Help! Visitation process?

[Dezi492]

My LO is getting transferred soon out of coffee creek intake, what do I have to do for visitation? Thanks in advance for all your help..

[TLAn4ever]

Originally Posted by Dezi492

My LO is getting transferred soon out of coffee creek intake, what do I have to do for visitation? Thanks in advance for all your help..

Assuming there is nothing that would complicate things, all you need to do is complete and send in a visitation form. You can download it at the DOC website. As soon as you are approved, you will be able to visit. Approval can take anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months, so you should probably do it asap. If you have any problems, just post a question and I'm sure someone can help you.

[GingerM]

Application (from DOC's webiste):

Click here for Printable Visiting Form (pdf)
Click here for Printable Visiting Form (doc)

Fill out the application and submit it (if you LO hasn't already done so). You can follow the directions at the bottom of the page to submit (can be submitted by email or snail mail). I submitted 8 people's applications all at once attached to one email and had no problems with it, even got a nice email back saying that they'd received it and would start working on it as soon as he got out of intake.

From the "New to DOC" sub-forum:

How do I visit someone?

First you need to find out what prison they’ve been sent to as their ‘home base.’ See the instructions above for “How do I know if my loved one is at Coffee Creek.” Enter the persons SID if you know it, otherwise, search by name.

Next, unless you live very near to the prison, you’ll need to find out how to drive there and where to stay. This link has very helpful information on all the prisons in Oregon: http://www.prisontalk.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=292 Just look for the prison you’re going to and see what’s there. Alternately, you can check here for the “official” listings: http://www.oregon.gov/DOC/OPS/PRISON/index.shtml

Now that you have a place to stay and a way to get there, you need to show up to go visit. Weekdays tend to have the least number of people. They also cost the inmate fewer visitation points. This post explains visitation points and how they work, and also has a lot of useful information: http://www.prisontalk.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=423293 If you want to read the full rules, see here: http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/pages/...1/291_127.html

Your best bet is to arrive 30 minutes or so prior to the opening time of visitation and get your name on the waiting list. This will speed up the process and give you more time to visit, especially if you’re there on a slow day.

While the state issues rules, each different institution has its own internal rules. You can get more information by clicking on the specific institution here to find the phone number to call with questions: http://www.oregon.gov/DOC/OPS/PRISON/index.shtml


What to do and what not to do:

Parking: don’t leave any valuables in the car. You will need to show an approved form of ID anyway, so make certain you take your wallet with you. (This may be blatantly obvious, but don’t leave children or pets in the car when you go inside). You won’t be able to have your cell phone on or take it into the visitor’s room, so don’t bother bringing it unless you absolutely have to. If you showed up early to get your name on the list, you may find yourself sitting in your car again. Be prepared to do some walking, depending on the institution you’re going to. Most of them, the parking lot is a fair hike from where you will be entering the facility.

Wear clothing that has as little metal on it as you can (ladies, leave the underwires at home). This will help you get through the metal detectors. Take a second set of clothing with you in case the screeners don’t like what you’re wearing. Generally, you want to stay covered up (no tanks tops, spaghetti straps, shorts, short skirts etc.) Do not wear blue jeans, and in some places light blue shirts are prohibited (inmates wear blue jeans and light blue shirts, they don’t want you looking like an inmate). Dress conservatively.

Don’t wear a lot of jewelry or anything that makes you look wealthy. This will not help you get through the metal detectors, and it may cause your loved one problems later on. If you have multiple piercings, you may want to remove as many rings/studs/gauges as you can before entering, unless they’re made of some material other than metal.

You may also want to bring $10 - $15 or so in change with you for the vending machines. Refer to the specific institution for what’s allowed and not allowed. The state rules say that you’re allowed to buy stuff and give it to the inmate out of the vending machines, but I’ve read elsewhere that this is not true.

You can take in paper with you to show the inmate (pictures or drawings), but you can’t leave it behind. You’ll have to take it back out with you when you leave.

State rules say that you can only have 2 people in the visitor’s room at a time; however, some institutions allow more than that. Again, calling the institution in advance is a good idea. Young children don’t count as “visitors” either in the number of people allowed in the visiting room or in the number of visitation points used. Visitors over 65 years old count towards the number of people in the visitor’s room, but do not count towards visitation points.

[TLAn4ever]

Thanks Ginger, much better than my Reader's Digest version. LOL!