MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION'S – MAIL RECEPTION GUIDELINES.

THIS INFORMATION WAS OBTAINED FROM
THE MINNESOTA DOC WEBSITE.

Minnesota Department of Corrections

Inmate Mail Information

Incoming Offender Mail: With the exception of special/legal mail, incoming mail is opened and reviewed for the presence of unallowed items. Incoming mail must include the offender's commitment or department recognized legal name and Offender Identification (OID) number.

Incoming mail may include: paper with words/drawings; signed unmusical, commercial greeting cards and postcards; photographs (Polaroid photos must have the backing removed); periodicals and published materials shipped from the publisher; and clippings or photocopies of published materials that meet criteria.

How to send money to offenders: Acceptable fund instruments are: money orders, cashier checks, and certified bank checks.
All money orders, cashier checks and certified bank checks must be mailed to the following address:

Offender name, OID number,
MCF- (facility name where offender is housed)
PO Box 1000
Moose Lake, MN 55767

Envelopes addressed to PO Box 1000 with a return address indicating "special" or "legal" mail cannot be opened. We must forward the special or legal mail to the offender's home facility to be opened in the offender's presence. Please address all legal/special mail to the offender's home address.

Tribal distributions should also be addressed to the offender's home facility rather than the PO Box 1000 address.

Money orders and checks must be made payable to the offender with OID number and must include your first and last name and complete address, including city, state, and zip code.

All information contained on the money order must be legible. Money orders showing signs of alteration will not be accepted.

**Letters and other mailings must be mailed to the facility where the offender is living.

Money orders and/or letters will be returned to the sender if not sent appropriately as stated above.

Offenders are not allowed to receive money from another incarcerated offender's family, visitor, or anyone living at another offender's correspondent address. Offenders from the same family may receive money from their immediate family members.

Funds may also be sent to offenders via Western Union. A Western Union location can be found by calling 1-800-325-6000 or by visiting their web site at www.westernunion.com. When using cash, fill out the BLUE Quick Collect form. For credit, call 1-800-634-3422 or go to their web site.
Senders will need the following information to send money via Western Union:

Pay to: Minnesota Dept. Corrections
Code City: MNDOC
State: MN
Senders account number: Offender OID# and last name
Attention Field: Offender's last and first name

Special/Legal Mail: Special and legal mail may be sent or received in a sealed envelope. Incoming special/legal mail will be opened only in the presence of the offender. Staff may check the contents to ensure that the mail is legal or official in nature. Legal mail is logged. Legal mail includes correspondence to or from courts, court staff and attorneys.
Special mail includes correspondence to or from state and federal elected/appointed/regulatory agencies and officials.

Unallowed Mail: For safety and security purposes, the content of mail is regulated. Mail is denied that involves criminal activity; is identified as security threat group related; requests gifts or money from unrelated individuals, contain photos of staff, is coded material, contains unsanitary items such as hair, saliva, body secretions; certain sexually explicit situations including sexual intercourse, bodily excretory functions, sadism or bondage; personal photos displaying nudity by definition; and material advocating inferiority of an ethnic, racial or religious group.

Correspondence Review Authority: Each facility has a Correspondence Review Authority to review denied offender mail. Within a specified timeframe, offender's may request a review of their denied mail by the Correspondence Review Authority.

Forwarding Mail: First class mail and subscriptions will be forwarded for 60 days. After 60 days, or if a forwarding address is unavailable, the item will be returned to the sender.