CDCR - California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison

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CDCR – California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison basic information to help guide you through what you can do for your inmate while they are incarcerated. The facility's direct contact number: 909-597-1821

This facility is for adult inmates.

The inmates housed at California Institution for Men located at 14901 Central Ave
PO Box 128 in Chino, CA are placed according to their custody level (determined by a number of factors including the past criminal history and the length of their sentence). There are ample educational and vocational training programs for all inmates, especially ones that show a willingness to learn new things that will prepare them for a better life when they are released. The mission is to promote and prepare the offender to leave in better shape than when they arrived, giving them the best chance to never come back and thus lower the state's recidivism rate.

California Institution for Men (CIM) is an adult male state prison located in Chino CA. This CDCR facility is also known as Chino Mens and rests on 2500 acres east of Los Angeles with the capacity to house about 3000 inmates.

CIM opened in 1941 and was the first major minimum security institution built and operated in the United States. It was the fourth state prison built in California (after San Quentin State Prison, Folsom State Prison, and the original California Institution for Women at Tehachapi). Since the California Correctional Institution replaced the original California Institution for Women at Tehachapi, CIM is now the third-oldest California state prison.

Offenders at this location can range from minimum to maximum custody, and many inmates start at Central Reception which is part of the California Institution for men. Central reception is responsible for the initial intake and classification of offenders. Inmates are evaluated and classified into both their security needs as well as the needs of the offender.

CIM Facilities include:

The largest Level I inmate population within the CDCR – (Level I – open dormitories without a secure perimeter).

Three Reception Centers (RCs) which provide short term housing to process, classify and evaluate incoming inmates." Reception Center Central for medium/maximum custody level inmates "receives intake from several southern California counties"; Reception Center East houses medium/maximum custody level RC inmates with sensitive needs, Mental Health inmate/patients requiring an Enhanced Out-Patient level of care and a 100 bed HIV/CID unit"; and Reception Center West is for "medium level custody inmates" who are waiting for processing/transfer to programming institutions."

CIM offers adult basic education, high school/GED courses, and a reading program designed to eliminate illiteracy. Other vocational programs unique to this facility are a deep sea diving class, masonry and basic welding courses, and a print and graphics course. A milk and juice processing/packaging facility and manufacturing building are some of the jobs inmates can do.

CDCR – California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison – Visitation Guide
CDCR – California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison – Inmate Packages
CDCR – California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison – Parole Information

Mission Statement

CIM opened in San Bernardino County in 1941 on 2,500 acres of land. The California Institution for Men (CIM) is a large complex consisting of four separate facilities under the administration of one warden.

Facility A has an inmate population of approximately 1113 Level-II Sensitive Needs Yard (SNY) inmates. The facility consists of eight dormitory housing units and each housing unit has a capacity of approximately 140 inmates.

Facility B has an inmate population of approximately 977 medium/maximum custody level inmates and serves as a reception center receiving and processing male inmates that have been newly committed to CDCR primarily from Riverside and San Diego County. The Reception Center completes diagnostic tests, medical/mental health screening, and literacy assessments for classification in order to determine the inmate's appropriate institutional placement. In addition to the reception center mission Facility B includes Palm and Cypress Halls as designated Administrative Segregation Units. These Administrative Segregation units receive inmates from CIM, California Rehabilitation Center, Local CDCR/Cal Fire camps, Inmates serving Security Housing Unit terms, in route to court or other CDCR Institutions.

Facility C has an inmate population of approximately 760 Level-II Sensitive Needs Yard (SNY) inmates, many of whom are serving life sentences. The facility consists of four housing units with a capacity of approximately 200 inmates. Facility C is located approximately 2 miles east of CIM's main complex.

Facility D has an inmate population of approximately 2000 general population inmates and is designated as a Secure Level-I. The facility consists of twelve housing units with each housing unit having a capacity of approximately 200 inmates. The California Code of Regulations defines a Level I as consisting primarily of open dormitories with a low security level with inmates with 0 to 18 points (least likely to misbehave) are housed in Level I facilities. Inmates with minimum custody can be housed and work outside the secure perimeter where inmates with medium custody are housed and work inside the secure perimeter but can live in a dormitory environment.

Academic and Inmate Leisure Time Activity Group (ILTAG) opportunities include High School/GED, Pre-Release, English as a Second Language, Literacy and Adult Basic Education, Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Criminal Gang Anonymous, Celebrate Recovery, Veterans In Prison, Prison Fellowship Pre-release program, Center for the Empowerment of Families Fatherhood Group, Victim Offender Education Group, Toastmasters, Global Youth Connection, Alternative to Violence, California State University San Bernardino Visual Arts, and National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI).

Work programs include the PIA laundry, Juice Processing and packaging plant, Marine Technology Training Center deep sea diver training program, Janitorial services, Landscape design, automotive and Electronics repair.

visitation Info

CDCR – California Institution for Men (CIM) Chino State Prison – Visitation

Visiting a CDCR facility must be conducted in a manner that maintains order, safety, and security of the people and facility. Failure to comply with the established regulations and policies may result in a warning or termination, suspension, or revocation of your visiting privileges.

Recommended Steps Before Visiting:

Read Visitation Guidelines to understand what you can expect and what is expected of you
Find out in which facility your inmate is housed
Schedule a visit online using the VPASS system
The day of your scheduled visit, check the Visiting Status to ensure the institution is accepting visitors

Visitation Guidelines

Refer to the Department's current policies and regulations in Title 15and the Department Operations Manual if you want to know more.

Locate Inmate

Use the Inmate Locator to find an inmate and what facility they are housed in.

Schedule Visit

Sign-up or log into VPASS to schedule an inmate visit. VPASS stands for Visitor Processing Appointment Scheduling System. Note: this requires creating an online account.

Check Visiting Status

You can find out the visiting status of a CDCR facility in one of two ways:

Call the Visiting Status Hotline at 1-800-374-8474
Check the VPASS Visiting Status; locate the facility you plan to visit.

You should always do this the day you plan to visit, because visitation can sometimes be unexpectedly cancelled.