York County Prison Inmate Mail

Mailing an Inmate at York County Prison

Using Text Behind to Mail Letters to a York County Prison Inmate

TextBehind enables you to communicate with your incarcerated loved ones located inside the United States from anywhere in the world using text letters, kids' drawings, and custom greeting cards. Unlimited inmate reply letters are processed for electronic delivery to your smartphone and email at no extra charge.
The cost to send an electronic letter is approximately $1.00.

Here’s how it works for York County Prison:

1.    All offender mail (paper and electronic) is addressed and delivered to TextBehind. Electronic mail is sent through the apps (iphone, Google Play). Paper mail is sent to the address below:

Inmate Name and Inmate Number
York County Prison Pennsylvania (note: please do not abbreviate the name)
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

2.    If it was sent via TextBehind's app (iphone, Google Play), TextBehind can process it within one business day.

3.    An additional step is involved in processing mail that is sent using the U.S. Postal Service. TextBehind will  use a scanner to make digital files of the contents of the mailing—including cards, photos or artwork.

4.    All digital files are then forwarded to the offender’s assigned prison.

5.    York County Prison mailroom prints approved pages and delivers them to the inmate.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• TextBehind does not deliver any mail to the inmate directly, nor do they guarantee delivery of your letters to the inmates by the courier, jail or prison staff. Once they process your mail and ship them out on your behalf, they are out of the loop entirely. However, at times they may offer to resend your letters under certain strict conditions as a courtesy. 
• Inmates do not receive any invites when you add them, and neither do they need to accept the use of TextBehind service. Once you add the inmate, you can create letters for them. 

Here’s what happens when TextBehind receives a letter from an inmate:

• Upon receiving, TextBehind staff open their letters, scan, and upload high-quality images to your TextBehind account as a complimentary service. You are not required to have any money or credits balance in your TextBehind account to receive inmate letters.
• Next, you will receive a text and email alert to notify you of any new incoming reply letters. At that time, you can log into the TextBehind website or mobile app and view letters in your CONTACTS >> Click on Conversation Icon. 

YOU NEED TO KNOW THIS...

• Inmates do require a stamp to send out their letters to TextBehind using Postal Service.
• The cash or credit balance from your TextBehind account will not be shared with inmates as a substitute for the stamps. 
• All letters printed and shipped by TextBehind nationwide to virtually any jail or prison facility are delivered to the jails/prisons by couriers such as the USPS or FedEx as their standard process.
• After the shipments, TextBehind has no control over the process.
• The delivery of your letters depends on couriers and prison staff taking necessary action on time.

IMPORTANT TextBehind LINKS:
Register / Log in with TextBehind
Contact TextBehind with Questions
Add an Inmate to your list of Contacts

** Address to Mail letters using TextBehind **
Inmate Name and Inmate Number
York County Prison Pennsylvania (note: please do not abbreviate the name)
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

Why is TextBehind used by Lockups?
Due to the problem of letters and postcards containing, or soaked in contraband (drugs), TextBehind electronic and physical letters is replacing the former policy of allowing mail to be sent directly from inmate’s friends and family members, and vice versa.

Emailing Messages & Photos

Facility_name_1} also contracts with GTL & their sister company GettingOut, the same services that handle its Inmate Phone System and Video Visitation, for sending secure messages and photos between you and your inmate. Check both to confirm which company is currently working with York County as they are in a transition to becoming one company.


If you are not already registered, do so here, or Log in.

Then use the Facility Finder to:
1.  Select this facility,
2. Add your inmate to your list of contacts,
3. Add a credit or debit card to cover your costs.

How Messaging Works
Watch this video on how to send a message.
1.  Messages can be up to 500 characters long, including punctuation. At the bottom of your message there is a 'character countdown' feature.  
2. After you click the “CONTINUE” button, you can review the cost to send your message to your inmate. You can also attach credits for your inmate to reply to your message.  Be sure to accept the Terms and Conditions and click the “SEND” button for your message to be successfully delivered to your inmate.

How Uploading Photos Works
Watch this video on how to upload a photo.
1.  Select the Photos Tab.
2. Select “Take New Photo” or “Upload New Photo”.
3. Take a new photo with your webcam, or select "Choose File" to upload a photo from your computer.
4. Give your photo a Title or add it to the "Gallery" of your choice.
5. Select the "Share" button.
6. Select your inmate(s) and then select "Share".
7. Once the photo is approved, it will be shared with your inmate(s).

