Women's Correctional Center Visiting Rules and Regulations
Please do not come to the facility if you have had any of the following symptoms in the last 24 hours:
- Fever, nausea, chills, cough, body aches, shortness of breath; or
- If you have been in contact with anyone in the last 14 days who has tested positive for COVID-19
WCC Visitation Form & Orientation Video (English)
Formulario de visita del CMI y video de orientación (Español)
- All visitors, 18 and above, are required to complete a Request to Visit Form and consent to a background check prior to arriving at the facility. This is a legal form and providing false information will be grounds for denying your entrance into the facility and suspending your visiting privileges for a specific period of time. The completed Request to Visit Form may be submitted online at the links above or printed out and presented to the Public Lobby Officer at the reception desk prior to a pre-approved visit.
- Anyone over the age of 18 must complete a Visitor’s Orientation class before they can visit any inmate at the Women’s Correctional Center. This may be viewed online or completed prior to an in-person visit.
- Ex-offenders may not visit until the Central Review Board approves them. If anyone has been convicted and incarcerated within the past year and they are not immediate family, they may not visit. Immediate family members can visit once they are approved.
- Any visitor, even one who has obtained prior permission to visit, may be denied entrance to the facility or told to terminate a visit and leave the premises due to safety and security concerns.
- If you, the visitor, have taken a restraining order out on any inmate or an inmate has taken a restraining order on you, the visit is denied.
- Visitors are required to meet the following criteria:
- All Visitors aged 18 or over must present a current/approved picture identification to the Public Lobby Officer. Approved identification includes:
– Current/valid or temporary Driver’s License
– State-issued Non-Driver’s picture I.D. from the Registry of Motor Vehicles with the date of birth on it
– State-issued Welfare Card
– Valid Passport
– Current/valid Military I.D.
– A current/valid picture I.D. from local area schools with a Birth Certificate
– Pistol Permit
- Minors 17 and under who are visiting must be accompanied by their parent, legal guardian or an authorized adult. An authorized adult or legal guardian must present the original birth certificate, the original legal guardianship paperwork or a notarized letter at the initial visit. The information is added to the inmate’s, visitors screen under the comments section and the name on the legal documentation will be the only person allowed to bring that minor.
- No picture ID is required for minors under 14. Minors between the ages of 15-17 are required to provide an I.D. (Ex. School I.D., passport)
- Any minor (age 17 or under) wishing a spousal visit must provide a valid picture ID (see above) as well as a copy of a State issued Certificate of Marriage.
- School-aged minors may not visit prior to 3:00 PM on school days. However, if a school-aged minor is accompanied by their parent, legal guardian or Department of Children and Families worker we will defer to the parent/worker’s prerogative and allow the visit.
- Any minor between the ages of 15-17, wishing to visit their incarcerated parent without adult supervision, must be pre-approved by the Family Services Counselor who works in collaboration with the Assistant Superintendent, the Department of Youth Services, or the Department of Social Services, and the incarcerated parent, as necessary.
- You cannot visit two inmates at the same time. You can only visit the inmate you have listed on your form. If you want to visit another inmate you will need to proceed to the Public Lobby and fill out another Request to Visit Form.
- Inmates can have 3 visitors; this includes children under the age of 17 years of age, during a 1-hour visit, twice a week, not on two separate visits on the same day, from Sunday to Saturday. Any special request for additional visitors or for a two-hour visit needs to be submitted by the inmate to the Central Control Supervisor one week prior to the visit. Special requests for a two-hour visit will account for the two-hour visit for the week.
- All personal belongings (coats, purses, money, jewelry, cameras, beepers/pagers, radios, cell phones, personal keys, gum, candy, food, drinks, etc) must be placed in one of the coin-operated lockers in the Public Lobby or secured in your own personal vehicle. Personal belongings are not allowed past the Public Lobby Area. The Western Massachusetts Regional Women’s Correctional Center will not be held responsible for lost or stolen articles.
- You cannot bring any toys, books or stuffed animals into the facility. The facility provides toys and books for the visiting children.
- Visitors attempting to introduce contraband into the facility (drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, weapons, etc.) will be subject to arrest and criminal prosecution. It is a felony for any person to deliver any article to an inmate without permission of the Sheriff or Facility Administrator, or to procure an article to be delivered, to possess it with the intent to deliver it, or to deposit or conceal it with the intent that an inmate shall obtain it.
General Laws: CHAPTER 268, Section 28
PART 1V CRIMES, PUNISHMENTS AND PROCEEDINGS IN CRIMINAL CASES
TITLE 1 CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS
CHAPTER 268, CRIMES AGAINST PUBLIC JUSTICE
Section 28, Delivering drugs or articles to prisoners in correctional institutions or jails: possession
Section 28. Whoever gives or delivers to a prisoner in any correctional institution, or in any jail or house of correction, any drug or article whatever, or has in his possession within the precincts of any prison herein named with intent to give or deliver to any prisoner any such drug or article without the permission of the superintendent or keeper, shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than five years, or in a jail or house of correction for not more than two years or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars.
- There is no smoking anywhere on the grounds. All tobacco products and smoking items (such as lighters, matches) are considered contraband and should be left in your vehicle or placed in a coin-operated locker in the Public Lobby.
