Mail & Photos to Harnett County Detention Center. Scan-and-Forward Address

Two Mailing Addresses: Use the Right One

Harnett County Detention Center uses two separate mailing addresses. Using the wrong one means your mail gets returned or never reaches the person.

Personal Mail (Scan-and-Forward)

For letters, cards, and photos, use this address:

[Inmate Full Name, Inmate ID #]
Harnett County Detention Center Inmate
Facility ID # 5090
PO Box 18247
Greensboro, NC 27419

This is not the facility address. It is a processing center in Greensboro. Your letter is received there, scanned, and sent to the person’s tablet at the Lillington facility. If you have been mailing to the Bain Street address in Lillington, those letters are being returned.

Every line matters:

• Line 1: Full legal name and inmate ID number
• Line 2: “Harnett County Detention Center Inmate” (this tells the processor which facility)
• Line 3: “Facility ID # 5090” (required for routing to Harnett County)
• Line 4 and 5: PO Box 18247, Greensboro, NC 27419

Legal Mail (Physical Facility)

For attorney correspondence, court documents, and other privileged legal mail, use the physical facility address:

[Inmate Full Name, Inmate ID #]
Harnett County Detention Center
P.O. Box 399
175 Bain Street
Lillington, NC 27546

Legal mail is handled physically at the facility and is not scanned through the Greensboro processing center. Attorneys should mark the envelope clearly as “Legal Mail” or “Attorney-Client Privileged.”

Ink and Writing Rules

• Blue or black ink only. No red ink, markers, crayons, or colored pens.
• Write on standard white or off-white paper.
• No drawings on the outside of the envelope.

The scan-and-forward system processes mail digitally. Colored ink can cause readability problems during scanning, which is why the restriction exists.

Photos

Photos are accepted through the scan-and-forward system. They are scanned and displayed on the person’s tablet like everything else.

Photo rules:

• No Polaroids.
• No photos with glitter, raised materials, or stickers.
• Standard photo paper that can go through a scanner.

Call (910) 893-0257 to confirm current photo size limits and whether there is a limit on the number of photos per mailing.

Cards and Greeting Cards

Plain cards are accepted. No musical cards, no glitter cards, and no cards with raised or textured elements. The card is scanned just like a letter, so anything that cannot lie flat through a scanner will not process correctly.

What’s Not Allowed in the Envelope

• No glitter, confetti, or stickers.
• No markers or crayons.
• No cash, checks, or money orders inside a letter (deposits go through PayTel).
• No perfume or scented items.
• No hard objects or anything that makes the envelope uneven.
• Nothing enclosed beyond the letter and photos.

Mail that contains prohibited items may be rejected and destroyed rather than returned.

Return Address Requirement

Every envelope must have your full first and last name and return address. Mail without a return address is destroyed. Write your return address clearly in the upper left corner of the envelope, just as you would for any piece of first-class mail.

Books, Newspapers, and Magazines

Books: Paperback books only. Maximum 3 books at a time. Books must be sent directly from a publisher or online retailer (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc.) to the facility at:

Harnett County Detention Center P.O. Box 399 175 Bain Street Lillington, NC 27546

Hardcover books are not accepted. Books sent through the scan-and-forward Greensboro address are not appropriate for packages.

Newspapers and magazines: If allowed, subscriptions are typically shipped directly from the publisher to the facility address. Call (910) 893-0257 to confirm whether periodical subscriptions are currently accepted and what the rules are.

Mail Delivery Schedule

Mail sent through the scan-and-forward system is processed and delivered Monday through Friday. Letters mailed over the weekend or on holidays will be processed the next business day. Allow extra time for first-class mail to reach the Greensboro processing center before it is scanned and delivered to the tablet.

What Happens to Rejected Mail

Mail that violates the rules (wrong ink color, prohibited items inside, no return address, or addressed incorrectly) is typically rejected. Rejected mail may be returned to the sender if there is a valid return address, or it may be destroyed. The person inside will not receive a rejected piece of mail.

Electronic Messaging as an Alternative

If mail is too slow or you want to send a quick note, use inteleMESSAGE through PayTel at paytel.com. It costs $0.50 per message and delivers to the person’s tablet. See the phone calls guide for how inteleMESSAGE works.

Money Inside Mail

Do not include cash, checks, or money orders inside a letter. The scan-and-forward system does not process physical items, and including money in a letter is a rule violation that can cause the entire piece to be rejected. To send money, use PayTel at paytel.com. See the send money guide.

Confirming Current Rules

Mail rules at county jails can change. Call (910) 893-0257 to confirm the current rules for photos, books, and any other items before you send them. It is better to ask first than to have your mail rejected.

Send Photos and Letters with Pigeonly

The easiest way to send photos and letters to someone at Harnett County Detention Center is through Pigeonly. Upload your photos or write your letter online, and Pigeonly prints and mails everything to the facility for you, following the mail rules listed above.