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How Tablets Work at Craven Correctional: Calls, Texts, and Digitized Mail

If your loved one is at Craven Correctional, most day-to-day communication happens through the prison tablet system—calls, texts, and scanned mail all run through it. Here's how it works and what you can do from your end to keep things funded and running smoothly.

• 2 min read • dac.nc.gov
How Tablets Work at Craven Correctional: Calls, Texts, and Digitized Mail

Craven Correctional falls under the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (NCDAC). Tablet services across NC prisons run through a statewide contract with ViaPath/GTL - that's what powers the phone calls and messaging your loved one uses to stay in touch.

Tablets at Craven Correctional handle two main types of communication: phone calls and text-style messages. Your loved one can call you directly from the tablet and send or receive texts through the system - no need to rely solely on traditional mail or in-person visits.

Tablets are also how non-legal mail gets delivered. In North Carolina prisons, non-legal mail goes through TextBehind, where it's screened and scanned. The digital version then gets forwarded to the facility and shows up on your loved one's tablet - so they see a scanned image rather than the original paper letter.

Tablets also offer entertainment options that run on "minutes." People in prison can purchase those entertainment minutes at the canteen using funds from their trust account.

How Tablets Work at Craven Correctional: Calls, Texts, and Digitized Mail

Mail Instructions

  • ✓ Address non-legal mail to TextBehind (not directly to the prison): P.O. Box 247, Phoenix, MD 21131
  • ✓ Include your loved one’s name and OPUS number.
  • ✓ Include the full prison name (do not abbreviate).
  • ✓ Expect non-legal mail to be screened and scanned by TextBehind, then delivered electronically to the person’s tablet.
  • ✓ If you don’t address it this way, it will be returned to you.

To add phone time for someone at Craven Correctional or any NCDAC facility, you'll use ConnectNetwork - ViaPath's portal for deposits and account management. Set up and fund your calling account there so calls get paid for automatically when your loved one reaches out.

Phone debit accounts are charged at $0.10 per minute for the listed call types. Additional fees may apply depending on how you make payments (processing fees, for example), plus state and federal taxes.

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