Does anybody know why the outgoing mail is rubber stamped with, "mailed from a State Prison" or words like that?

To ensure that the inmate is in the prison...

seriously...that's the reason I got from the mailroom. can you believe that?

Franks aren't stamped if he uses the "embossed" or pre-stamped envelopes I send him, it is is he uses the ones from there they have the red stamp on them...go figure

"Mailed from a state correctional institution" , stamped in red, you can't miss it !!!!

I don't know the reason why !!! But it really pisses me off !! There's a caretaker in my building, and she brings me my mail each morning. I don't know if she speaks english or not, but she doesn't have to know that I receive letters from an inmate !

Soul.... "to ensure the inmate is in prison"?!?
Ummm.... I don't get it... how does that little stamp keep them in custody?!?
I don't know the reason for it... but I know for me, it is a mark on the envelope that my eyes look for.... and it makes my heart beat just a bit faster!! :)

jdswifey02
I could guess a million reasons why that stamp is there..but I really have NO idea...I do know like you though...When I see that red stamp my heart skips a beat and I know when I open that letter its going to make my day! I have gotten to where I miss the red stamp when I don't see it! :)
*HUGS* to you all
Renee

My letters say: This correspondence is forwarded from an Alabama State Prison. The contents have not been evaluated and the Alabama Department of Corrections is not responsible for the substance or content of the enclosed communication.

I know part of the stamping letters comes from scams pulled by prisoners - hooking up with pen pals through personal ads and then getting money out of them. The pen pals claimed they did not know the person they were writing to and sending money to was a prisoner (duh? didn't you notice all of the numbers after their name??)

There was a major money order scam going on here in Mississippi during the late 80's (of course some of my distant outlaw family was involved). Prisoners would get postal money orders in the mail for $1 (at that time when one would send a money order to a prisoner it would go directly to him and then he would put it on his books). The prisoner would change them to $700 and then get people on the outside to cash the money orders and give it to their families or buy another money order for the prisoner's accounts. The prisoner would tell the person on the outside "Keep a hundred for your troubles." So the person on the outside thought it was an easy way to get some cash. Well, the post office caught on and tried to get the money out of whomever cashed the money order. Several people went to prison over it and claimed they did not know they were dealing with prisoners.

Otherwise, I don't know why they are stamped.

Mine read "Centinela State Prison"...nothing else

JDswifey, I think they were sick of me asking questions and just wanted to get me off the phone in all honesty, but that's the reason they gave me...like I wasn't gonna say "wait...what? to make sure they're there? what about count!?" so I called just now to find out from someone else (the mailroom is closed until 8 am) and she said "it's just something our mail room does after they've read all the mail and made sure it's ok for mailing" so that works better for me. I can live with that explanation :)

Soul

I hope you'll keep on living with the explanation they gave you, but don't you think that a "OK" stamp mark would have been enough ?
I still think it interfers with my privacy, and even if I'm not ashamed of him being in prison, it's no one else's business !!
I don't need this red mark to make my heart beat faster, I look for the US postage stamps on the envelop !!! :D

Phil, it doesn't bother me at all that the stamp is on the letters...whether it says "CSP, congratulations on your recent invasion of privacy, this letter has been inspected by #32 to guarantee quality" (sooooo sarcastic of me) or whether it says "ok"...I still go running to the PO box every day like a little kid gettin out for summer break. Matter of fact, I had to look at all the letters to make sure they all had it...I forgot that NKSP also put a stamp on it...by the way...have you guys noticed that the stamp changes depending on what yard they're in? NKSP used to have a really big bold letter stamp all in black that they used while he was on A yard, when he moved to D after his reception was over, it became a small barely visible (not enough ink) red stamp.

Same thing with CSP, it used to be big and bold but now it's small and invisible sorta.

it would not surprise me if they do it just to put on another stigmatizing label --maybe even to dissuade written correspondence-i see no LOGICAL reason for them to be stamped the way that they are

ok... so I guess the "it's been checked reason" is at least FEASIBLE... (and like I tell my kids when I know they are about to lie to me.... at least TRY to make it believable!?!?") However, they can't say that here in IL because many times now the "stamp" is actually PREPRINTED right on the envelope.... ours says something like "this correspondence is from an inmate of the Illinois Department of Corrections"... I would guess that would cover what Danielle was talking about.....

