Shawnee County Juvenile Detention Center

Shawnee County Juvenile Detention Center basic information to help guide you through what you can do for your inmate while they are incarcerated. The facility's direct contact number: 785-233-6459

This facility is for juvenile residents.

The Shawnee County Juvenile Detention Center is a medium to low-security detention center located at 401 SE 8th Topeka, KS that is operated locally by the Juvenile Justice Department and holds youths awaiting the determination of punishment for the crimes which they are accused. Most of the adolescents are here for less than two years.

INMATE/JUVENILE RESIDENCE CORRESPONDENCE

Overview

Providing avenues by which inmates and juvenile residents can communicate with family and friends plays an important role during their incarceration. It allows them a means to stay in touch and stay connected to those in the community that are important to them. There are some general rules and guidelines that both inmates/residents as well as those that are writing to them must follow.

Outgoing Mail

Inmates and residents shall be allowed to correspond in writing with persons or organizations. The facility has the right to prohibit correspondence if it is determined necessary to protect the safety and security of the recipient, the public, staff or inmates/residents. Any such mail determined not appropriate for those reasons will be returned to the inmate. All outgoing mail must be legibly addressed and have no other markings other than the inmate's/resident's name, sending address, and return address on the envelope. Inmates/residents are not authorized to write to others in the facility. If an inmate/resident has an immediate family member incarcerated, he/she may obtain prior authorization from the Operations Division Manager to correspond with the family member.

Incoming Mail

All incoming mail must come through the U.S. Postal Service. The mailing address for:

Juvenile Residents

Resident Name
Shawnee County Juvenile Detention Center
401 SE 8th St.
Topeka, KS 66607

Only the inmate's/resident's name, address, and the sender’s return address are allowed on the envelope. Incoming mail that has any additional markings or graffiti on the envelope or on the inside contents shall be returned to the sender or placed in the inmate's/resident's personal property.

All non-legal incoming mail shall be opened and inspected. Legal mail shall be opened and inspected in the presence of the inmate/resident. No money is allowed to be sent through the mail. Any mail that contains money will be returned to the sender. If there is no return address, the funds will be deposited in the general commissary fund account, but will not be placed onto the inmate's personal account.

Publications

Adult inmates are permitted to subscribe to and receive publications, without prior approval, from a publisher, distributor book club, or a bookstore. Family members and/or friends are not allowed to send publications to inmates. They must be received by the inmate from the original publisher, distributor book club, or bookstore.

visitation Info

Shawnee County Department of Corrections (DOC) – Juvenile Detention

Visitation opportunities are available for the Adult Detention Center, Juvenile Detention Center, and the Corrections Annex. It is required to have valid picture identification such as a driver’s license, state I.D. card, or school ID card. Professional visitors are also required to have their professional identity (e.g., government identification, law enforcement identification, religious affiliation, etc.) No personal belongings are allowed in the visitation area of the facilities. Lockers are in the lobby for visitors to store personal property (purses, cell phones, cameras, pagers, radios, coats, and other personal items).

Parking is available in the front parking lot of the facility or on the street. Cars illegally parked or parked on areas not authorized for visitors are subject to being ticketed and/or towed away.

This visitation schedule does not pertain to professional visits (attorney, religious leader, probation/parole officer, etc.) or “special visits” for those visitors coming from out-of-state or otherwise approved. A special visit with an inmate must be pre-approved and pre-arranged with the Deputy Director over Professional Standards and Administration.  A special visit with a juvenile must be pre-approved and pre-arranged with the Juvenile Detention Center Operations Division Manager.
The following outlines the visitation times and schedule for the Adult Detention Center and Juvenile Detention Center.

Visitor Clothing Restrictions

All visitors shall be required to abide by the following clothing restrictions. Violations may result in being restricted from visitation. These clothing restrictions shall apply to all visitors.
You absolutely may not wear any of the following:

• See-through blouses or shirts
• Halter-tops, tank-tops, spaghetti straps, backless blouses, or sleeveless shirts
• Bandanas, hats or do-rags
• Torn or unsuitable jeans and/or shorts
• Clothing with visible profanity
• Dresses or skirts cut higher than 5 inches above the knee
• Shirts and/or blouses cut above the waist

The Shawnee County Department of Corrections thanks you for your cooperation.

Juvenile Detention Center Visitation

Each juvenile resident is permitted one visit per visitation day. No more than two adults or one adult and one child can visit at one time. Approved visitors include parents, legal guardians, grandparents, and siblings. A parent, legal guardian, or grandparent must accompany a sibling. Visitation periods are 25 minutes in length.

All visitors are to report to the Juvenile Detention Center front lobby for check in.