Inmate Care Packages: What They Cannot Have

While common sense would dictate that items such as knives, firearms or ammunition are not allowed in an inmate's care package, there are other prohibited items that might not seem as obvious. For instance, most prisons do not allow games requiring dice. Most prison facilities do not allow prisoners to have second-hand clothing; they must get new clothing. Each prison facility includes a list of allowed and prohibited items in a welcome packet for family and friends of prisoners.

Clothing

Blue, black or gray clothing as well as orange unless it is issued by the facility is not allowed in most prisons. The only exception to this rule is in regards to the color black for socks, winter caps, belts, gloves or ear muffs. Sending a prisoner a blue baseball cap most likely equals sending the cap to where prison officials store prohibited items. The value of each clothing item sent to a prisoner is not allowed to exceed $50.

Food items

Prisoners are allowed to receive food items, but in general those items are ones that do not require cooking for consumption. Bread is not allowed if it is sealed with a twist tie. Canned goods larger than 16 ounces are not allowed.

No logos

Logos are not allowed on clothing. This ban extends to bedding items, towels, hats, shoes and watches. The plainer the item appears, the more likely it gets accepted.

Electronic devices

In general, inmates are allowed to have compact disc players and radios but some prisons limit the use of more costly mobile music devices such as iPods. Some prisons allow hand-held video games; others do not. For a video game to get accepted, it must not contain extreme or graphic violence or sexually explicit material.

While inmates are allowed to receive correspondence including news article clippings, magazines, letters and photographs, senders should know that these items are generally delayed up to one week as prison officials sort through them for illegal information before distributing to the receiving prisoner.