Howard County Detention Center COVID-19 Coronavirus Visitation Policy

Howard County Detention Center

Address:
3611 W. Hwy 80
Big Spring, TX 79720

Phone:

432-264-2244

New Visitation Policies in Howard County Detention Center Due to COVID-19 Coronavirus

Because of concerns for the safety and wellness of both staff and inmates at the Howard County Detention Center in Big Spring, Texas, contact visits of any type may be suspended. Even if they have visits, from time to time, face masks may be required.

Approved Non-contact visits with family, friends and the inmate’s lawyers may still be allowed when at-home or onsite video visitation is not available, however given that new guidelines are changing daily please check the visitation page or call 432-264-2244 for updates.

Video Visitation at Howard County Detention Center

At-home and onsite video visitation guidelines for Howard County Detention Center, when this service is available, can be found by going to the visitation information page.

We highly recommend that you call 432-264-2244 first for any changes due to staff shortages or other unforeseen circumstances, including whether your inmate has become ill and is unable to be in the general population where video kiosks are available.

How Long Will These Changes Last?

Experts in the study of the COVID-19 are anticipating that spread of the virus will be a ongoing concern for Howard County, the state of Texas and the entire United States until well into 2024 and maybe even beyond. We are witnessing the virus becoming more contagious, but less deadly over time. Many people think that the 'more contagious, but less deadly' variants will infect so many people that a higher level of natural immunity for the majority of Americans will be the end result.

Will the Inmates in Howard County Detention Center Be Safe from Getting Sick With COVID-19 Coronavirus?

Whether the inmates are safe from contracting the coronavirus depends entirely on two things:

  1. The Virus being introduced into the facility by a staff member or inmate who is unaware that they have it.
  2. How easily it spreads.

At this stage most people who get the coronavirus show very few symptoms beyond what you might experience with a bad cold or a mild case of the common flu. Newer variants are turning out to be less deadly than the common flu we experience every year.

Studies that have been done are showing that the hardest hit are those 60 years of age and older, those with pre-existing medical issues like diabetes, leukemia or obese individuals. Young men and women rarely become very ill, and when they do, seem to recover quickly.

Given the close proximity of inmates and staff to each other in this lockup, it is going to be very difficult to prevent the spread of COVID-19 once it is introduced into the facility as the virus can spread via the microscopic vapor that we release every time we speak, cough or sneeze.

We will continuously update this page as the virus changes and new policies are instituted.

Howard County Detention Center ON-SITE (at the jail) VIDEO VISITATION SCHEDULE
3611 W. Hwy 80
Big Spring, TX 79720
432-264-2244

Schedule Video Visits online with NCIC

  • On-site Visits are free.
  • Visits are 20-30 minutes.
  • Visitation schedule subject to change.
  • Inmates are allowed two visits per week
  • A maximum of 2 guests are allowed per an On-site video session. A 3rd guest is allowed if it is a child and no more than 6 years old.
  • All visits must be made at least 24 hours in advance.
DAY TIME
SUNDAY No video sessions
MONDAY 9:00 AM - 12:00PM
TUESDAY 9:00 AM - 12:00PM
WEDNESDAY 9:00 AM - 12:00PM
THURSDAY 9:00 AM - 12:00PM
FRIDAY 9:00 AM - 12:00PM
SATURDAY No video sessions

Howard County Detention Center REMOTE (at home) VIDEO VISITATION SCHEDULE

  • All visits must be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance.
  • Visitation Schedule subject to change.
DAY TIME
SUNDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
MONDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
TUESDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
WEDNESDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
THURSDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
FRIDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM
SATURDAY 9:00 AM - 8:30PM

 

How to Send a Secure Email Message to an Inmate in Howard County

To send a secure email message to an inmate in Howard County Detention Center follow these steps:

Howard County Detention Center uses the services of NCIC for you to deposit funds into your {Howard County inmate’s account so that you and they can purchase secure email messaging services from this jail’s e-messaging service.

You can deposit money three different ways:

•    Deposit online at NCIC.com
•    Deposit at the kiosk in the Howard County Detention Center lobby, if available.
•    Deposit over the phone 24/7 at 800-943-2189 or 903-247-0069 (Note: if you deposit money using a live agent the fee is $5.95).
Email – [email protected]

For all information on how to Text/Email an Inmate in Howard County Detention Center check out our Secure Messaging Guide for Howard County.


 

How to Rent a Tablet for an Inmate at the Howard County Detention Center

Howard County Detention Center offers NCIC tablets to rent to inmates that they can use for video visitation and calls, phone calls, instant messaging, education and entertainment.

They can also be used for commissary ordering.

To find out more bout how much tablets cost to rent, and what programs, entertainment, education and other things it can be used for, check out our Tablet Page.


 

How Do Visit an Inmate in Howard County Detention Center?

To visit an inmate in Howard County you need to do the following:

Howard County Detention Center uses the services of NCIC for remote video visitation. In other words, you can visit your inmate in jail by using your home computer, as long as it is equipped with a microphone and camera that supports video.

When available, the jail also provides use of ‘video visit kiosks’ in the Howard County Detention Center lobby if you do not have a computer at home. These ’on-site’ video visits are FREE.

Costs
NCIC Video Visitation fees are subject to change, but the cost to you is roughly $7.50 ($0.25 per minute) for a 30-minute visit + an additional fee of $2.00 for the connection.
On-site (at the jail) video visits are FREE.

How to set up your Video Visit

  • Register here.  
  • Select Howard County Detention Center
  • Select your inmate.
  • Choose your date and time.

Your inmate will be notified by the Howard County Detention Center staff of the date and time for the visit. Be sure to be in front of your computer and connected to NCIC at least 15 minutes before the start of the visit.

NCIC Customer Service
Phone - 800-943-2189 or 903-247-0069
Email – [email protected]

For all the information you need to know, whether it be 'in person' at-the-jail visitation or remote video visitation with your Howard County inmate, go to our Visit Inmate Page.


 

How Does an Inmate Make Phone Calls in Howard County Detention Center?

To receive phone calls from an inmate in Howard County follow these instructions:

Howard County Detention Center uses the services of NCIC for inmate phone calling. It is called a ‘friends & family account”.

In order to receive phone calls from your inmate, you need to do the following:

  • Register here, or by phone 800-943-2189
  • Choose Texas.
  • Choose Howard County Detention Center
  • Select your Inmate.
  • Enter the phone number your Inmate will be calling.
  • Fund your Account. ($10-$100 at a time)

NOTE:
1.   You cannot receive any calls to your phone number from your inmate until both you and your phone number are registered.
2.  When you do receive a call, the number you will view on your phone from the incoming call is: 800-943-2189.
3.  When allowed by Howard County Detention Center, families can also leave secure voicemails for inmates to listen to.

Fees

  • Adding funds to your account - $3.00 
  • Cost of phone call of a Prepaid Collect Account - $0.21 per minute
  • Cost of an interstate (ex. Texas to a different state) phone call NOT Prepaid - $0.25 per minute
  • Cost of an intrastate (ex. Texas to Texas) phone call NOT Prepaid - $0.25 per minute
  • Cost if you set up your account (or fund it) by phone using a live agent, you will be charged a one-time fee of $5.95.

NCIC Customer Service
Phone - 800-943-2189 or 903-247-0069
Email – [email protected]
Full list of participating jails.

For all the information regarding phone calls with Howard County inmates; rules, policies, phone calling times, fees, limits and more visit our Inmate Phone Page.


 

Photos of this facility
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