not sure about in California, but in Texas the things are different depending on what kind of facility the inmate is in. There are a few things that I can assume are the same across the board, or similar. So im gonig to share my experience with you, in hopes that it helps at least a ltitle bit.

Theres a few things you have to have in order to write to him. First of all, you need to know what jail he's in and the address of the jail. You can't just know what city; say he's locked up in Amarillo, you cant just write to "Sammy Sam, Amarillo Jail, Amarillo TX" you have to know what county he's in and the name of the facility, such as 'Sammy Sam, #3939393939, Randall County Jail, 9200 Georgia, Amarillo, TX'
If you don't know the address to write him already you've got to call the jail he's in and ask for the address to write inmates.

The most important thing you've got to know is his inmate number and his full legal name. Here in Texas, I had to have the inmate number of my ex to write him.. i couldn't just write his name on the envelope, I had to have his inmate number as well. If i sent a letter without the number, or if they couldn't read the number, they sent it back to me. This happened as he was in prison too, but now that he's in a minimum security lock up, its not as big of a deal.

If he's in a county jail, it is almost certain they will read this letters. Also if he's in jail for something aggravated or was caught in gang activity, they'll definately read his letters. Usually they don't give them the envelopes in county. They just open the letters, shake them out, read them, pass them along.

I know you don't know this guy and since he's a musician he probably seems 'safe' but you never know, and i woudln't give him my address and/or phone number if I didn't know him personally. I hope i've helped.

 

[Beauty Mark]

They will more likely open the mail and read it. I've written all kinds of things to an inmate, and they don't censor it.

If you want to send a gift, you can either put money in his jail fund (I don't know what it's really called, but the inmates can be given money so they can buy things like stamps or paper) or send a book from Amazon.com. I'd call and ask the prison, but Amazon is allegedly the only place you can order books from.

If you send a letter, make sure you have your name and address. You need his full name, inmate number, and the address of the prison.

 

[MxAxC-_ATTACK]

If your worried about them giving the envelope just dont put your return address on it.. its not required you know.

 

[neotrad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by meagannn hey I have too much experience writing somebody in jail (long story) Im not sure about in California, but in Texas the things are different depending on what kind of facility the inmate is in. There are a few things that I can assume are the same across the board, or similar. So im gonig to share my experience with you, in hopes that it helps at least a ltitle bit. Theres a few things you have to have in order to write to him. First of all, you need to know what jail he's in and the address of the jail. You can't just know what city; say he's locked up in Amarillo, you cant just write to "Sammy Sam, Amarillo Jail, Amarillo TX" you have to know what county he's in and the name of the facility, such as 'Sammy Sam, #3939393939, Randall County Jail, 9200 Georgia, Amarillo, TX' If you don't know the address to write him already you've got to call the jail he's in and ask for the address to write inmates. The most important thing you've got to know is his inmate number and his full legal name. Here in Texas, I had to have the inmate number of my ex to write him.. i couldn't just write his name on the envelope, I had to have his inmate number as well. If i sent a letter without the number, or if they couldn't read the number, they sent it back to me. This happened as he was in prison too, but now that he's in a minimum security lock up, its not as big of a deal. If he's in a county jail, it is almost certain they will read this letters. Also if he's in jail for something aggravated or was caught in gang activity, they'll definately read his letters. Usually they don't give them the envelopes in county. They just open the letters, shake them out, read them, pass them along. I know you don't know this guy and since he's a musician he probably seems 'safe' but you never know, and i woudln't give him my address and/or phone number if I didn't know him personally. I hope i've helped.

Hi

Thank you so very much for all this input.
What you've told me is just perfectly helpful for me. He is a musician, but I do know him and he knows me(and no, I'm not being a stalker or pretending we know each other or being crazy like that). So I'm not too afraid to write him. Yes, I got his inmate number and the county jail address from his friend. Plus your big help, I can now finally write him. I really appreciate your kindness. Thanks alot.

 

[neotrad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauty Mark They will more likely open the mail and read it. I've written all kinds of things to an inmate, and they don't censor it. If you want to send a gift, you can either put money in his jail fund (I don't know what it's really called, but the inmates can be given money so they can buy things like stamps or paper) or send a book from Amazon.com. I'd call and ask the prison, but Amazon is allegedly the only place you can order books from. If you send a letter, make sure you have your name and address. You need his full name, inmate number, and the address of the prison.

Hi

I didn't know you could send inmates books from Amazon.com. I read on the county jail site that you could have publishers/bookstores send them books/magazines, but I never thought of sending books from Amazon.com. Thank you very much for the info!

 

[neotrad]

I'd love to thank you all who have replied to me here. You guys are very sweet. I truly appreciate your help. Thank you.

 

[YvetteJeannine]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beauty Mark They will more likely open the mail and read it. I've written all kinds of things to an inmate, and they don't censor it. If you want to send a gift, you can either put money in his jail fund (I don't know what it's really called, but the inmates can be given money so they can buy things like stamps or paper) or send a book from Amazon.com. I'd call and ask the prison, but Amazon is allegedly the only place you can order books from. If you send a letter, make sure you have your name and address. You need his full name, inmate number, and the address of the prison.

It's called Commissary

 

[neotrad]

It's been a while since I found Specktra.net and I've just re-realized how great this board is. A lot of people here are really nice and so kind and sweet to help others even when we are down in bumps. Not only this thread but also many other threads have inspired me and have helped me a lot in various different ways. I'm very grateful for this.

Thank you, everyone.

 

[meagannn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by neotrad It's been a while since I found Specktra.net and I've just re-realized how great this board is. A lot of people here are really nice and so kind and sweet to help others even when we are down in bumps. Not only this thread but also many other threads have inspired me and have helped me a lot in various different ways. I'm very grateful for this. Thank you, everyone.

I agree!!

yay!!