I think many jurisdictions take pleasure in placing this graffiti on envelopes. Others use it to try and prevent institution to institution mail / communications between inmates.

Everyone, please reply with what system you are dealing with (ex. California - DOC, Texas -TDJC, Harris County Jail - Houston, TX) next to your information so that others will know what jurisdiction/department you are dealing with.

I'll list a few that I know for now, and I will dig up lots more soon to add.

Harris County Jail - Houston, Texas - No Stamps

Montgomery County Jail - Conroe, Texas - Big Red Jail Mail Stamp

Brazos County Jail - Bryan, Texas - Capital "BCSO" in red stamped on the back of letter. Stands for Brazos County Sheriffs Office

Federal Prison - Medium - Beaumont, TX. - NO Stamp

Texas Department of Criminal Justice - Place a "chit" in each envelope stating this letter originated in TDCJ/by an inmate.

Standish Max. facility- (state of Michigan)... Big stamp
Baraga Max. facility- (state of Michigan)... Bigger stamp

I also have a friend in a prison in Beaumont, Tx... not sure of the name of the facility.... Why? Because it doesn't have a stamp :)

Jodygirl

....I'm w/what Renee from TX said...I LOVE seeing that stamp. I get sooo excited that I could care at this point. I admit at tfirst I was a bit embarassed as others said, no I just love to see it and couldn't care if anyone else does either.

Centinela State Prison - California - Red Stamp
North Kern State Prison - California - Red and Black Stamp
Mens Central Jail - Los Angeles, CA - Red stamp

Santa Rosa C.I (State)- Florida- BIG Red stamp

Wayne has been in three different state facilities in Alabama and all are stamped the same and in black ink.

well NY is red...at all 4 places Eddie has been in...so I'd assume they're all red there

Marin County Jail this mail was sent from a inmate at the Marin County Jail, 13 Peter Behr Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903. The contents have not been read and the Jail is not responible for its contents. (Large rubber stamp in red)

DADE FL, MAILED FROM A STATE CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION ENVIADA DE UNA PRISON ESTATAL (Large RUBBER STAMP IN BLACK)

LOWELL FL, MAIL ORIGINATED AT A STATE CORRECTION INSTITUTION (RUBBER STAMP IN BLACK)

K.C.I.W. KY, PRISON MAIL UNCENSORED (rubber stamp in black)

NCWF CA, NORTHERN CALIFORNIA WOMEN'S FACILITY STATE PRISON STOCKTON, CA 95213 (rubber stamp in red)

Gatesville TX, womens prison No Stamp

Las Vegas NV, womens @ Smilley RD No Stamp

Colorado State Prisoners have to use an envelope with the return address label that says Colorado Department of Corrections with blanks for the inmate to fill in his/her info. No "stamps."

emme

When I get letters from my fiance' they are stamped in what appears to be a ribbon of red, white, and blue. (go figure!) and at the bottom is stamped in black ink "ThIS CORRESPONDENCE ORIGINATED FROM AN INMATE AT A CONNECTICUT CORRECTIONAL FACILITY". That just makes it easier for me to spot when the mail runs! LOL! He's at Macdougall-Walker C. I. in Suffield, CT. He's also not allowed to write anything on the outside of the envel. besides address info. I'm in TN and our football team (college) is the TN Volunteers, so he sneaks and writes "Go Vols!" just under his return address! LMAO!

El Dorado Correctional Facility, El Dorado, Kansas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On every letter I get from Shawn, the stamp pictured below is on the lower right corner, on the rear of the envelope... Funny how I never noticed that it is usually in the exact same place each time.

The stamp itself doesn't bother me....like others have said, my heart always goes "BOOM" when I see it. Same as when the phone rings, and the recording plays..."This is a call from a correctional facility..." :D

Our mailman is ultra cool....he and I got to talking one day, and the conversation turned to DOC mail...LOL...turns out he has a close friend in the Massachusetts DOC (at Norfolk), serving 15 to life for armed robbery.

I, of course, gave him the PTO address! Ha!

Susan in Providence,
spreading the word anywhere she can :fb:

Whoops :rolleyes:

Pic didn't post...sorry.