Customer Service Questions
'Online' Contact Form, or
Call   866-516-0115

When mailing a legal letter or sending money to an inmate's commissary, please address your mail as follows:
Inmate Name and Inmate Number
York County Prison
3400 Concord Rd.
York, PA 17402

All personal mail sent to an inmate at the York County Prison must be sent to TextBehind.
The address to mail to an inmate via TextBehind is:
Inmate Name and Inmate Number
York County Prison Pennsylvania (note: please do not abbreviate the name)
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

Emailing Messages & Photos

Facility_name_1} also contracts with GTL & their sister company GettingOut, the same services that handle its Inmate Phone System and Video Visitation, for sending secure messages and photos between you and your inmate. Check both to confirm which company is currently working with York County as they are in a transition to becoming one company.


If you are not already registered, do so here, or Log in.

Then use the Facility Finder to:
1.  Select this facility,
2. Add your inmate to your list of contacts,
3. Add a credit or debit card to cover your costs.

How Messaging Works
Watch this video on how to send a message.
1.  Messages can be up to 500 characters long, including punctuation. At the bottom of your message there is a 'character countdown' feature.  
2. After you click the “CONTINUE” button, you can review the cost to send your message to your inmate. You can also attach credits for your inmate to reply to your message.  Be sure to accept the Terms and Conditions and click the “SEND” button for your message to be successfully delivered to your inmate.

How Uploading Photos Works
Watch this video on how to upload a photo.
1.  Select the Photos Tab.
2. Select “Take New Photo” or “Upload New Photo”.
3. Take a new photo with your webcam, or select "Choose File" to upload a photo from your computer.
4. Give your photo a Title or add it to the "Gallery" of your choice.
5. Select the "Share" button.
6. Select your inmate(s) and then select "Share".
7. Once the photo is approved, it will be shared with your inmate(s).

Customer Service Questions
'Online' Contact Form, or
Call   866-516-0115

Type of Mail Allowed for York County Prison

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
All books and magazines must be ordered through Books-A-Million (BAM) and mailed to:
York County Prison
3400 Concord Road
York, PA 17402  
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 York County Prison standards will be disposed of.
Hard cover books will not be accepted by the jail due to their potential to be used as a weapon.

Care packages
Care packages are pre-chosen items packaged together and sent to the inmate from My Care Pak. They can include clothing, snacks and seasonal items.
Care Packages they must come directly from this approved company that specializes in serving the inmates of jails.

What is Inmate mail?

By law, every inmate is entitled to receive mail delivered through the United State Postal Service. While for years, this mail was always delivered in the form of a letter or a postcard from friends and loved ones directly to the inmate, the definition of inmate mail has changed a bit.

Inmate mail can be:

•    A letter in an envelope,
•    A postcard,
•    A greeting card, or
•    A digital letter

Because of security and contraband concerns, mainly the paper and envelope that a letter is written on or enclosed in, being soaked in a liquid form of drugs, many jails are increasingly limiting the type of mail inmates can get.

Some still allow regular mail in an envelope with a stamp, but many now have the letter sent to a third-party that opens the letter, scans it and the envelope into a computer, emails the letter to the jail where they print it out, giving the photocopies to the inmate, or they send it to a computer kiosk or tablet digitally that the inmate can access.

Others only allow postcards, specifically the white, pre-stamped postcards that you can purchase from the post office. 

When greeting cards are allowed, they can’t be cards with glitter, music or other do-dads. They can only be plain paper cards.

Some jails, in fact most, require that mail be written or typed with only black or blue ink. Some allow black pencils to be used.

None allow crayons, markers, lipstick prints, etc. 

All require white envelopes, white paper or lined paper such as from a pad. Very few allow paper that is card stock. It must be plain white, 20-lb. printer paper.

To see the inmate mail policies for York County Prison check out the inmate mail details above or call the jail at 717 840-7580 for specific information.

What is my inmate’s mailing address?

There are five different types of addresses for every jail:

1.    The physical address of the jail
2.    The mailing address for an inmate’s personal mail
3.    The mailing address for the inmate’s legal mail
4.    The mailing address for the jail’s administrative staff
5.    The mailing address for sending money to the inmate’s trust or commissary fund
       Visit the Inmate Money page for this information

In general, the only three addresses that friends and family of inmates need to be concerned about are:

•    The inmate address for personal mail.
•    The address for sending money orders to the inmate’s commissary account.
      Visit the Inmate Money page for this information.
•    The physical address of the jail.

Because this section is about mailing an inmate, the address for mailing an inmate is:

Inmate's Full Name & ID number (call 717 840-7580 for this info)
Inmate and ID number
York County Prison-Pennsylvania
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131
or 
Inmate's Full Name
Inmate ID#
York County Prison
3400 Concord Road
York, PA 17402-9007

If the red address is visible, then use that address, as that is the new address the jail is using for an inmate's personal mail to combat contraband entering the facility.

