Humboldt County jail changes mail handling to curb contraband, protect inmates
HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif. — A major change is coming to how people send personal mail to inmates at the Humboldt County Correctional Facility, as jail officials move to a digital system they say is aimed at keeping drugs and other contraband out of the jail.
Capt. Duane Christian said the facility is changing its mail process “to ensure that no contraband enters the facility,” adding it is intended “to protect the welfare of those incarcerated.”
Christian said the jail has had “other instances where drugs have gotten into the facility, suspected to be through the mail system,” and noted the risks have increased “especially with the introduction of fentanyl,” which he said, “can be fatal.”
Under the new system, people sending personal mail will no longer mail it directly to the jail. Instead, it will go to a mail processing company, where it will be digitized and made available to inmates on tablets.
“They process the mail, they digitize it, and then that same mail, including pictures, drawings, anything of that sort, will be available on the tablets that are provided to the inmates,” Christian said. He said inmates will receive “a digital copy of exactly what the family member or friend had had mailed.”
Christian said the company’s distribution center is in Maryland, which could add transit time. But once it arrives, he said, “it’s to be processed that same day and should be digitally available at the latest the next day.”
Christian also said physical mail delivery already takes time because of how the large county building that houses multiple agencies, including the sheriff’s office, courthouse, and district attorney’s office, receives and distributes mail. He said that process, along with scanning mail for contraband and routing it to the correct housing location, means “it actually currently takes several days for the mail to actually make it to someone who’s incarcerated.”
The digital mail system is set to begin Oct. 19, Christian said. He said tablets are available in every housing unit, and “most of our units, it’s a two-to-one ratio,” meaning one tablet for every two inmates. Christian said mail sent to the old jail address after the change will be returned to the sender “with a note notice” explaining it is not the current address and providing the correct one.
While the processing center will route personal mail, Christian said the facility will still accept some items directly. Those include legal mail, which the jail wants to expedite, and postal money orders, which inmates can receive from family members. The jail will also continue to accept some packages, but only under specific rules. “We still accept books and periodicals,” Christian said, adding they must come from a distributor. He said other supplies must come through the jail’s programs division or commissary vendor.
Christian said outgoing mail from inmates is not changing and will continue to go out directly through the U.S. Postal Service. He also said the new system may expand what families can send. Before the move to digital mail, the facility “only accepted written letters,” typically not drawings, because “drawings using color is a way to conceal contraband as well.” With digitization, he said families can send drawings and cards that will be scanned and viewed digitally.
To help ensure mail is properly delivered through the new process, Christian said senders should include the inmate’s first and last name, and it is “beneficial if they put the inmate’s booking number.” He said booking numbers are public information and can be provided if someone calls to ask.
Christian said the mailing address for personal mail will be: PO Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131.
Christian emphasized the change is not meant to cut off contact between inmates and their loved ones. “We know contact with friends and family is vital to the mental health of incarcerated individuals,” he said, adding the goal is safety.
He said the facility has not had “a successful overdose,” but has had overdoses where staff were able to intervene “through the use of Narcan.” He also pointed to other jails that have had fatal overdoses, including “as close as Shasta County,” and said the Humboldt County facility wants to prevent that from happening.
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