New York City's main jail complex, on an island in the East River between Queens and the Bronx, reached by one bridge and one public bus. Six separate jails operate here, each with its own address on Hazen Street, holding people awaiting trial and people serving city sentences of a year or less.
City
East Elmhurst
County
Bronx and Queens
State
NY
Facility Type
county jail
Gender
Mixed, housed in separate jails
Capacity
About 6,600 people in NYC DOC custody citywide
Custody Levels
Detained and sentenced
Operator
New York City Department of Correction
Address
Hazen Street, East Elmhurst, NY 11370
Phone
311
Inmate Locator
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NYC's own Person in Custody Lookup covers all six jails by NYSID, Book and Case number, or name. It will not show anyone still in NYPD, state, or federal custody.
View ArticleWalk-in only, no application or approved-visitor list. Everything runs through the Benjamin Ward Visit Center, and the visiting day alternates by the first letter of the surname.
View ArticleJPay and Western Union both work, with Western Union needing city code NYCITYDOC and state code NY. A department cashier window takes cash for free during a visit.
View ArticleCalls are free from tablets and housing unit landlines with no account to open. People get 21 minutes of calling every three hours, with lock-in from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
View ArticleAddress the envelope to the specific jail with the person's full name and Book and Case number. Photos are capped at fifteen, 4 by 6 inches, no Polaroids.
View ArticleThe city runs its own Person in Custody Lookup, separate from the state and federal systems, searched by NYSID or Book and Case number or by name. Its published limitation is the one that matters most: it does not cover people in police, state or federal custody, so somebody just arrested by the NYPD will not appear until the department books them in.
See the full breakdownWalk-in only, no application and no approved-visitor list, which is close to unique among large jail systems. Everything runs through the Benjamin Ward Visit Center at 18-31 Hazen Street. Visits last one hour, detained people get three a week and sentenced people two, and the days alternate by the first letter of the surname.
See the full breakdownJPay and Western Union both work, and Western Union needs two codes rather than one: city code NYCITYDOC and state code NY. The cheapest route is a department cashier window, which charges nothing, and cash handed over during a visit is available the next day. Do not confuse a commissary deposit with paying bail, which has a different payee and different locations.
See the full breakdownFree, from tablets and from housing unit landlines, with no account for a family to open. The constraint is time rather than money: 21 minutes of calling every three hours while people are out of their cells, and lock-in from 9:00 PM to 5:00 AM with counts at 7 to 8 AM and 3 to 4 PM on top.
See the full breakdownAddress the envelope to the specific jail your person is in, with their full name and Book and Case number. Nothing is scanned or digitised here, which is increasingly rare. Photographs are capped at fifteen, 4 by 6 inches, no Polaroids, and you cannot send a photo of the person themselves or of anyone else in custody. Toiletries and food are prohibited outright.
See the full breakdown6 of 9 questions
No. The Department of Correction states that in-person visits operate on a walk-in basis only and that pre-registration is not available. There is no visitor application, no approved-visitor list and no background check. You need current photo identification and you need to arrive inside the registration window for that day.
VisitationUse the Person in Custody Lookup, because there are six operating jails on the island and each has its own Hazen Street address. Eric M. Taylor Center is 10-10, George R. Vierno Center 09-09, Otis Bantum Correctional Center 16-00, Robert N. Davoren Center 11-11, Rose M. Singer Center 19-19 and West Facility 16-06. Mail addressed to the wrong one has to be forwarded.
Inmate SearchWednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Registration runs 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM on Wednesday and Thursday, and 7:00 AM to noon on Saturday and Sunday. Fridays are televisits only and must be booked in advance. There are no visits on Monday or Tuesday. Which days apply to you also depends on your person's surname.
VisitationVisiting days alternate by the first letter of the incarcerated person's last name. Some days are for surnames A through L, others M through Z, and the department publishes the pattern a month at a time. Fridays are marked open to all because they are televisit days. Check the current month before you travel.
VisitationNothing. New York City made calls free from both tablets and housing unit landlines, and there is no family account to open or fund. The limit is on time rather than money: 21 minutes of calling every three hours during periods when people are not locked in.
Phone CallsNo. Nothing in the department's published rules describes scanning, photocopying or digitising personal mail, and no third-party mail vendor is named anywhere. The handbook says mail may be inspected, felt and bent without being opened outside the person's presence. Paper still arrives as paper here.
Mail & PhotosFifteen, no larger than 4 by 6 inches, and no Polaroids. There is one rule people miss: you cannot send photographs of the person themselves or of anyone else in custody. Nude photographs may not be displayed where passers-by can see them.
Mail & PhotosJPay or Western Union, using the person's name and Book and Case number. Western Union needs both codes, city code NYCITYDOC and state code NY. Depositing at a Department of Correction cashier window carries no fee at all, and cash handed over at a visit is available the next day. Money orders by post are capped at $1,000 and take five business days.
Send MoneyThe Q100 is the only public bus that crosses the Rikers Island Bridge. From Manhattan you take the Q101 from East 59th Street and Second Avenue to Hazen Street and 19th Avenue, then transfer to the Q100. There is also a free Department of Correction bus from East 125th Street at 3rd Avenue in Harlem and from Jay Street in Brooklyn.
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All information on this page comes directly from official government and facility sources. How we verify information › Last verified September 15, 2026. Official source: nyc.gov/site/doc/about/facilities.page ›