How do I mail a letter to an inmate in jail?

To mail a letter to an inmate in the York County Prison, first completely read all the mail policies and guidelines that are on this page. Also read any updated mail guidelines that are on the official page for facility. If you still have questions, then call the jail at 717 840-7580 and ask specifics.

It is important to understand that if even one thing is done incorrectly when sending a letter to the jail, even if everything else is done correctly, then your letter will not be delivered to the inmate.  In fact, even though the jail claims they will mail your letter back to you so that you will know it was not delivered, there is always the chance it will be disposed of. 

So here you are at home, wondering why your inmate is not responding to your letter, when in fact, they may not have even received it.

How do I address an inmate?

All mail to the inmate must be addressed as follows:

A full return address, which includes your full name and full address.  Without this the mail will not be delivered to the inmate.

A complete address to the inmate, including:

Full Name (name that they were booked under)
Inmate ID# (booking #, SO #, etc.)
Inmate’s Housing location (if you know it)
York County Prison
Mailing Address
City, State, Zip code

Inmate's Full Name & ID number (call 717 840-7580 for this info)
Inmate and ID number
York County Prison-Pennsylvania
P.O. Box 247
Phoenix, MD 21131

A letter that is not addressed completely may not get delivered. Keep in mind that often there is more than one inmate in a jail with the same name. You certainly don’t want the wrong inmate getting your private mail, do you?

If a letter is not delivered to an inmate, will they be notified?

Sometimes. There are some jails that will deliver you a notification that a letter which was intended for you was returned because it was either improperly addressed, did not have return address, contained contraband of some sort, had things written in it that were against mail and jail policies, or were sent by someone you were not allowed contact with such as co-defendant or someone the court had forbidden contact with such as a spouse in a domestic violence case.

Most of the time though, the letter is either returned or destroyed, and if there are illegal substances in the letter, it will be turned over to the York County Sheriff or District Attorney for possible criminal investigation and/or indictment.

What can I send to an inmate by mail?

Generally nothing but a letter, printouts from a computer printer or photographs can be sent to an inmate in the mail. If there is anything else enclosed, the entire letter and the contents will be returned to you or destroyed.

There are a few exceptions to this, such as several county jails in New York, including the infamous Riker’s Island. Riker’s allows all kinds of things to be mailed to an inmate, including a box of items every month.

Can I send pictures to an inmate?

Every jail has their own policy regarding allowing inmates to receive photographs in the mail, if at all. For York County Prison’s policy, review the information on this page.

In general, most jails allow an inmate to have anywhere from four to six photographs in their possession at any one time. These cannot be polaroids, and the photos cannot be construed as even mildly sexual (such as a woman or child in a bathing suit), gang related, drug related or violent.

Some jails allow only photocopied photos.

Some jails only allow photos that are sent digitally and must remain digital.

There are only a few jails that do not allow any photos of any kind.

If you are still uncertain as the policy regarding photographs at this facility, call them at 717 840-7580.

Can I send newspapers, magazines and books to an inmate in the York County Prison?

Most jails allow newspapers, magazines and books to be sent to an inmate, if they come directly from the publisher, such as directly from the newspaper or magazine themselves, or from the specific book publisher or trusted mail order source such as Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

There is often a limit of the quantity of books and magazines an inmate can either receive at one time, receive each month, or have in their possession at any one time. 

Hardcover books, or books with wire spiral binders are never allowed.

Any publications that portray or discuss violence, sex, gang activity, drugs, jail escapes or anything else against jail policies are not allowed and will be returned.

The policy of the York County Prison should be detailed on this page. However, if it is not, then call the jail at 717 840-7580 and ask.

Keep in mind that the address the publications should be mailed to is not always the mailing address of where the inmate gets their regular mail, the mail that is scanned and forwarded digitally to them.

The mailing address for publications is:

Inmate's Full Name & ID number (call 717 840-7580 for this info)
Inmate and ID number
York County Prison
3400 Concord Road
York, PA 17402
or 
Inmate's Full Name
Inmate ID#
York County Prison
3400 Concord Road
York, PA 17402-9007

Use the address in red if it is visible to you.

NOTE: There are a few New York jails that allow publications to be sent directly to them as opposed to having it sent through the publisher. One of the most notable exceptions is Riker’s Island in New York City.

How often can I send letters or cards to an inmate?

There is no limit to how often you can send letters or cards to an inmate. You are only limited to the types of letters and cards that you can send, considering York County Prison’s policies, which are outlined on this page.

