Fairfax ADC Mail Policy: How to Send Personal Mail via Smart Communications

Since August 23, 2021, the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center (ADC) and Alternative Incarceration Branch (AIB) no longer accept personal mail directly. All personal (non-legal) letters now go through Smart Communications instead. Legal mail is the exception - it's still accepted at the facilities as long as it's clearly labeled and comes from an approved legal source.

Send all personal correspondence to Smart Communications - not the ADC or AIB. Use this format: Smart Communications/FXCOADC Inmate Name/Inmate Number P.O. 9128 Seminole, FL 33775-9128 Single-line version: Smart Communications/FXCOADC Inmate Name/Inmate Number, P.O. 9128, Seminole, FL 33775-9128.

• ✓ Write a full return address on the envelope, including your first and last name
• ✓ Address the envelope with the inmate’s full, correct name
• ✓ Include the inmate’s inmate number (double-check it before you mail)

Here's how it works: Smart Communications opens your mail and scans it into an electronic document. The ADC/AIB mail room then screens and approves it. Once approved, the scanned version goes to the inmate's electronic account. They'll receive your letter digitally - not the original paper.

Want to include photos? Stick to 10 or fewer per mailing. Send more than 10, and the entire mailing gets denied.

Prohibited and Restricted Items

• ✓ Any materials that are bound or open like a book (Smart Communications will reject them)
• ✓ Customized personal picture books from third-party vendors (for example, Shutterfly or Snapfish)
• ✓ Publications that contain nudity or inadequately clothed individuals

Reading materials follow different rules. Paperback books (soft covers only), magazines, and newspapers must ship via U.S. Postal Service directly from the publisher or a third-party retailer like Amazon. Don't send publications through the Smart Communications address - they won't be processed like personal mail.

Official documents - IDs, legal paperwork, and similar items - skip Smart Communications entirely. Mail them directly to the ADC Property Officer: Fairfax County Sheriff's Office Adult Detention Center Attn: Property Officer – inmate name/inmate number 10520 Judicial Drive Fairfax, VA 22030

Keep those mailings strictly official. If you slip in personal items - letters, photos, greeting cards, kids' drawings - alongside official documents sent to the Property Officer, those personal items will be rejected.

1. Mail the original transactional documents to the ADC Property Officer - Address it to the Property Officer and identify the inmate by name and inmate number.
2. Wait for the Property Officer/designee to coordinate review and signing - They’ll arrange a time for the inmate to review and sign the documents, if the inmate chooses to.
3. Have the documents mailed back out by the facility - The Property Officer/designee will pay the postage to mail the documents out of the facility.
4. Use this process only for transactional paperwork - It’s for original transactional documentation (for example, documents that must be signed and returned), not for sending other original documents for the inmate to keep.

Practical Tips and Troubleshooting

• ✓ Use the Smart Communications/FXCOADC address format for personal mail (not the jail’s address)
• ✓ Always include a full return address with your first and last name
• ✓ Double-check the inmate’s full name and inmate number before you seal the envelope
• ✓ Keep photos to 10 or fewer per mailing (more than 10 can cause the entire mailing to be denied)
• ✓ Don’t include anything bound or book-like in personal mail sent to Smart Communications

Letter or photos not showing up? Remember the process: Smart Communications opens and scans your mail, then the ADC/AIB mail room screens it before delivering it electronically. If you're dealing with official documents - the kind that need signatures and get mailed back out - those go through the Property Officer, not Smart Communications.