What to Bring (and What to Leave Home) for a Visit to Deer Ridge Correctional Institution
A smooth visit starts with packing light and following the rules. Here's what you can bring to Deer Ridge—and what to leave behind to avoid delays or denial at the door.
Before you pack anything, confirm you're on the adult in custody's approved visitors list. The online scheduling system might let you book a visit anyway, but Deer Ridge can still turn you away at the door if you're not approved. If you're traveling any distance, check with your incarcerated loved one first - don't find out the hard way after a long drive.
Keep it simple: bring your ID and quarters for vending if you want snacks. Deer Ridge doesn't allow cash or other negotiable instruments in the visiting area - only up to $15 in quarters. Leave bills, cards, and anything else from your wallet locked in your car or at home.
Your outfit matters. At Deer Ridge (and other Oregon DOC facilities), you can't wear any blue or denim - adults in custody wear blue, so it's a security issue. Pick clothes in other colors and skip denim entirely, even a jacket or jeans you planned to wear for the drive.
- ✓ Blue clothing of any kind or any denim
- ✓ Outer garments that are lined (for example, raincoats or ski jackets)
- ✓ Hats (they aren’t allowed to be worn inside)
- ✓ Clothing or accessories with metal buttons
- ✓ Body piercings and jewelry that can set off the detector
- ✓ Underwire bras
- ✓ Shoes that may activate the metal detector
Things to Leave Home
- ✓ Cell phones, pagers, and other electronic devices
- ✓ Any cash or negotiable instruments other than up to $15 in quarters
- ✓ Non-emergency medications (prescribed or non-prescribed)
- ✓ Weapons of any kind
These rules exist for safety, and they can end your visit before it starts. Electronics aren't allowed in the visiting area. Weapons should never be brought onto facility grounds. Medications trip people up too - non-emergency medications (even prescribed ones) aren't permitted in the visiting room. Travel light and leave prohibited items at home or locked in your car.
If you have a medical condition or device that makes the walk-through metal detector difficult, Oregon DOC offers a Walk-thru Metal Detector Medical Exception form. You and your physician need to complete it, then contact the facility to submit it. Even without a medical issue, know what commonly triggers the detector: metal buttons, body piercings, jewelry, underwire bras, and some shoes.
- Get the medical exception form - use the Oregon DOC Walk-thru Metal Detector Medical Exception form.
- Have your physician complete it - the form must be completed by you and your physician.
- Contact Deer Ridge to submit it - follow the facility’s instructions for turning in the completed form.
Quick Previsit Checklist
- ✓ Confirm you’re on the adult in custody’s approved visitors list before you schedule or travel
- ✓ Bring only what you need, including your identification
- ✓ Do not wear any blue or any denim
- ✓ Leave your phone and all other electronics behind (not allowed in the visiting area)
- ✓ Bring no more than $15 in quarters (no other cash or negotiable instruments)
- ✓ Do not bring non-emergency medications into the visiting room
- ✓ Do not bring weapons of any kind
- ✓ If you can’t go through the walk-through metal detector for medical reasons, get the DOC medical exception form completed by your physician and contact the facility to submit it
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