New Hanover County Detention Mail Rules (effective Dec 1, 2025): address, page/photo limits, front-side scanning, and the book ban

Starting December 1, 2025, all inmate mail goes to a P.O. Box processing address: (Inmate's Name) (Inmate's ID number) New Hanover County Detention Facility P.O. Box 591 Longview, TX 75606. Include the inmate's full name and ID number - staff need both to match mail to the right person.

Letters and printed pages must be exactly 8.5 inches by 11 inches in portrait (tall) orientation. Writing by hand? Use standard letter-size paper and stick to that 8.5" x 11" format.

Keep each mailing to 5 pages or fewer. Anything over that limit gets returned. If you have more to say, split it into separate mailings.

• ✓ Inmate’s full name
• ✓ Inmate’s ID number
• ✓ Your return address

All incoming mail is scanned on the front side only. Write on the back of a page and the entire letter comes back to you. Treat the back of every sheet like it doesn't exist.

You can include one photograph per mailing - that's it. Send more than one photo and the entire letter gets returned.

Books, magazines, newspapers, and legal or medical mail aren't accepted through regular inmate mail. If you send publications anyway, they'll be placed in the inmate's property and returned when they're released.

There's one narrow exception: magazines and soft-cover books may be accepted if purchased directly from the publisher and shipped to the facility as a parcel. Visitors cannot bring packages, books, magazines, or other items into the facility.

Returned Items Examples

• ✓ Greeting cards
• ✓ Anything on card stock paper
• ✓ Anything on colored paper
• ✓ Copies of photographs
• ✓ Cash
• ✓ Stamps
• ✓ Stickers
• ✓ Blank paper
• ✓ Blank envelopes
• ✓ Padded or bubble-wrap envelopes

Want to make sure your letter actually arrives? Use 8.5" x 11" paper in portrait orientation, keep it to 5 pages max, write on the front side only, and include the inmate's name and ID number. Double-check the mailing address - starting December 1, 2025, everything goes to the P.O. Box in Longview, Texas. If you hear the rules have changed, call the facility to confirm before sending anything.