How IDOC's Mail Scanning Works — and What Not to Send to Someone at Kewanee
Mailing someone at Kewanee Re-entry Center? Here's what gets scanned to their tablet, what won't be copied, and what kinds of envelopes and extras can get your mail rejected.
IDOC scans all incoming non-privileged mail in color. Staff scan both sides of the envelope and everything inside: letters, greeting cards, photographs. Those scans become PDF images uploaded to the person's Bulletin Board, where they can download and view the mail on their tablet. The original paper version is not passed along.
Note: Your loved one will read regular (non-privileged) mail as a scanned PDF on their tablet through their Bulletin Board.
Not everything goes through the scanner. Publications are excluded from scanning and photocopying entirely. Official documents mailed from a government entity, like birth certificates and Social Security cards, are also not scanned or photocopied.
Prohibited Materials
- ✓ Padded envelopes
- ✓ Mail with stains or discoloration (including perfume, lipstick, oily substances, unusual stains, or bodily fluids)
- ✓ Crayon on the paper
- ✓ Glitter or other foreign/unknown substances on the paper
- ✓ Added texture, beads, or other craft material
- ✓ Stickers
- ✓ Tape
- ✓ Return address stickers or labels
- ✓ Any mail sent without a return address
- ✓ Cloth
- ✓ Leather
- ✓ Ribbon
- ✓ Feathers
- ✓ Yarn
- ✓ Hair
- ✓ White-out
- ✓ Paint
- ✓ Glue
- ✓ Magnets
- ✓ Decals
- ✓ Dried flowers
- ✓ Cologne
- ✓ Hardback books
Why these rules? These restrictions exist for safety and security. They reduce the ways contraband can be hidden in mail or introduced through unusual materials.
Legal or privileged mail follows a different process. For mail to be treated as privileged, the envelope must be clearly marked "privileged" or "legal" and must show the sender's name, title, and address. If any of that labeling is missing or unclear, the mail may not be processed as privileged.
- Mark it clearly as legal/privileged - Write “privileged” or “legal” on the mail and include the sender’s name, title, and address.
- Expect it to be opened with the recipient present - Staff open incoming privileged/legal mail in the offender’s presence.
- Inspection is for contraband and sender verification - Staff inspect it to check for contraband and verify the identity of the sender.
Practical Tips
- ✓ Assume regular personal mail will be delivered as scanned PDFs on the Bulletin Board for tablet viewing, not as the original paper.
- ✓ Use a plain, standard envelope (avoid padded envelopes).
- ✓ Keep pages clean and simple, no stains, discoloration, perfume/cologne, lipstick marks, or anything oily.
- ✓ Do not use crayon, glitter, or any other foreign substance on the paper.
- ✓ Skip crafts and add-ons entirely: no added texture, beads, stickers, tape, magnets, decals, dried flowers, ribbon, yarn, feathers, hair, cloth, leather, paint, glue, or white-out.
- ✓ Put a clear return address directly on the envelope. Do not use return address labels or stickers, and do not send mail without a return address.
- ✓ If you are sending legal/privileged mail, label it clearly as “privileged” or “legal” and include the sender’s name, title, and address.
- ✓ Do not send hardback books.
Reminder: Regular mail is scanned in color and uploaded as PDFs for tablet viewing. Skip padded envelopes and any added materials (stickers, tape, glitter, stains, and similar). For legal or privileged mail, label the envelope "privileged" or "legal" and include the sender's name, title, and address.
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