According to a study , receiving letters from their loved ones improves inmates’ well-being. It also makes it easier for them to reenter society after serving their sentence.
However, writing to someone in prison is different from sending regular mail. For one, different facilities have different mail rules. Plus, your letter will be thoroughly checked and read by the prison staff. So you can’t just write anything you want.
No worries. In this post, we’ll give you a step-by-step guide on how to write a letter to an inmate. We’ll also list down the do’s, don’ts, and other things you need to know to make sure your letter reaches the inmate.
Whether you’re writing to someone you know or are trying to get in touch with a potential prison penpal, here’s how you can write and send a letter to an inmate:
As I said, writing to prison isn’t like writing regular mail. So before putting your thoughts on paper, here are some things to keep in mind:
Obviously, you can’t send a letter if you don’t know who to send it to. So the first step to writing a letter to an inmate is getting their information, such as:
Most prisons have online databases that let you look up an inmate’s ID number. So if you know the inmate’s full name and where they’re detained, you shouldn’t have a hard time finding all the other information you need.
If you’re sending mail to a prison pen pal, their mailing information is usually listed in their pen pal site profiles. Otherwise, you can call the facility to confirm their details.
Every facility has different policies on sending and receiving mail. Some impose limits on the number of correspondences an inmate can receive in a month. While others have completely banned all types of physical mail.
If you’re not sure about the facility’s mail rules, be sure to do your own research first. Most of the time, these rules are posted on the prison’s official website.
After getting the inmate’s information and familiarizing yourself with the prison’s mail rules, it’s time to write your letter.
If this is your first time writing to that particular inmate, start your letter by introducing yourself and why you’re writing.
Telling prisoners little tidbits about life outside can be a huge help too. You can tell them about the weather or even silly stories like your dog’s misadventures or that time when you mistook salt for sugar.
These stories might be too trivial to include in your letter, but for inmates, it’s like a window to the outside world. It serves as a bridge to the world (and life) they’ve left behind.
Including encouraging quotes and messages is a great idea too and inmates can certainly use a lot of those.
If you’re writing to a pen pal, you can also consider asking them questions about themselves like their hobbies, interests, etc. This will not only help you get to know them more. It also lets them know that you are genuinely interested in getting to know them.
As mentioned, prison staff are authorized to inspect and scrutinized prisoner correspondence with friends and loved ones. That means they can open and read every single word of your letter.
So if you don’t want to put the inmate in hot waters, you should refrain from writing about:
Also, it can be inevitable to have intimate exchanges with your pen pal. Romantic and sexually suggestive letters are generally alright, as long as you’re comfortable with other people being privy to your intimate exchanges.
In addition, if you don’t personally know the inmate you’re writing to, you should avoid disclosing any personal information. You can tell them your address but don’t disclose the street or house number. Though there are lots of sincere inmates out there, it’s undeniable that there are bad eggs too. They can use your personal information to threaten you or for other criminal activities.
Since letters have to be read by prison staff, some prisons require that letters be in a certain language.
For instance, the Florida Department of Corrections requires that prison mail should be in English or Spanish. Though an inmate may receive letters in another language if they can secure written permission from the warden.
If the prison’s website doesn’t say anything about it, you can call them beforehand just to be sure.
Jail mails are one of the biggest sources of contraband in prison. That’s why most facilities tend to be really strict with parcels and things attached to prison correspondence. Common prohibitions include:
Most prisons also prohibit crayons, glitter, permanent markers, stickers, perfume, or paint. So stick to plain white paper and blue or black ink.
