Research has shown, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons acknowledges, that it is helpful to people who are incarcerated to maintain connections to the outside world. Prison is an isolating experience, so knowing they have someone who cares about them enough to write them is a huge boost for many people. And all of our clients who have been exonerated can tell you about the huge impact getting letters had on them. “The importance of people on the outside is unexplainable,” our client Tim Howard said. “For me, they kept me engaged.”
But how do you find someone to write to? There are a number of organizations and businesses that can help you find someone who is looking for a pen pal. You can simply do an internet search for “write a person in prison” and you’ll find many pages that facilitate penpal correspondences. Some of these pages charge a fee, some of them are for people looking for romantic relationships, some of them don’t verify photos or other info, so be sure you spend some time doing your research. There are also ministry organizations that can put you in touch with someone, like the Death Row Support Project.
Once you have a name of someone and know what state they are in, you can use one of the services that help you write that person, or you can easily find the information you need on your own. In most cases all you need to write someone is:
- their inmate identification number
- the mailing address of what facility they are in.
Most prison mail can be addressed and sent with the following information: Name, inmate identification number, Facility Name, Street address or PO Box 123, City, State, Zip.
To find the above information, you can simply search the name of your state and “Department of Corrections”, and it should bring up your state’s appropriate website. All states have a Department of Corrections (DOC) website that includes an inmate roster and search function. The sites may be called something different than Department of Corrections, such as Texas Department of Criminal Justice or Hawaii’s Department of Public Safety: Corrections Division, but they serve the same function. Look for a website that has a .gov ending, that should be the right one.
On that site, you should find something that says Inmate Search, Inmate Information, Offender Information, Offender Roster, or something along those lines. Using that search, type in the name of the person you want to write, and that will allow you to find their inmate number and facility address.
Also on those same websites, you should be able to find a page that lists the rules and regulations for sending mail to someone incarcerated there. Some of these pages are harder to find than others, and some will link to a pdf or document instead of a webpage. Each state is different, with different rules. Arkansas scans letters and gives out the printed copy, so you should write in dark pen on white paper and only on 2 pages. Florida has transitioned to an all electronic system, so they encourage email through JPay, or you can write and they will scan it. Texas doesn’t allow stationery to be sent to people. You should be sure to read the regulations for the state you are sending mail to, in order to prevent your letter from being rejected.
Also be aware all correspondence will be opened, read, and possibly censored. Sometimes mail gets rejected by censors and you won’t be told why. There are services that can help you try to avoid getting censored or rejected, such as DoNotPay.com, or you can just try to be aware of potentially sensitive topics, like violence, nudity or sexually explicit content, or anything related to a criminal offense. Also avoid the following:
- Decorations like stickers
- Paper clips or staples
- Perfume
- Greeting cards (some prisons accept these and some do not)
- Books, magazines or newspapers. These items must be sent directly from the publisher.
- If you want to send photos, check the DOC site for any restrictions first. Some may have size limitations on what you can send.
Do include your return address. The people you write to cannot write you back without a return address, and some prisons will not even deliver your letter without one. If you are worried about giving out your home address, you can use services like DoNotPay or get a PO box.
Once you’ve got the information you need, it’s time to figure out what to say in your letter. While it can feel daunting to try to know what to write to a stranger, most people who are incarcerated are just happy to hear from you and to have someone to talk to. You could ask open-ended questions like “how are you” or “how have you been spending your time lately?” You could tell them about your own life or day-to-day occurrences. Even things you think might be dull or worry might make them miss life on the outside, those things can be nice to hear about.
“So, where you might think what you do is boring every day,” our client Tim Howard said, “the person on the inside is looking at it, ‘Okay, I got a letter today.’ You went to the grocery store and you bought three peppers and you dropped one of them on the floor, we want to hear that. The little things that you were mad about, we want to hear about that.”
As the two of you write back and forth, you’ll get more comfortable and know more of what to say. Sometimes a penpal may ask you for something like money, stamps, photos, a book or magazine, etc. You can determine what you are comfortable doing, or not doing, and set boundaries accordingly. Keep in mind your penpal can also set boundaries with you. They may or may not feel comfortable discussing their case with you at first, or ever. They may not want to talk about certain things because they know the letters are read by officials. Just be understanding about these kinds of things and keep chatting about anything else you like.
Lastly, try to write regularly. It can be so disappointing to someone to have someone write once or twice and then never reach out again. Sometimes people who are incarcerated can feel forgotten, so failing to stay in touch doesn’t help that feeling. Try to write once a month if you can, or let them know when you can’t be in touch for a while. Your communications and support mean so much to someone incarcerated, and especially to those innocents who are there for things they didn’t do.
And if you want to write to any of our Proclaim Justice clients, they would love to hear from you! Their mailing addresses are on their respective case pages at www.proclaimjustice.org/cases.
Featured photo Joel Moysuh on Unsplash