SO WHAT CAN YOU SNAIL MAIL?
A brief go to guide, for full restrictions please read VADOC Operating Procedure 803.1
*This guide is for informational purposes only, all mail is subject to review and discretion of the Virginia Department of Corrections. Please refer to Operating Procedure 803.1 for complete listings of mailing rules and regulations.
Virginia DOC policies surrounding snail mail can take some getting used to, especially for families who only recently have begun to communicate with a loved one who is incarcerated. Sometimes it can be downright frustrating, as mail can be returned to sender for reasons that can seem nonsensical, as to the sender's interpretation all VADOC regulatory rules were adhered too. But please, do not let the odd piece of returned mail discourage you from further correspondence.
Please believe us, taking the time to send snail mail, even in this digital age, it is well worth it. Not just for those receiving your letters behind the walls, but for you as well. Snail mail is a way to stay connected, and despite what many may think, it truly means so much to those who are currently serving time in the Virginia Department of Corrections.
Whether it be a letter from home, photographs, a simple postcard, a child's drawing, free catalogues, free travel brochures or even a magazine, hearing one's name called out loud at mail call can feel like striking gold for those who are so removed from their loved ones.
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SO WHAT CAN I SEND?
Here's a short and simplified list
*Please note that whether the offender receives the original mailings, or photocopies, is dependent upon the Security Level of your incarcerated loved one. (More to follow below)
LETTERS Number of pages that can be sent are dependent upon the security level of the incarcerated individual. Most levels receive black and white photocopies of sent items, but please scroll down for further information.
GREETING CARDS Not exceeding 6 1/8"x11" or 1 ounce. To see the written policy please click here, and refer to page 19.
POST CARDS Not exceeding 4"x6" or 1 ounce. To see the written policy please click here, and refer to page 19.
PHOTOGRAPHS (NOT INCLUDING NUDITY, IMAGES DEEMED TO BE PORNOGRAPHIC OR CONTAIN OFFENSIVE IMAGERY, GANG RELATED CONTENT, HAND SIGNS ETC., OR TO EXCEED 4"X6" IN SIZE) For definitions please click here, and refer to page 4.
PHOTO BOOKS Must be shipped direct to the facility by a commercial vendor and all images must follow VADOC policy. All images must be printed directly onto the book pages, and not be attached. They must contain images of friends and family and cannot exceed a total size of 11"x14", though the standard VADOC rules surrounding size of an individual image or quantity of, do not apply to images printed in a photo book. Please note that pages cannot be removable, nor can the book be wire bound. When received a photo book is counted as part of the total number of books and/or magazines that an incarcerated individual, can at any one time, have in their possession. (Please see Operating Procedure 802.1, Offender Property here, and refer to page 4). Staff will inventory soft cover photo books as "magazines," and hard cover photo books as "books," with each being documented using the Personal Property Request Add/Drop form. To read the policy language for mailing purposes of photo books, please see VADOC Operating Procedure 803.1 by clicking here, and referring to page 14.
MAIL ORDER CATALOGUES For a listing of over 100 free catalogues to send your loved one, please click here.
MAGAZINES BY MAIL Need an idea as to which magazine to send? For a list of popular magazine titles, broken down by genre please click here, and refer to the bottom of the page. *Please note that some magazine subscriptions may be rejected by VADOC based on content, frustratingly sometimes magazines that were accepted at one facility, should your loved one be transferred, may be rejected by the new facility. In most cases imagery in magazines are more readily accepted, while personal photographs of a similar nature would be rejected. Please use your own discretion when committing to a magazine subscription. All listed are suggestions only, and are up to the discretion of the subscriber.
THE FOLLOWING ARE NOT ALLOWED:
MONEY, MONEY ORDERS, CHEQUES OR ANYTHING OF MONETARY VALUE
STAMPS
MUSIC OR PRE-RECORDED GREETING CARDS, OR MULTIPLE THICKNESS OR ELECTRONIC GREETING CARDS
ENVELOPES WITH PREPAID POSTAGE
BLANK ENVELOPES OR STATIONARY PRODUCTS
PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE FOLLOWING NATURE: nude, semi-nude, persons in diapers, persons in swimwear, persons in lingerie, partially clothed so as to "appear nude" or images cartoon or human which depict male or female genitals, pubic area, exposed breasts, etc. (please refer to VADOC Operating Procedure 803.1 for full details)
Incarcerated individuals at this level receive the original mailed correspondence, however they do not receive the original envelope, but rather a photocopy.
SECURITY LEVEL W & 1 INSTITUTIONS AND CCAPS
Photographs: Maximum size of 4"x6" and limited by a maximum of 5 photographs or a total mailing weight not to exceed 1 ounce. (Remember the 1 ounce restriction applies to the full weight of the mailing which includes: Envelope, letter and photographs). *Note: Images printed on heavy processing photographic printing paper (such as the type printed at home, etc.) are considered a "photograph" and cannot exceed a size of 4"x6". However photographs printed on standard weight printer paper are not considered "photographs" but "printed materials". Any photograph that can be separated, such as a Polaroid are not allowed. Rules on nudity apply to all images.
