What can you mail to an inmate in Orange County Central Men’s Jail?
Postcards
The Orange County Central Men’s Jail allows inmates to receive pre-metered postcards like the type purchased from the post office. They may also allow certain photo postcards as long as they have not been tampered with or contain images that may be considered to be obscene or violent in nature.
Envelopes
The Orange County Central Men’s Jail also allows envelopes to be mailed to inmates.
Postcards and envelopes MUST be mailed to the following address:
Inmate name and booking number (required information)
Orange County Sheriff's Department
550 N. Flower St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703
Newspapers
Local or national newspapers may also be mailed to the inmate as long as they are mailed directly from the newspaper publisher.
Magazines
News, special interest or sports magazines may also be mailed to an inmate as long as they are shipped directly from the publisher. Any magazines that contain profanity, weapons, pornography or other content that is adult in nature will be confiscated by the jail staff and will NOT be delivered to the inmate.
Books
The Orange County Central Men’s Jail allows books to be mailed directly to the jail from a reputable source such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million. You can order them directly from your computer and have them shipped to the inmate at the address above.
Books must NOT contain images or content that are considered excessively violent, pornographic or obscene. Any book that does not meet the Orange County Central Men’s Jail standards will be disposed of. No more than three books may be shipped at any one time.
Hard cover books will not be accepted by the jail due to their potential to be used as a weapon.
All mail, newspapers, magazines and books are to be shipped to:
Inmate name and booking number (required information)
Orange County Sheriff's Department
550 N. Flower St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703
How to address your Inmate's Postcard or Envelope
Inmate's First and Last Name
Inmate name and booking number (required information)
Orange County Sheriff's Department
550 N. Flower St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703
All mail sent to an inmate at the Orange County Central Men’s Jail must include the senders name and mailing address in the top left corner of the envelope or postcard.
Failure to include your return address will most likely result in your mail NOT being delivered and discarded.
Mailed Items NOT Allowed
If your inmate is mailed anything other than a letter or postcard (or sometimes) greeting cards it won't get through.
However as stated above, because of the increased smuggling of drugs, more and more jails are only allowing pre-stamped or metered, solid color or white postcards to be received by inmates, or even using a third-party service that scans the letters and delivers paper or digital copies.
Examples of prohibited items include:
POLICIES REGARDING MAILING PHOTOS TO Orange County Central Men’s Jail
Photos should not exceed 4 inches high x 6 inches wide.
Send no more than five photos at one time.
Polaroid Photos are prohibited.
Photos of weapons are prohibited.
Photos of drugs, the consuming of drugs or alcohol is prohibited.
Photos of lewd behavior or people exhibiting too much skin is prohibited.
Important Mail Tips
Mail is always scanned and inspected for contraband, obscenity and other rule infractions.
Assume that everything you write will be read by jail staff and can and will be used against you or your inmate in court.
Never write anything about the inmate's court case you wouldn't want read aloud in court.
Mail is considered by the jail to be a privilege. Any violations of the mail policies can result in the inmate's mail privileges being suspended.
The introduction of contraband by you into the jail through the mail could result in criminal charges being filed against both you and the inmate.
| DAY | TIME |
| FRIDAY | 8:00AM - 5:00PM |
| SATURDAY | 8:00AM - 5:00PM |
| SUNDAY | 8:00AM - 5:00PM |
| MONDAY | 8:00AM - 5:00PM |
To find out court dates, court locations or an inmate's bail amount, call 714-935-6940.
To find out all the information; exact inmate visitation scheduling, policies, rules & guidelines, including how many people can come each visit, of the Orange County Central Men’s Jail, check out our Inmate Visitation page.
Inmates are allowed to have an account at the facility in order to purchase commissary items such as snacks, hygeine products, phone cards and stationary. These are the instructions on how to deposit money with them, pick up money they had with them when they were arrested, and how much money they need.
For complete information on inmate money and commissary issues, specifically where to drop or send deposits, what form the deposits must be in, maximum amounts the inmate can have, and more, check out our Inmate Money page.
Postcards & Envelopes
The Orange County Central Men’s Jail allows regular postcards and envelopes to be mailed to inmates. There are a number of restictions that are oulined on the Inmate Mail page.
Postcards and envelopes MUST be mailed to the following address:
Inmate name and booking number (required information)
Orange County Sheriff's Department
550 N. Flower St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703
Newspapers, Magazines & Books
Local or national newspapers, news, special interest or sports magazines, and soft cover books may also be mailed to the inmate as long as they are mailed directly from the publisher or a third party service such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble.
All newspapers, magazines and books are to be shipped to:
Inmate name and booking number (required information)
Orange County Sheriff's Department
550 N. Flower St.
Santa Ana, CA 92703
For complete mail policies of what is allowed and what is NOT allowed, pertaining to inmate mail, newspapers, magazines, books or anything else mailed or shipped to an inmate, check out out Inmate Mail Page.
Follow these instructions on how to open an account with GTL Connect Network (aka Viapath Technologies)
For full instructions on the Orange County Central Men’s Jail Inmate Phone System, what the costs are, how it works, and tips and guidelines on rules, regulations and saving money on calls, check out our Inmate Phones Page.
