What to Bring (and What to Leave Home) for Your First Visit to Pontiac Correctional Center
First visits are stressful — nobody wants to get turned away at the door. Here's exactly what Pontiac Correctional Center requires at check-in, what you can bring into the Visiting Room, and what needs to stay in your car or a locker.
Quick Summary
- ✓ When you arrive, call the facility and wait for guidance - staff will tell you when it’s safe to enter.
- ✓ Bring two forms of ID - one must be a current state-issued photo ID.
Adults visiting Pontiac Correctional Center need two forms of ID - one must be a current state-issued photo ID. Here's the catch: once you're checked in, the Visiting Room has tighter rules. You can only bring one ID card, one key fob or car door key (no remote attachments), and one locker key if you're issued one.
You'll need to provide vehicle information during check-in. Have your license plate number and make/model ready so you're not digging through your wallet at the window.
Prohibited Items and Lockers
- ✓ Cell phones
- ✓ Tablets
- ✓ Smart watches
- ✓ Food
- ✓ Drink
- ✓ Smoking materials
- ✓ Currency
- ✓ Packages
- ✓ Purses
- ✓ Bags
- ✓ Books
- ✓ Magazines
- ✓ Sunglasses
- ✓ Personal keys (including keys with remote attachments)
Pontiac's Visiting Center has small lockers for personal items you can't bring inside. Still, travel light - juggling extra belongings during check-in slows everything down.
Leave routine medications at home or in your car. The only exceptions: prescribed heart medication (in a properly labeled container) or an asthma inhaler. Even then, you won't keep it with you - any approved medication goes to the officer's station in the visiting room.
Note: Tobacco and tobacco-less products aren’t allowed inside any Illinois Department of Corrections facility.
Infants and Toddlers
- ✓ Three diapers and wipes
- ✓ One blanket
- ✓ Two filled clear plastic bottles, or two sealed containers of baby food (or one bottle and one sealed container)
- ✓ One change of clothes
- ✓ One bib
- ✓ One pacifier
- ✓ A clear bag or plastic container to store all infant/toddler items
Everyone goes through a body search by officers at the Visitor Center before entering. Build in extra time so the search doesn't make you late for your visit.
Note: If you’re intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you won’t be permitted to enter.
Once inside, keep things simple: be courteous with staff, follow directions the first time, and keep your voice down out of respect for other families visiting.
Final Checks and Reminders
- ✓ Call on arrival and wait for the go-ahead before entering.
- ✓ Bring two forms of ID (one must be a current state-issued photo ID).
- ✓ Have your vehicle information ready for check-in.
- ✓ Leave prohibited items out of the Visiting Room - use the Visiting Center lockers for personal property like phones, bags, sunglasses, and extra keys.
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