Letters: For this Security Level there are no restrictions on number of pages per letter, but all contents as listed above can not exceed 1 ounce. For exceptions to the 1 ounce weight restriction please click here, refer to page 18.
Security Level 2 and above receive photocopies of contents, with the original materials being shredded by the Virginia Department of Corrections.
SECURITY LEVEL 2 INSTITUTIONS AND ABOVE
Staff will allow incoming correspondence that does not supersede the size restrictions or number of allowable photocopies as per VADOC policies. Please click here, and refer to page 19.
Inmates are limited to receiving 3 black and white photocopied pages, front to back, not to exceed 8 1/2"x11" and that do not require resizing by correctional staff. They also will receive a photocopy of the front of the envelope, however the envelope is counted by VADOC staff to be one of the photocopied sides.
Each item in the envelope, be it drawing, letter, greeting card, photograph, etc. shall constitute 1 photocopy. Should an item in the envelope require a photocopy per side (greeting card or photograph with writing on the back) each side will be one photocopy. For exact language please refer to the policy here, refer to page 19. Despite being photocopied all photo rules still apply.
WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENS TO THE MAIL I SEND?
As mentioned above, if your loved one is at a Security Level 2 or above all original correspondence is photocopied and then shredded.
Your Incoming snail mail to your incarcerated love one is opened, searched and read by authorized Virginia Department of Corrections staff members.
Receiving Mail: For Security Level 2 facilities and above, all incoming mail is photocopied in black and white, as per the policies stated above regarding maximum allowable size, amount of allowed pages. Only the photocopies will be delivered to your loved one. (As stated above Security Level W & 1 and CCAPs receive original correspondence as per policy stipulations)
Shredding Policy: For Security Level 2 Institutions and above, the original envelope and enclosed mail contents, including personal photos, will be shredded after they are photocopied. Your loved ones will receive the photocopied materials. Please remember that a maximum of three 8.5”X 11” photocopied black and white pages, front and back, will be delivered to your loved one for each individual mailing. This includes a copy of the envelope as one of the three front and back photocopied pages.
Unauthorized Mail: Unauthorized incoming mail, such as mail for a person who is not housed in a facility, will be returned to the post office unopened. If opened, the mail will be returned directly to the sender if known with a written reason as to why the mail was returned to you.
Mail Forwarding: If an offender has been released or transferred, the Virginia Department of Corrections says that they will return the mail to the sender.
INDIGENT INMATES
What happens if you are an incarcerated person and do not have funds to send mail to your loved ones waiting for you at home?
VADOC Defines an "Indigent Inmate" as someone who has less than $5.00 in their trust account for discretionary spending during the previous month and has no job or other source of income that provided a much as $5.00 during the previous month or an inmate who is newly received into the facility and does not have available funds or hygiene items.
Should an incarcerated individual meet these requirements than staff must allow them to send one free letter per week to friends or family so as to maintain a connection to the community. To read further on this subject, please click here and refer to page 7.
WHO WE ARE
We believe a great many voices can enact great change
Advocate VA seeks to bridge the sizeable gap between legislators, legislative policy and those advocating for positive social change, inmate rights and progressive criminal justice reform in the State of Virginia. We are a non-partisan advocacy grassroots movement, which through collaboration with reputable advocacy groups and the private citizenry, seek to bring attention to the continued and longstanding bias of those currently incarcerated, while proactively assisting their peers and extended families petition for urgent criminal justice reform.
Our prime objective is to advocate for an intensive reevaluation of outdated policies and practices and to actively seek, and help others petition, for advance legislation, seeing to the continued and ongoing reform of Virginia's overtly harsh and punitive criminal justice system.
Our current primary objective is a formal request to sponsor a Bill amending Code of Virginia § 18.2-58 to assign individual section codes to the newly defined Classes of felony robbery being 3, 5, and 6; those convictions not resulting in serious bodily injury or unlawful bodily injury. With the intent and purpose to be implemented retroactively, through petition to the court. If passed into law, men and women previously found guilty of robbery due to their reclassification under the new codes, would consequentially become eligible for earned sentence credits as their convicted offence, now with a new and unique code number, would no longer be included on the original list of exclusions. To reiterate this is not an amendment to the Goodtime Bill, and does not act contrary to the concerns and decisions of legislators who worked tirelessly together to bring that piece of legislation into effect, rather it only assigns unique section codes to the newly formed sections of robbery that were passed into law on January 21, 2021.
We are currently collaborating with notable Virginia Criminal Justice Reform Organizations for this amendment.