Trying again: El Dorado Correctional Facility
El Dorado, Kansas


Susan In Providence,
super goof

Hi all

I was a little upset with what was on the envelope of one of my pen pals that I got today...

THIS WAS MAILED BY AN INMATE CONFINED
AT A WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF
CORRECTIONS FACILITY ITS CONTENTS MAY
BE UNCENSORED

This is stamped with red ink!!

Annie

I have always been under the impression that it is overall to prevent Inmates from trying to 'impersonate' someone that is not in prison... Whether it is for money scams or whatever, it is just to assure that the person receiving the letter is CERTAIN that it is coming from a prison - kind of like the collect calls - now give me a break - we listen to a long winded message until you can hit the button to accept and then every 5 minutes they break in again and say it all over again! Like I did not hear it the first time...? duh?

Anyway, my Partner's letters are NOT stamped!

He does have to write out in full however, his full name, DOC number and the name of the prison and address for it to go out in the mail.

You know I have always wondered why they put the stamps on some and not others. I think it is just another way to try and ostrasize(sp) our loved ones. But I know for me it only makes me more happy to see that Bright black stamp! :)

Sharon

Centinela...they ALWAYS have the "no postage paid" stamp right by their CDC stamp.

My bad on the last one...I forgot to resize it.

This is the one from North Kern..it was either black or red...the red stamp is exactly the same as this one...interesting footnote, never a "no postage paid" stamp on the enevelope.

i know my mailman always looks funny at me...waving with the enveloppe with the big stamp on it......

Indiana DOC Reception -Diagnostic Center printed on envelope:
"This correspondence is mailed by an offender incarcerated at this correction institution. "WARNING": Not Responsible For Contents. Any enclosed money orders should be referred to your local Postmaster before cashing."
Yay.

I also look for the stamp when I get my mail! I would assume they stamp the envelopes so whoever recieves it knows the person is in prison in case they try to pull something.
PVSP, CA- small red stamp
Wasco,CA- Big black stamp
Orange county, CA- small stamp
Wayside, CA- no stamp
Monika

You know after I first read this I started thinking about the way some place put stamps and some do not. And then I started thinking what would the co's and nosy mail men think if my mail had a stamp on it/ So I looked into having a stamp made. And like most DOC'S mine will be big and RED.

My stamp says This mail if from a PERSON who loves someone in Prison.

I had a registered letter sent to me today. And my mail man asked where I had the stamp maide. Because he wants one. Come to find out my mail man has a son in Arizona state pen. And to day when I called to check on Jack's visiting status the receptionist ( Connie gotta love her she is one of the good ones ) Started laughing uncontrollably. WHen I asked her what was so funny she said Hun you are the only one know proud enough to stamp your mail. She said one of the co's was like damn this one if for real.

I love my stamp and you know I do not use it only on Jacks letters I use it on all my personal mail.

XOXOXO,
Sharon aka JacksGirl!

I like it!!! I think I will have one made if you don't mind me copying your idea.
Brenda

That is an awesome idea! :)

Sharon, I LOVE this idea !!!! It's wonderful, and I'm gonna steal it too !!!! I will have my BIG RED personnal stamp too !!!
Thanks for sharing your idea, as Monica said, it's AWESOME !!!
All the best
Philippe

The letters I get from MCC/Washington State Reformatory don't have a stamp on them. But when he was in reception
the envelopes were stamped with "This was mailed by an inmate confined at a Washington State Department of Corrections facility. Its contents are uncensored." I don't know why they are stamped that way what's important to me is getting a letter. Nancy (nanuu)

MINE FROM JESSE COME STAMPED "MAILED FROM JOHNSTON CORRECTIONAL FACILITY" IN N.C. LIKE I DONT ALREADY KNOW WHERE HE IS

d/r texas, polunsky unit....no stamp!!

great idea to stamp the mail, i think im going to get a stamp too! :D

Sharon or anyone!!
I have surfed and surfed the web for a stamp like you have Sharon. I WANT one !! :) Any idea's where I can find one online?

*HUGS* TxRenee ;)

Feel free to steal my Idea I think everyone needs to have their own I love a inmate stamp.

