What you can mail to an inmate at FCI Mendota: packages, books, magazines, and special mail
Mail rules at FCI Mendota follow Bureau of Prisons standards, but a few details trip families up. Packages and publications are the biggest sticking points. Here's how general mail, special mail, and publisher-sent reading material work so your items don't get turned away.
FCI Mendota sorts written correspondence into two categories: general mail and special mail. The category determines how staff handle your letter and what privacy protections apply during inspection.
General correspondence gets opened and inspected by staff. They're checking for contraband and reviewing content that could threaten institutional security or good order. If you're writing personal letters, assume they'll be read as part of normal processing.
Special mail: Incoming mail that's properly marked as special mail can only be opened in front of the inmate. Staff will still inspect it for physical contraband and verify that any enclosures qualify as special mail.
Packages catch most people off guard. Inmates at FCI Mendota cannot receive packages from home unless they have prior written approval from the inmate's unit team or another authorized staff member. Mail a box without that approval, and expect it to be rejected or returned.
- ✓ Release clothing
- ✓ Authorized medical devices
Want to send reading material? Pay close attention to the "sent directly from" rule. At FCI Mendota (and all Bureau institutions), inmates may receive hardcover publications and newspapers only when they come directly from the publisher, a book club, or a bookstore. Mailing books or newspapers from your home address is a common reason items get stopped, even if they're brand new.
Even publications sent the right way can be rejected. The Warden may turn away a publication if it's determined to be detrimental to institutional security, good order, or discipline, or if it might facilitate criminal activity. When something gets stopped, staff typically believe it falls into one of those categories.
- Use publisher, book club, or bookstore shipping for eligible items. Hardcover publications and newspapers must be sent directly from the publisher, a book club, or a bookstore.
- Do not send a package from home unless approval is already in place. Packages from home require prior written approval from the inmate’s unit team or an authorized staff member.
- Ask the unit team about written approval before you mail anything exceptional. If you believe your situation fits an exception, get the written approval first, then send the package.
- If a publication is rejected, adjust what you send next time. The Warden can reject publications only when they are deemed detrimental to institution security, good order, or discipline, or when they might facilitate criminal activity.
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