How to Address and Send Mail to Someone at Dallas County Jail (Adel, IA)

Dallas County Jail requires specific information on inmate mail so it reaches the right person. On the first lines, write the inmate's full name, their arrest number, and their cell number. Below that, add the jail's mailing address: P.O. Box 187, Adel, Iowa 50003-0187. Keep each piece on its own line - it helps staff sort and deliver without delays.

Incoming mail is delivered to inmates Monday through Friday. If you send something close to the weekend, expect a short wait - delivery only happens on weekdays.

The jail won't accept mail from anyone who was incarcerated at Dallas County Jail within the past six months. If you were recently housed there, your letters will be rejected during that window.

Keep it simple: letters and cards only, with nothing tucked inside. Staff open and search all incoming mail for contraband. Don't send cash or personal checks - money in any form is considered contraband and won't be handed to the inmate. Instead, any money received gets posted to their account. Other prohibited items include inappropriate photos, matches, lighters, cigarettes, jewelry, and chewing gum.

• ✓ Cash (money in any form)
• ✓ Personal checks
• ✓ Inappropriate photos
• ✓ Matches
• ✓ Lighters
• ✓ Cigarettes
• ✓ Jewelry
• ✓ Chewing gum

Your mail will be opened before it reaches the inmate. Staff search everything for contraband - money, checks, inappropriate photos, matches, lighters, cigarettes, jewelry, chewing gum, and similar items.

If staff find something unauthorized, they may place it in the property room or dispose of it. Items that aren't disposed of get returned when the inmate is released. Any money you send won't be handed over as cash - it's posted to the inmate's account instead.

Privileged correspondence - from an attorney, a judge, the governor of Iowa, the citizen's aid office, or a state or federal legislator - gets different treatment. Staff may only open it in the inmate's presence to check for contraband, and they're not allowed to read it.

Quick Checklist

• ✓ Address it with the inmate’s full name, arrest number, and cell number, then: P.O. Box 187, Adel, Iowa 50003-0187
• ✓ Don’t include cash or personal checks
• ✓ Keep contraband out of the envelope (for example: inappropriate photos, matches, lighters, cigarettes, jewelry, chewing gum)
• ✓ If you’re sending privileged correspondence, make sure it’s clearly treated as privileged mail so it can be opened only in the inmate’s presence