Renee I will see if my store has a web sight so you can have a stamp like mine :) or your own saying. :) love ya lady talk to you tonight

Sharon

http://www.nerdworld.com/nw3019o1o0.html

http://www.acclaimid.com/public/rubber_stamps_info.html

http://www.mohawkrubberstamps.com/

http://selfstamps.com/address-stamps/address-stamp-4911.html

OK here are just a few to get you all started if you needed somewhere to start.

Love you all Sharon

Sharon,
What a great idea! I love it. I just ordered a stamp from nerd world. We'll see if I brighten up my guy's day and the mail room at the Arizona DOC.
Kim

Puerto Rico~ No Stamps

The Women's Prison in North Las Vegas doesn't stamp. When Jessica writes, she just has her name (and #), and then the normal street address of the facility. Unless you look closely (and know what the number means), there's nothing to signify.

Missouri appears to be the same way; one girl wrote out the name of the institution in her return address, the other simply put CCNF-SS and then her DOC #.

ALL N.C. PRISONS STAMP THEIR MAIL "MAILED FROM _________ CORRECTIONAL CENTER.

I HAVE NOTICED MAIL I HAVE RECEIVED FROM NC AND SC FEDERAL PRISONS ARE NOT STAMPED. I AM SURE THE STAMP IS FOR DEGREDATION. LIKE SOMEONE SAID ABOVE, WE KNOW WHERE THEY ARE, SO WHY THE STAMP.


DONNA

When LilG wrote me from Elmore CF...it had the same stamp Danielle said. But all the letters I've got from Mobile WR have not been stamped. I do know that just like the rest of ya'll...my heart skips a beat and my day is brightened when I saw that stamp. Selena

There are a lot of "Con's" in prison and this is to stop the person from representing themselves as a free person and thus able to do such things as travel and send certain things in the mail etc. With the stamp the reciever knows that they are dealing with an incarcerated individual.
There are also the small percentage of good folks in there that do good and work toward release. But the bad apple always spoils the basket.
Hope this helps you.

ndn

on my letters from tx, they put in a piece of paper, no stamp on the invelope.

STAMP, WHAT STAMP
WHEN I GET LETTERS IN LONG WHITE ENVELOPES, I DON'T CARE IF THEY HAVE A STAMP ON THEM OR NOT. THE FIRST THING I LOOK FOR----IS THAT RETURN ADDRESS ON THAT ENVELOPE. MY SON IS IN A TEXAS TDC AND THEY PUT LITTLE SLIPS INSIDE THE LETTER LETTING YOU KNOW IT CAME FROM A TDC. WHEN I SEND MY SON MONEY, I USUALLY TAKE IT TO THE COUNTER AND ASK THE MAIL CLERK TO POST IT TODAY SO IT WILL LEAVE EARLY. I DON'T CARE WHO SEES MY LETTERS, I AM NOT ALONE IN THIS MAIL LETTERS FROM ANY PRISON SO WHY SHOULD ANY OF US CARE WHO KNOWS WE GET MAIL FROM SOMEONE LOCKED UP, I DON'T. IF ANYONE WOULD ASK ME ABOUT ONE OF MY LETTERS I WOULD TELL THEM I HAVE A SON IN TDC FOR A DWI AND ALSO ASK THEM WHAT IS IT TO THEM, DO THEY ALSO HAVE A LOVED ONE LOCKED UP. YOU WOULD BE SURPRISED BY THE ONES THAT HID THAT INF. FROM THEIR FRIENDS, I AM NOT ASHAMED OF MY SON BEING LOCKED UP, JUST HURTS ME THAT HE IS LOCKED UP, BUT I STILL LOVE HIM JUST THE SAME AS BEFORE HE GOT THERE. WHEN I GET THAT LETTER ALL THE ONLY THING I THINK ABOUT IS GETTING IT OPEN AND READ IT AND HOPE IT LETS ME KNOW HE IS OK, AND I KNOW I WILL SEE A ,MESSAGE THAT SAYS---" I LOVE YOU MOM" AND THAT JUST MAKES MY DAY, IRIST TEXAS

As far as Mass is concerned. Its against the law for the DOC to open out going mail from the inmates. Thats why they stamp the mail with that stamp. As far as incoming mail well we all know they read it all..Alot if the things I mail into Ivan never make it to him..