What You Can't Bring to Visits at North Central: The Complete List
Showing up with the wrong items is the fastest way to get turned away at North Central. Pack light, know what triggers the metal detector, and leave anything that could be confiscated—or get you in legal trouble—at home.
Expect to be searched when you arrive. You'll go through a metal detector, and everyday items can slow you down or stop you entirely - hairpins, underwire bras, boots with steel shanks, clothing with lots of zippers, and chunky jewelry all trigger the detector. ODRC has a zero-tolerance policy on contraband, especially drugs. Don't risk it. Getting caught with prohibited items doesn't just end your visit - it can mean real legal consequences.
Note: Attempting to bring drugs onto prison grounds can lead to prosecution under Ohio Revised Code §2921.36.
Electronics
- ✓ Cell phones
- ✓ Smart watches
- ✓ Pagers
- ✓ Other electronic devices
Leave electronics at home or locked in your car. If staff find a device during screening, you'll lose your visit and the item may be confiscated. Even accidental slip-ups cause problems. The fewer items and less metal you carry, the faster check-in goes.
Purses, handbags, and backpacks aren't allowed in the visiting room. Show up with one and you'll be stopped at the door until you take it back to your car.
- ✓ Clear diaper bags only (if you need one)
- ✓ A reasonable number of diapers
- ✓ Baby wipes
Tobacco Cash Other
- ✓ Cigarettes
- ✓ Loose tobacco
- ✓ Cigars
- ✓ Snuff
- ✓ Chewing tobacco
- ✓ Tobacco substitutes
- ✓ Matches
- ✓ Lighters
- ✓ Cigarette papers
- ✓ Rolling machines
- ✓ Other smoking paraphernalia
Don't bring cash onto the grounds. Money in your pockets can hold up screening and may prevent entry altogether. ODRC's zero-tolerance policy also covers alcohol and weapons - intoxicating liquor, any deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance, even parts or ammunition. Leave all of it behind. This is exactly the kind of situation that escalates beyond a denied visit.
You can't hand your loved one anything during the visit - not money, paperwork, letters, or packages. Everything has to go through the mail process. This rule keeps the visiting room from becoming an exchange point for contraband. Try to pass something and you risk ending the visit on the spot, plus losing future visiting privileges.
- Don’t bring items to hand over - leave packages, paperwork, and cash out of your visit plan.
- Use the mail process for materials - send correspondence and printed items through the mail per policy.
- Keep money out of the visit - cash isn’t allowed on the grounds, and money can’t be delivered directly to an incarcerated person.
Accidentally bring something prohibited? Staff can deny entry and you'll lose the visit. Depending on the item, it may be confiscated too. Drugs are a different story. ODRC treats any attempt to bring drugs in as a zero-tolerance offense, and you can face criminal prosecution under Ohio law.
- Stay calm and be upfront - if you realize you have a prohibited item, don’t try to hide it.
- Follow staff instructions - you’re subject to search, and arguing usually just ends the visit.
- Remove the item from the property if you can - take it back to your vehicle or otherwise get it off-site before attempting to enter again.
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