Why Your Legal Papers Got Sent Back: St. Charles County Jail’s Two‑Address Mail System

St. Charles County routes personal (non-legal) inmate mail to a central processing facility, not to the jail itself. For personal mail, use this address format: JailATM.com - St Charles County Corrections Inmate Name/Inmate Number 9506 Olive Blvd. MB# 213 Olivette, MO 63132 A correctly addressed personal letter looks just like that, with your loved one's name and inmate number on the second line.

That off-site address matters because personal mail doesn't work the way you'd expect. At the JailATM central facility, personal mail is opened, scanned, and delivered electronically to the inmate at the jail. So even though you're mailing a physical letter, it never gets carried into the housing unit like traditional jail mail.

Who Qualifies Legal

• ✓ Attorney office
• ✓ Courts
• ✓ Public defender

St. Charles County requires that legal mail come from a legal entity. This is about verification and handling. The facility draws a bright line between everyday personal mail (processed off-site) and legal or official paperwork that needs special treatment.

If official documents or legal mail end up at the JailATM processing facility in Olivette, they won't be forwarded to the St. Charles County Department of Corrections. They'll be returned to the sender. If you're working against a deadline, that return trip can cost you valuable time. Double-check the address before anything goes out.

Sending paperwork directly to the jail isn't the same as getting it into your loved one's hands right away. The jail's policy states that official documents sent to the institution won't be delivered to the inmate. Instead, they'll be transferred to the property room and held. That can be surprising if you expected the person to read it and respond immediately.

Prevent Misrouting

• ✓ Decide whether what you’re sending is personal mail (non-legal) or legal/official business documents.
• ✓ For personal mail, address it to: JailATM.com - St Charles County Corrections, Inmate Name/Inmate Number, 9506 Olive Blvd. MB# 213, Olivette, MO 63132.
• ✓ For legal mail and official business documents, send it directly to: St. Charles County Department of Corrections, Inmate Name, 301 N. Second Street, St. Charles, MO 63301.
• ✓ Make sure legal mail is sent by a legal entity (for example, an attorney office, the courts, or a public defender).

If something is time-sensitive, follow up quickly when you don't see progress. Personal mail is opened, scanned, and delivered electronically after it reaches the JailATM facility, so a long silence can be a clue that it was routed incorrectly. And if legal or official documents were mailed to the JailATM address, they get returned to sender rather than forwarded. The sender's office is usually the first to learn there was a problem.

1. Check the returned envelope: Look for any markings that indicate it was sent to the JailATM processing facility or otherwise treated as non-forwardable.
2. Resend legal and official documents to the jail: Use St. Charles County Department of Corrections, Inmate Name, 301 N. Second Street, St. Charles, MO 63301. Make sure it is sent by a legal entity (attorney office, courts, or public defender).
3. Resend personal mail to the JailATM address: Use JailATM.com - St Charles County Corrections, Inmate Name/Inmate Number, 9506 Olive Blvd. MB# 213, Olivette, MO 63132.
4. Coordinate with the sender and confirm the routing: If an attorney, court, or office mailed it, let them know it was returned and that legal mail cannot be forwarded from the JailATM facility.

To verify the right destination before resending, check the St. Charles County Corrections information line listed on their corrections page, or have the sending office confirm they're using the jail's legal-mail address (not the JailATM processing address). When legal mail is misaddressed to JailATM, it gets returned to sender, so the sender's office is usually the quickest place to start.