Westchester County Jail Visiting Hours and Rules

The Six Time Slots

Visits run Monday through Sunday, at these times:

Slot	Time
1	9:10 to 10:10 AM
2	10:20 to 11:20 AM
3	11:30 AM to 12:30 PM
4	1:15 to 2:15 PM
5	2:30 to 3:30 PM
6	3:45 to 4:45 PM

There is a 45 minute gap between slot 3 and slot 4. All slots are subject to change on operational needs.

Two one hour visits a week, and only one of them may fall at a weekend, which the county attributes to New York State Minimum Standards rather than to its own preference.

Booking, and the Friday Deadline That Covers Three Days

There is no app and no online scheduler. You call 914-231-4116.

• Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, excluding holidays
• Calls are recorded for quality assurance
• Visits can be booked up to one week in advance

Weekend and Monday visits must all be scheduled no later than 1:00 PM on the preceding Friday.

Monday being in that group is the part people miss. Saturday, Sunday and Monday all close at the same moment on Friday lunchtime, so somebody taken into custody on a Friday afternoon cannot be visited until Tuesday at the earliest.

Have these ready when you call, because the county asks for all three:

• Your full name
• Your telephone number
• Your mailing address

The 30 Minute Processing Window

This ends more visits than the booking rule does.

• Processing begins 30 minutes before your scheduled slot.
• Processing ends promptly 30 minutes after the slot starts.
• Visitors arriving after that cutoff will not be admitted.

So a 1:15 PM visit opens for processing at 12:45 and closes at 1:45. Arrive at 1:50 for a slot that runs until 2:15 and you have missed it, even though the visit is still going on inside.

A Visit in the First 24 Hours

Worth knowing on the worst day, because most jails have nothing like it.

A newly admitted person shall, on request, receive a visit during regular visiting hours within 24 hours of processing. They have to ask for it, so it is worth them knowing it exists.

Who Can Come

• A maximum of three visitors at one time, and no more than two adults and one child.
• Anyone under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
• Children must remain seated with the accompanying adult at all times.
• A resident may refuse any visit. That is their right, and it is published.

Bringing a Child, and Why It Depends Who You Are Visiting

This is the one place where the Jail Division and the Women’s Unit genuinely work differently.

Visiting a man. If a child under 18 comes with anyone other than the child’s mother, the adult bringing them must provide:

• A notarized letter from the child’s mother
• The child’s birth certificate

The person in custody then has to submit a request to an Assistant Warden for approval. That is a step with a lead time, so it is not something to arrange on the morning of the visit.

Visiting a woman. Minor child visitation is coordinated through the Women’s Unit Social Worker’s Office on 914-231-1558, rather than through the Assistant Warden route.

Identification

Every visitor needs valid, non-expired photo identification. The county accepts:

• A driver’s licence with photo
• A DMV non-driver photo identification
• Government-issued photo identification
• An Armed Services photo ID
• Employment identification with a photo

For minor children only, a birth or baptismal certificate may be used instead.

The Dress Code, in Full

The county states that failure to comply means denial of admission to the grounds or the visiting room, and that its bathrooms may not be used as changing rooms. It will not provide garments or any means of altering them.

No orange clothing anywhere on the grounds, including the visiting room. Orange is what the jail issues.

Jewellery has to come off before the visit room and go in a lobby locker: rings, toe rings, bracelets, watches, chains and dangling earrings. The only exceptions are wedding bands, religious items, post earrings and facial, oral or stomach posts. The county suggests leaving valuables in a locked vehicle or at home, since it takes no responsibility for loss or damage.

Outerwear and hooded clothing is out, including overcoats, winter jackets and hooded sweatshirts. Attorneys on legal visits may wear suit coats.

Tight fitting or provocative clothing is out: short skirts, short shorts, athletic shorts, tank tops, strapless or spaghetti strap tops, low cut and halter tops, see-through clothing, bare midriffs, bare feet, leggings and bathing suits. Skirts and shorts may be no shorter than slightly above the knee. No sleeveless or cap sleeve shirts or dresses.

Headwear is out: hats, headbands, scarves, metal hair pins, bandanas. Religious headwear may be worn but must come off for security inspection before the visiting room.

Ripped clothing is out. Pants with holes are not allowed.

Screening, and the Metal Problem

All visitors clear a metal detector unless they can provide medical documentation, and are subject to a brief search and airport-style screening.

The county names what tends to set it off: footwear and garments containing metal, including underwire bras, plus hair pins, certain head wraps, many kinds of jewellery, zippers and studs. Any of these can prolong screening and may stop you getting into the visiting room at all, which matters when the processing window is only an hour wide.

Visitors with implanted medical devices must provide physician documentation.

No tobacco, phones or mobile devices anywhere on the grounds. Smoking is not permitted on the grounds either. Secure these in your vehicle or leave them at home.

Physical Contact

Contact is limited to a brief embrace and kiss at the beginning and at the conclusion of the visit, under the direct visual supervision of a Correction Officer.

Prohibited: hand-holding, passing infants, and physical contact at the visitation tables.

Do Not Visit Sick

Wait until you have been symptom free for at least 24 hours, without fever reducing or other medication. The county names the common cold, influenza and influenza-like illness, chicken pox, skin infections including MRSA, and tuberculosis.

It applies the same rule if you have been in close contact with children showing symptoms of something contagious, even when you feel fine yourself.

Attorneys and Other Professionals

A separate and much easier system. Legal and professional visits run daily, 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM, on a walk-up basis with no appointment, including holidays, with processing blocks published as 9:00 to 11:45 AM and 1:00 to 4:45 PM.

Laptops and tablets are allowed in. Phones, cameras and recording devices are not. State issued identification confirming the professional title is required, and that applies to interpreters and paralegals too. Without it, a written request is needed in advance.

When a Visit Can Be Refused

The Deputy Commissioner of Operations, or their designee, may deny, limit or revoke visiting privileges where a visit would threaten the safety, security or good order of the facility.

The county commits to three things when that happens:

• The decision must be made in writing
• It must state the specific factual basis
• It will be communicated to both the resident and the visitor

Getting There

The jail sits on the Grasslands Campus in Valhalla, which also holds the Department’s headquarters, a training centre and a maintenance building, so follow signs for the correct division rather than the campus in general.

The Department’s Transportation Unit works out of the Westchester County Courthouse in White Plains, which is a different place and not where visits happen.