Maine State Prison Visiting Hours. Visitor Application, Schedule & Dress Code

Step 1. Apply as an Approved Visitor

You cannot show up at Maine State Prison and request a visit. The resident must already have you on their approved visitor list. Get the Adult Facility Visitor Application from the resident, from the Lobby Officer, or from MDOC’s website, either as a print version you fill out by hand or an electronic version you complete on a computer and then print. Sign every page, then mail the completed form to:

Attention: Visits Maine State Prison 807 Cushing Road Warren, ME 04864

No visitor, except immediate family, can be on more than one resident’s visit list at a time. MDOC defines immediate family as a spouse, natural, foster, or adoptive parent or child, grandparent or grandchild, sibling, or the step-equivalent of any of those relationships.

Clearance can take up to 6 weeks, and longer if you have a criminal record. Falsifying your application results in automatic denial and a 6-month wait before you can reapply.

Step 2. Schedule Your Visit

Once you’re an approved visitor, you still need to book each specific visit. Call (207) 273-5526 Monday through Wednesday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., or email [email protected] any time Monday through Wednesday. Book your visit at least 2 business days in advance. Voicemails or emails received after 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday won’t be processed until the following Monday, so plan around that cutoff if you’re trying to schedule a weekend visit.

If you’re traveling from out of state or have another reason to need extra time, you can request an extended visit or an additional visit. The Shift Commander or Visit Supervisor decides whether to approve it.

Visit Days and Times

These hours apply to general population residents housed in the Close Custody Unit and Medium Custody Unit. MDOC’s published visitation page does not list separate visiting hours for residents in the Special Management Unit, so if your family member is there, call (207) 273-5300 to confirm what visiting looks like for their housing status.

If you arrive late to a pre-scheduled visit, you’ll still be let in for the time that’s left, as long as you’re dressed appropriately and the resident is still waiting in the visit area.

Getting There

Maine State Prison is on Route 97, about 1.7 miles from Route 1. If you’re traveling without a car, Concord Trailways runs daily bus service to the Rockland Ferry Terminal, roughly 8 miles north of the prison via Route 1. From there, local taxi options include Rockland Yellow Cab at (207) 596-3440, Schooner Bay Limo at (207) 594-5000 or 542-2076, and Joe’s Taxi at (207) 975-3560 or 975-5637.

When you arrive, pull into the first row of the parking lot and park on the left side. Vehicles are not permitted past that first row, though handicap-accessible spots are available closer to the main entrance. Lock your car before heading inside, and never leave children unattended in the lot.

Checking In and Security Screening

Inside the lobby, the Lobby Officer checks you in. Bring valid photo ID: a driver’s license, passport, or military ID for adults, and a birth certificate for minor visitors. You’ll need to leave your keys in a quarter-operated locker before entering the visit room.

Everyone passes through two metal detectors, with two attempts allowed. If you can’t clear the detector, you can consent to a pat search, conducted in front of two staff members after an officer wands you with a handheld detector. If a minor can’t clear the detector, their parent or legal guardian must sign a consent form before the pat search happens. Visitors with a documented medical condition that could trigger the detector can provide written medical proof, which staff verify with a handheld wand; if that doesn’t line up with the documentation, the visit isn’t granted. If you refuse both the metal detector and the pat search option, you won’t be able to visit that day.

K-9 dogs and handlers also search visitors before entry. Refusing the K-9 search ends your visit for that day and can suspend your visiting privileges across all MDOC facilities.

Inside the Visit Room

A Visit Officer assigns you a table, and you sit directly across from the resident. Up to 3 visitors are allowed per resident at a time; children under 4 don’t count toward that limit. Nothing can be passed between visitor and resident. In contact visits, you can briefly embrace or kiss at the start and end of the visit, and hold hands throughout, as long as both people’s hands stay visible.

There’s no profane or loud language, and electronics aren’t allowed in the visit room. Food, drinks, candy, gum, and toys from outside are not permitted, though clear baby bottles and clear training cups are fine. For infants and toddlers, you can bring in one diaper and a small amount of wipes (not in a container); these get stored in a designated area, not at the visit table. One baby blanket is allowed for children age 1 and under. Outer clothing and jackets stay in the lobby lockers, and neither visitors nor residents can carry any other articles into the visit room.

Personal photographs can be taken in front of a provided backdrop. Everyone, adults and children, stands for the photo; infants can be held. Holding hands is fine, but no other physical contact is allowed in photos, and no inappropriate gestures. A Visit Officer or Supervisor reviews and approves every photo; anything flagged as inappropriate goes to the Warden’s Office along with a report. Note that the resident needs available funds on their account to pay for photos, since no other payment method is accepted.

Children at Visitation

Adults are responsible for supervising children the whole visit. Each child can go to the bookcase once during the visit to select books or toys, then must return directly to the table with them; adults return items to the bookcase afterward. Children must stay seated near their parent or guardian and can’t climb on furniture, yell, or disrupt other families.

An adult who is not the child’s parent or legal guardian can still bring a minor to visit, but only with the parent or guardian’s written, notarized permission, plus prior approval from the Chief Administrative Officer or their designee. This is done with a Minor Consent Form, available through MSP or requested from the Visit Clerk at (207) 273-5300. The permission is time-limited (commonly expiring 6 months after the first visit) and all information provided must be verifiable.

Bonding Visits

If a resident, male or female, is the parent of an infant born within 6 weeks before their incarceration began, or born during their incarceration, MDOC allows bonding visits until the infant turns 6 weeks old, as long as the resident’s visiting privileges aren’t suspended. The resident or adult visitor needs a certified copy of the infant’s birth certificate listing the resident as a parent, unless the resident is the birth mother and gave birth while incarcerated. Bonding visits happen during normal visit hours unless an extended or additional visit is separately approved, and residents may breastfeed or bottle-feed during these visits.

Professional Visits

Attorneys, private investigators, legal advocacy representatives, staff from other government agencies, law enforcement, community treatment program staff, and clergy can schedule professional visits related to the resident’s case or care. These require at least 24 hours’ advance notice and prior approval from the Chief Administrative Officer or their designee, who can ask for proof of professional capacity.

What’s Not Allowed

Passing anything between a visitor and resident is treated as trafficking contraband, a felony under Maine law (17-A M.R.S.A. §757 and §757-A) punishable by up to 5 years in prison. Firearms and weapons are banned on all state property. Anyone who appears to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs will not be admitted and must leave immediately. Tobacco is banned at every MDOC facility statewide, and trafficking tobacco carries penalties up to 6 months in prison.

Loitering isn’t specifically addressed on MSP’s published visitation page the way it is at some other Maine facilities, but all visitors are subject to search before and during their visit and can be denied entry or have a visit terminated for disruptive behavior.

After You’re Released Yourself

No one currently serving a sentence at any facility can visit a resident. If you were previously incarcerated and have since completed your sentence, you must apply in writing to the Warden and wait one year after your release before you can be approved to visit.

Conduct and Visit Termination

Visitors and residents are expected to behave in a way that doesn’t embarrass others in the visit room. Disruptive behavior can end a visit early, and any extreme conduct results in immediate termination. Comment cards are available in the lobby, and you can ask to speak with the Visit Supervisor or Shift Commander about any concern; no visit can be cancelled or denied without their approval.

Confirm the person is still housed at Maine State Prison before you travel by checking the resident search tool.