The 30-Day Visitation Rule at Kirkland R&E

Why Kirkland’s Rules Are Different

Most SCDC institutions allow visitation from anyone on an inmate’s approved 15-person visitor list. Kirkland is different because it’s a reception and classification center, not a long-term housing institution. SCDC’s policy blocks all in-person visits during intake so staff can complete records processing, medical and mental health screening, and custody classification without the added complexity of managing visitation for a population that’s still being processed and reassigned.

The First 30 Days: No Visitors

For the first 30 days after arrival at Kirkland, no in-person visitor, regardless of relationship, is permitted to visit. This applies uniformly, there’s no expedited exception process for this initial period.

After 30 Days: Limited Eligible Relations

Once an inmate has been at Kirkland longer than 30 days, visitation opens up, but only to a specific, limited set of relations:

• Parents (including stepparents)
• Grandparents
• Siblings
• Grandchildren
• Spouse
• Children (including stepchildren)

Friends, extended family like aunts, uncles, or cousins, and anyone outside this list cannot visit during the R&E period, even after the 30-day mark. This is more restrictive than the standard 15-person visitor list used at other SCDC institutions.

How to Check Eligibility

Call Kirkland R&E directly at (803) 896-2000. This line is only staffed Monday and Tuesday, 8 a.m. to noon, so plan around that narrow window instead of calling on other days and expecting an answer.

Scheduling a Visit Once Eligible

Once you’ve confirmed eligibility, visits follow SCDC’s standard non-contact visitation schedule: Saturday and Sunday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., in 2-hour blocks, booked in advance through the GTL scheduler at scdoc.gtlvisitme.com/app. Kirkland is a non-contact facility, so visits happen through plexiglass, the same as Broad River, Kershaw, Lee, Lieber, McCormick, Perry, Ridgeland, and Turbeville.

Dress Code and What to Bring

The same statewide SCDC visitor rules apply: sleeved shirts, no see-through fabric, shorts and skirts no shorter than three inches above the knee, and no tight clothing. Bring one photo ID, one small clear bag, and one set of car keys. Cash isn’t allowed; vending machines take cards only.

What Happens After a Transfer

Once classification finishes and the inmate transfers to a permanent institution, Kirkland’s restrictive visitation rules no longer apply. The standard 15-person visitor list and regular visiting hours take over at whatever institution they’re assigned to.