Big Muddy River

All visits at Big Muddy River must be scheduled in advance through the facility's signup link, so plan ahead before making the trip. Video visitation is available daily—follow the posted hours and log in at the recommended time so you don't miss your session. Before visiting, the incarcerated person typically needs to add you to their approved visitors list, and the facility must clear you under standard Illinois procedures. Whether visiting on-site or by video, visits run within set time windows and facility rules apply. For in-person visits, bring a current, readable photo ID. Staff will check your identification and search you, your vehicle, and your belongings on arrival.

Sending mail to someone at Big Muddy River means going through a scanned-mail process. Incoming non-privileged mail is scanned in color (front and back) and uploaded to the individual's Bulletin Board for viewing on their tablet. The scanned originals generally aren't returned to you. There's no cost to send or receive scanned electronic mail. If someone doesn't have tablet access, they'll get paper photocopies instead. IDOC accepts written correspondence, greeting cards, drawings, and photos for scanning, though certain items aren't eligible. A rule change takes effect Sept 30, 2025: books, magazines, and other publications must be mailed directly from publishers. Visitors can't drop them off—except through limited approved program, library, or religious program channels.

Need to reach Big Muddy River Correctional Center? Start with the facility's PREA report, which lists the physical address and main telephone number. The facility contact page includes the required mail-address format for sending letters to someone incarcerated there, plus phone and fax numbers. For leadership contacts, the PREA report identifies Warden Daniel Q. Sullivan and includes his contact information. It also names the PREA Compliance Manager with name, title, email address, and phone number for PREA-related concerns. For routine, non-emergency questions, use the facility phone or email and include your contact details plus the incarcerated person's full name and any ID you have. For immediate public-safety emergencies, call 911.

Big Muddy River's facility page covers the basics: opening date, operational capacity, custody level, recent population, and average annual cost per individual. The PREA report adds operational details—on-site video monitoring is limited to medical areas, and footage isn't maintained. That report also includes counts of staff, contractors, and volunteers who may have contact with people in custody. Trying to help someone who is seriously ill? The Joe Coleman Medical Release Act process applies: file the application with the Illinois Prisoner Review Board (not the facility), submit initially by email or fax, and the board must act within 90 days. Note that the facility webpage and PREA report list different wardens.