What You Can and Can't Mail to Someone at USP Lewisburg

At USP Lewisburg, written correspondence is classified as either general mail or special mail. That label matters because it affects how staff handle the envelope when it arrives, including when it can be opened and what kind of inspection it goes through.

General correspondence gets opened and inspected by staff. They're looking for contraband and anything that could threaten the security or good order of the institution. If you're sending a regular personal letter (and it doesn't qualify as special mail), assume it will be opened during routine processing.

USP Lewisburg does not generally allow packages from home. Your loved one can't receive packages from family or friends unless there's prior written approval from the inmate's unit team or another authorized staff member at the institution.

• ✓ Release clothing
• ✓ Authorized medical devices

If you want to send reading material, the source matters. Magazines and books (hardback or paperback) must be sent directly from the publisher or an approved vendor. Don't mail books or magazines from home, even if they're brand new. If they're not coming from an approved source, they won't be accepted.

Even when a publication comes from the right place, it can still be refused. The Warden may reject incoming publications considered detrimental to security or discipline, or anything that could facilitate criminal activity. If it raises a safety or order concern, it may not be delivered.

• ✓ Content that depicts or describes how to construct or use weapons, ammunition, bombs, or incendiary devices
• ✓ Content that depicts, encourages, or describes methods of escape, including blueprints, drawings, or similar descriptions of Bureau of Prisons institutions
• ✓ Content that depicts or describes how to brew alcohol or manufacture drugs
• ✓ Material written in code
• ✓ Content that depicts, describes, or encourages activities that could lead to physical violence or group disruption
• ✓ Content that encourages or instructs criminal activity
• ✓ Sexually explicit material that, by its nature or content, poses a threat to security, good order, or discipline (or facilitates criminal activity)

1. Treat most letters as general mail. Expect that general correspondence will be opened and inspected during normal processing.
2. Only use special mail when it truly applies, and label it clearly. Special incoming mail that is properly marked may only be opened in the inmate’s presence, but it will still be inspected for contraband and to confirm enclosures qualify.
3. Send books and magazines the right way. Order publications so they ship directly from the publisher or an approved vendor, not from your home.