Where is the Dallas County Jail? 111 Commerce Street, Dallas, Texas

Bus Stop: Dart bus route 35

Latest Info:
A family member just emailed, May 29, 2010: you will be sent away if you wear shorts or dresses above the knee. No sleeveless tops are allowed either. It is so heartbreaking to watch people wait 2 hours in line after paying $3 to park only to be sent home without seeing their loved one for this dress code infraction that is not even posted--anywhere! You should also know that children can only visit on the weekend and there is no place inside to wait if you are not going to visit.

Parking: There is a parking lot next to the jail. Currently it costs $3 to park your car (summer 2009). Lock your car when you leave it.

Entering Lew Sterrett: Walk up the long ramp into the courtyard. Look for a glassed-in walkway. The entrance is at the end of that walkway and the name of the jail is above it. Beyond the glass door is a metal detector and x-ray machine. In front of you will be the bail bond windows. To the left is the information officer.

Warning: There are always people begging for money outside the jail.

Visiting: Inmates may have only two visits a week. If they have more than one person listed on the approved visitor list, then you can only visit them once a week. If you are the only person on their approved visitor list, you may visit twice a week.

The time limit for a visit is about 30 minutes.

To get to the visitor area (starting at the x-ray machine at the entrance), take the hall to the left. Go to the end, turn right, walk down that hall and then turn right. There will be a set of double doors on your left. Enter that hallway.

There will be two cash machines on the left for transferring cash to the prisoners (it takes all bills), and at the end there will be a desk and several police officers. Ask for the slip of paper to request a visit.

Once you have that, write down the information about the inmate (their number and location), hand it back to the officer, then go to the waiting line (on the left, against the wall) and be prepared to stand and wait. You will pass through a metal detector again. Follow the corridor around two corners until you come to an elevator. Take the elevator to the floor where your inmate is housed.

On each floor is a window to the left of the elevator that is the guard station. Present your visitor slip and your ID. You will be directed to a booth where you can talk to the inmate. Each of these "booths" have "phones". You sit on one side of a glass window and the inmate sits on the other side and you talk via phone.

You will have to walk through several metal detectors. Anything you have with you may be searched or x-rayed. Here is what you should take in:

• your identification **
• car keys (if you drive)
• one piece of paper (NOT a notebook with wires or staples)
• a small pencil
• money, if you are trying to pay a bond or get money to an inmate's jail account
• a piece of paper with the inmate's name and number and where they are being housed

Leave everything else at home (particularly jewelry or clothing with metal in it.)

**Valid forms of identification

• Valid picture state drivers license (paper license renewal must be accompanied by other picture identification)
• Texas Department of Public Safety Picture Identification Card
• Identification Card issued by the Dallas County Jail
• Official government passport
• Alien registration card or any other valid picture identification card from the US Government

Problem Areas: Their computer system is inefficient and crashes frequently (as of summer, 2009), the rules are not clearly stated, and issues like getting medication to family members are poorly handled.

Before you go, you will need to know your family member's inmate number and where they are being housed. You can find out this information here. If you have been told someone is an inmate in Lew Sterrett and has not been released, but the web page doesn't pull up information, they are probably in "Holding." It can take up to five days to move from Holding to the Jail. The average time in Holding seems to be about 24 hours.

Medication: The worst possible situation is where an inmate needs their regular prescription medication. They will not allow you to bring the inmate's prescription medication to Lew Sterrett (although other jails will allow you to bring them for the inmate.) The inmate must wait for the jail's physician to confirm their condition and prescribe a medication. It may take more than a week for someone with chronic depression to be seen by the doctor.

Inmates must buy their own medication; the Jpay account is used for this.

Posting a bond: The Lew Sterrett computer system is inefficient and the workspace is not well laid out. It can take up to 20 minutes to post a bond once you reach the window. If there's a long line at the bail bonds windows, be prepared to wait for more than an hour. The best time to try and post a bond is 8-8:30 in the morning. Bring cash or a cashier's check. When you receive the bond paperwork, be sure to read the document VERY CAREFULLY. It will spell out certain things that have to be met to get your money back.

Phone calls: There is no way to call an inmate. They can call you collect OR you can deposit money into a Jpay account for them so that they can call (it currently costs about $2.50 per call.) Any money left over in Jpay can be transferred to the inmate when they are released.

Inmate Mail: Inmates may receive mail. Be sure to address exactly right or it won't get to your inmate. Mail should be addressed as such:

Inmates Name (ie: John Doe #05123456)
Inmate's Location (ie: Tank #11 S 14)
P.O. Box # 660334
Dallas, Texas 75266-0334

by MEL.WHITE - MEL THOUGHT THIS UP AND VOLUNTEERED TO WRITE IT, IN AN EFFORT TO HELP US HELP INMATES AND THEIR FAMILIES.