What to Expect During Contact Visits at Trenton Correctional (No Plexiglass)
Visiting someone at Trenton can feel overwhelming the first time—especially if you're used to talking through plexiglass. Here's what contact visits actually mean at this facility, plus how scheduling, visit limits, and entry searches work.
Trenton Correctional Institution is one of South Carolina's medium-security facilities that allows contact visits without plexiglass. You won't be speaking through a barrier - Trenton is specifically approved for this no-plexiglass format.
Visits happen between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., scheduled in two-hour blocks. Your appointment has a fixed start and end time within that window. Plan your day around your specific slot, not open-ended visiting.
Tip: Because visits are scheduled in two-hour blocks, arriving late usually means less face-to-face time - you don’t get the full block back.
General population inmates with visitation privileges can have up to four in-person visits per month. There's also a pacing rule: one visit per weekend. If you want to see your loved one regularly, space visits across the month. Doubling up on weekends isn't an option anyway.
Important: With a four-visits-per-month cap and one-visit-per-weekend limit, a missed visit can cost you one of the few in-person slots available that month.
Expect hands-on screening when you arrive. All visitors 18 and older entering Level II and Level III institutions must submit to a pat/frisk search, on top of other standard security procedures.
Female visitors are searched by female employees only. Knowing this ahead of time can ease some of the uncertainty around check-in, especially on your first visit.
The big difference at Trenton? Contact visits without plexiglass. That makes the experience feel more normal than a booth-style visit. Still, it's a controlled setting. Adult visitors (18+) go through a pat/frisk search at Level II/III institutions, and female visitors are searched by female staff only. Expect both - more personal time together, plus clear security procedures at the door.
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