- All visitors must pass through and clear the metal detector, unless medically unable to do so, i.e. pacemaker, before entering the secure perimeter. In which circumstances, a search is completed with a handheld metal detector or a consensual pat search may be completed. An adult may carry small children through the metal detector.
- Visitors may be asked to consent to a pat search by an officer of the same gender and any visitor may leave the facility rather than submitting to such a search. Refusing to submit to any aspect of the search procedure will result in denying entrance into the facility.
- Visitor’s automobiles are to be parked in the parking lot.
- All automobiles must be locked and are subject to search while on State Property.
- Western Massachusetts Regional Women’s Correctional Center cannot be held responsible for any damage to automobiles parked on facility property.
- Children and pets are not to be left unattended in automobiles while parked on State Property. If children or pets are found unattended in your vehicle, your visit will be stopped, you’ll be asked to depart the premises and the visit will count as one of the visits the inmates may have for the week.
- No animals of any type are allowed onto the facility property by visitors. In the event a Seeing Eye dog is necessary, prior authorization from the Assistant Superintendent is required.
- Visitation privileges are denied to visitors when they visitor:
- Is listed in the Criminal Justice System Information System, convicted of a felony within the last year, or has been incarcerated within a one-year time period,
- Upon review of a Board of Probation any findings of open cases or warrants, and you are not an immediate family member
- Does not obey the rules and regulations set forth by the WCC,
- If the safety and security of the facility is jeopardized,
- Appears to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs,
- Has an active Restraining Order or 209A against an inmate of the facility,
- Has an active Restraining Order against you by an inmate.
- Visiting privileges for visitors on probation or with open cases are reviewed as necessary, as long as the visitor is an immediate family member.
- All visitors must dress in an appropriate and acceptable manner. The following will not be allowed into the facility:
- Bathing suits
• Shorts/skirts above knee length (knee length admitted)
• Halter-tops
• Excessively tight and revealing clothing
• Miniskirts or skirts below knee length with slits
• Tank tops (spaghetti straps, sleeveless shirts not allowed), shoulders must be covered
• Tights, leggings or spandex
• Ripped or torn clothing
• See-through clothing
• No bare feet, sandals or open-toe shoes
• Jackets, sweatshirts with hoods, coats, hats or do-rags (Religious headwear allowed but will be asked to be temporarily removed to make positive identification upon entering and exiting the Visiting Area)
• Clothing that advertises alcohol, drugs, drug paraphernalia or gang representation
• Clothing with vulgarity or any type of sexual content
• All green or orange clothing
• Work uniforms, (i.e. BSMC, Baystate Gas, Scrubs, etc)
• Jewelry
• Bras and underpants must be worn
- You must stay in the assigned seat and any request to change seats will be at the discretion of the Visiting Officer. Association with anyone other than your visit is not permitted.
- During a visit, you must conduct yourself in an orderly manner. You are responsible for the conduct of your children. Failure to supervise your children could result in loss of visits. Visits may be terminated if children exhibit behavioral problems, which interfere with other visitors or the maintenance of order in the visiting area.
- Visitors will not have access to the restroom located in the Visiting Area. If the visitor needs to use the bathroom, the visit will be ended and the Visitors will proceed to the Lobby restroom.
- Baby Bottles must be clear plastic (no glass).
- Visiting children and inmates are only allowed to use the Children’s Room during Mother Child Visits and special events.
- No use of obscene or abusive language or any other gestures or acts is permitted in the visiting area or public lobby. No form of sexual conduct or gestures is tolerated.
- Inmates and visitors are not allowed to hold hands and hands must remain either on the table or in view of the Visiting Officer.
- At the conclusion of the contact visit, inmates cannot escort visitors to the sally-port door. Inmates must first exit through the inmate waiting area of the Visiting Room.
- During non-contact visits, the visitor remains in the assigned booth and any request to change booths is at the discretion of the Visiting Officer.
- Visitors and inmates are not allowed to tap on the physical glass barrier, which separates the inmate from the visitor in the non-contact booths or through doors.
- The termination of visiting privileges letter describes the reasons for denial, suspension or restriction of visiting privileges and indicates the decision for upholding, eliminating or modifying the original action to any visitor who has been posted from the facility after the visitor’s visitation rights have been restricted.
- If the visitor has been posted for disciplinary reasons, prior to reinstating the visitor’s visiting privileges, the visitor must complete the Visitors Orientation class after completion of suspended visiting privileges to be allowed to visit.
- Information regarding the availability of public transportation to and from the facility is posted in the public lobby.
- The WCC Visiting Schedule is as follows and may be subject to change due to security issues:
Sunday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm 3B | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm MIN |
Monday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm 3A | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm 3B |
Tuesday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm 3B | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm MIN |
Wednesday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm MIN | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm 3B |
Thursday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm 3B | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm 3A |
Friday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm 3A | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm 3B |
Saturday | 3-4pm / 4:15-5:15pm MIN | 7-8pm / 8:15-9:15pm 3A |
Court property drop off: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 12 p.m.-2 p.m., and by appointment through Intake, (413) 730-6840