How often can the inmate mail letters?

An inmate can mail letters as often as they like.  There is no limit to the number of letters that an inmate can write and send.  They are only limited by the number of stamps they can afford to purchase through commissary, and the amount of commissary spend that the York County Prison allows.

What is considered contraband in the mail?

Contraband is defined as anything that the jail does not allow to be mailed to an inmate, which is just about everything. The list would fill ten sets of encyclopedias. 

It easier to say what is allowed to be sent through the mail:

•    When allowed, a certain number of photographs.
•    When allowed, newspapers, magazines and books, if they are sent from a publisher.
•    When allowed, a care package of snacks, hygiene products or clothing from a commissary company that has contracted with the jail.

Can I send printouts from my computer to an inmate?

Some jails allow printouts of photographs and information to be sent to an inmate through the mail. Refer to the mail policy on this page or by calling the jail directly at 717 840-7580.

Can I send an inmate a package?

Many jails contract with companies that send food, hygiene products and/or clothing to inmates. These can be purchased and sent by friends and family on a weekly or monthly basis.

You can only send items from the one that your jail has a contract with. 

Check this page, the Money Page or the Commissary Page for further information, or call the jail at 717 840-7580 to see which one that the York County Prison works with.

Here are the commissary package companies, in alphabetical order, that provide this service to jails in the United States:

Access Securepak
Care A Cell
Commissary order
Correct Pay
Express Account
icare
Inmate Canteen
Jail ATM
Jail Pack Store (McDaniel Supply)
My Care Pack
Oasis (jailcanteen)
Prodigy Solutions
Tiger
Union Supply Direct

Can I send an inmate a gift?

The only gifts you can send an inmate must come from one of the stores above, and York County Prison must contract with them.

If I send something to an inmate that is not allowed, can the inmate or I get in trouble?

If the item that you send an inmate is illegal, then you and/or your inmate can get in trouble, otherwise if it is not illegal, it will just be destroyed or in some cases, returned to you.

Note that if you continue to send items that are considered contraband, some of your communication privileges with your inmate, such as visitation or phone calls, may be suspended.

Can I send an inmate postage stamps?

No, you cannot send postage stamps. Stamps must be purchased by the inmate through commissary. You can send them the money for stamps, but not the stamps.

How can an inmate get stamps while in jail or prison?

Stamps can be purchased in the jail commissary be the inmate.

If an inmate has no money, will the York County Prison give them stamps?

Yes. If an inmate is indigent, the jail will provide them 2-3 stamps, and an equal amount of envelopes and stationery each week. 

What happens if I send the inmate drugs or something that can be a weapon, will I get in trouble?

Yes. If you send the inmate drugs, a weapon or anything illegal, it will be turned over to the York County Sheriff or District Attorney and it is most likely that you will be prosecuted. 

Emailing an Inmate with Secure Messaging

York County Prison allows Secure Messaging using a third-party service call Access Corrections.

They are the same company that facilitate Secure Deposits and Securepaks, so if you are already registered with them, then you are already approved to send Secure Messages to your inmate.

Register/Log in here.

After Registering/Logging In:

1.     You choose York County Prison.
2.    You Search for your inmate by typing in his last name. You can further narrow your search by adding his first name and/or Inmate ID.
3.    You add a credit or debit card.
4.    You buy a message plan (plans and prices vary), or buy credits. One credit costs $0.01.
5.    You select the option for your inmate to be able use the credits which you purchase, to message back to you... Or not.
6.    York County Prison charges a fee for each message sent or received.

Important Things to Know

 - Access Corrections has an iphone app and an android app for using their services.
 - ALL of your correspondence will be monitored by the jail. 
 - Do NOT write anything you wouldn’t want repeated in court.
 - Rates vary and are always subject to change.
 - Inmates can write you back ONLY if you select that option.
 - You CAN send photos up to 32MB in file size. Subject to change.
 - You CAN have unlimited credits on your account but are limited in the amount of each credit purchase.
 - You may NOT type or send emoticons.
 - You may NOT copy and paste text. Type directly.
 - You may NOT type profanities, violence or characters not approved. 
 - Due to messages having to be reviewed first, allow up to five days for a message to be delivered.
 - You may NOT transfer credits to another email.

Phone: 866-345-1884

Email:  [email protected]
FAQ
Contact Page
iphone app
Android app

How to address your Inmate's Postcard or Envelope

Inmate's Full Name & ID number (call 717 840-7580 for this info)
York County Prison
3400 Concord Road
York, PA 17402-9007

• All mail sent to an inmate at the York County Prison 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.

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.