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Visitation

What Happens During Your First 60 Days at GDCP: The Diagnostic Process Explained

The first 60 days at Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison (GDCP) can feel like a holding pattern for families. In-person visits aren't allowed right away, and the silence can be stressful. Here's how the diagnostic period affects visitation and what you can do to stay connected while your loved one is in diagnostic status.

• 2 min read Verified from official sources

People who arrive at GDCP in diagnostic status must wait before they can have in-person visits. The rule is straightforward: diagnostic offenders cannot receive visits until they have been at GDCP for 60 days. So if you're trying to plan a trip right after someone arrives and you're being told you can't visit yet, this 60-day waiting period is almost certainly why.

Visits aren't available during the diagnostic period at GDCP. Diagnostic offenders cannot receive visits until they have been at GDCP for 60 days. Once that window opens, GDCP limits visitation for diagnostic offenders to immediate family members only. It helps to sort out early who qualifies and who will need to request approval.

  • ✓ Monday, 9:00am to 1:00pm
  • ✓ Tuesday, 9:00am to 1:00pm
  • ✓ Thursday, 9:00am to 1:00pm

Alternative Contacts

  • ✓ Write letters: Use the facility mailing address listed in GDC’s Find a Facility tool, and put your loved one’s name and GDC number on the envelope.
  • ✓ Send money by mail: GDC offers a free printable money order voucher you can mail. Allow up to two weeks for mail and processing.
  • ✓ Send money online (JPay): Internet funds transfer fees are $3.50 for $0.01 to $20.00, $5.00 for $20.01 to $100.00, and $6.50 for $100.01 to $300.00.
  • ✓ Set up phone funding (Securus): Friends and family can set up a pre-paid collect or direct-bill account with Securus by visiting Securus or calling 1-800-844-6591.

Under GDC visitation policy, "immediate family" includes parents, siblings (brothers and sisters), a spouse, grandparents, grandchildren, and children. If you're figuring out who can visit after the 60-day diagnostic period, start with this list. Focus your visitation request on those relationships first.

  1. Confirm the location details for GDCP: If you need the facility’s street address for paperwork or correspondence, GDCP is located at 2978 Hwy 36 West Prison Blvd, Jackson, GA 30233.
  2. Get approved as a visitor: Fill out the Visitation Request Form and submit the completed form to the facility where your loved one is incarcerated.
  3. Request the actual visit appointment: When your loved one is eligible for visits, submit a visitation request through the online scheduled visitation request form referenced on GDC’s visitation page.

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