Prison

Perry County Prison
300 South Carlisle St.
New Bloomfield, PA 17068
(717) 582-2262

Mission Statement

The mission of the Perry County Prison is to detain prisoners as directed by the courts, provide a physical environment that assures maximum possible safety for the public, prison staff and inmates and provide treatment services and programs that offer inmates the opportunity for positive personal change.

ADMINISTRATION:

Jason Harvey, Warden
Tim Bassett, Deputy Warden
Doug Twigg, Lieutenant
Rodney Keller, Lieutenant
Wilma White, Lieutenant
Adam Briggs, Business Manager

PRISON BOARD:

Andrew Bender, Judge, Chairman
F. Clay Merris, District Attorney, Vice Chairman
Brenda L. Watson, Commissioner Vice Chairman
David Hammar, Sheriff
Frank Campbell, Commissioner Chairman
William Lyons, Commissioner Secretary

NOTICE:

2022 PREA Audit – Please click on this link for the full Notice.

All Inmates:

Governor Tom Wolf AND HIS OFFICE ON March 6, 2020 issued a PROCLAMATION OF DISASTER EMERGENCY for Pennsylvania. The World Health Organization and Centers for disease Control and Prevention, (CDC) have declared COVID-19 a “public health emergency of international concern.”

WE have NO confirmed cases at this time. These plans are to prevent and contain the COVID-19 virus.

After several discussions and action planning for the potential COVID-19 cases, the Perry County Prison Board and the Prison have made the following decisions that will go into effect immediately and remain in effect until further notice:

• All service providers, (One on One’s, Church, AA, GED, SO, Drug and Alcohol, and Perry Human Services) will NOT be allowed into the secure facility until further notice. If a provider has to interview an inmate for an assessment, they can schedule an appointment with the Counselor and do so over the secure phone.
• Private Attorney, Public Defender, District Attorney’s Office are asked to utilize the secure visitation phones, however if it is of urgency and they, the Attorney feels a face to face is of importance, the Attorney will be screened for any visible symptoms and the Warden will determine if the exception will be approved.
• Probation and Parole Officers that need to see inmates will also utilize the secure visitation phones.

All visitation will be canceled until further notice.

Visitation

• Official Visitation:
  Official visitors, including but not limited to Attorneys, clergy, probation/parole officers and service providers may see inmates between the hours of 9:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m., 12:30 p.m. – 2:15 p.m., and 6:00 p.m. – 9:15 p.m. each day of the week.
• General Visitation:
  Inmates committed to the Perry County Prison must complete a visitors list with a maximum of 5 individuals, identifying those people they wish to have visitation with during their incarceration. They must also decide a day and time, 1 hour in duration, 1 day per week that they would like to have as their visit day and time. Inmates are responsible for informing their visitors of the day and time of their visit. All visitors must be over the age of 18 unless accompanied by a parent or guardian and must have photo identification. All inmate visits are secure, meaning the inmate and visitors are separated by a barrier.

VISITOR SEARCHES:
Everyone entering the Perry County Prison is subject to search, per Purdons Title 61, Section 384. Any visitor who refuses a search when requested will be denied visitation.

INMATE MONEY:
Any money an inmate has on their person upon commitment will be taken from them and placed in their Perry County Prison Account. This also includes all funds received during their incarceration. Money can be put on the inmates account by using the Kiosk machine in the lobby of the prison or by going on the internet to: (Phone Account) – Paytel.com / (Commissary Account) – Jailatm.com and following their procedure to place money on an inmate’s account. All inmate money will be placed on the inmate’s account the next business day. A receipt will be given for all transactions. The transferring of money between inmate accounts is prohibited. Please call 1-800-729-8355 if you have any questions.

NEW INMATE MAIL POLICY: 

Please click on the Link below for more information.

Inmate Mail Policy

LEGAL MAIL / PRIVILEGED MAIL:

Legal mail must be mailed directly to the detention center. Legal mail must be marked on the envelope as “Legal Mail” and will be opened by the inmate in the presence of facility staff and checked for contraband.

The address for legal mail shall be:

Perry County Prison
Inmate Name, Inmate ID Number
300 South Carlisle St.
New Bloomfield, PA 17068

MAIL REQUIREMENTS AND RESTRICTIONS:

 Mail arriving with postage due will be refused and returned to sender if possible.
 Mail must be 10 pages or less per envelope.
 Page size must be no larger than 8.5” x 11”.
 Mail can include written or typed pages, photos, drawings or greeting cards.
(NO polaroid photos.)
 NO glitter, glue, tape, 3D elements, or electronic components (lights, music, animation).
 NO items containing, depicting, or relating to sexually explicit activity, gang activity, illegal activity, violence, drug, or alcohol use, etc.
 NO photos of nude or partially clothed persons.
 NO illegal substances or any other items considered to be contraband.
 NO magazines, books, or packages mailed to mail processing center.
 NO cash, personal checks, or money orders mailed to the mail processing center.
 NO originals of important documents such as Birth Certificates, Driver’s Licenses, Social Security Cards, Green Cards, etc., as they will not be returned.
 NO original photos or other irreplaceable or valuable items, as they will not be returned.
 Do not mail legal/privileged mail to the mail processing center. See instructions below for Legal/Privileged Mail.

Mail meeting these requirements will be scanned within 24 hours of receipt and the physical mail will be destroyed. Scanned mail will be reviewed by facility staff in a timely manner. Approved scanned mail will be saved and can be accessed by the inmate via the inmate tablets.

ADDITIONAL FACILITY POLICIES:

• All mail must have a return address on it.
• All mail will be logged.
• All scanned mail may be inspected and screened if probably cause of criminal activity exists.
• Any threats of criminal activity will not be permitted in any correspondence and may result in criminal charges.
• Correspondence will be censored if it appears evident that the material is a type which may cause violence or other disruption of the facility’s security.
• All scanned mail containing materials considered illegal or breaches of security will be turned over to the proper authorities for investigation.

SCANNED MAIL AFTER RELEASE:

After a detainee is released from the adult detention center, he or she may request digital copies of his or her scanned mail. Submit the request to tbassett@perryco.org, and include the following:

 Inmate Name
 Inmate ID Number
 Facility Name: Perry County Prison, PA
 Email Address

Upon verification of the information, an email with the postal scans attached shall be sent to the provided email address.

Digital copies of scanned mail shall only be approved for the released detainee and ONLY after he or she is released from the adult detention center.

INMATE PHONE CALLS AND MESSAGING:

The fastest way to communicate with an inmate is by phone or messaging. The inmate communications provider for the Perry County Prison is Pay Tel Communications. To set up an account with Pay Tel, visit www.paytel.com or call 1-800-PAY-TELL.

INMATE TELEPHONE

• Inmates are permitted to make outgoing telephone calls.
• Citizens from the community wishing to accept inmate telephone calls from the Perry County Prison need to establish an account with Paytel. Accounts can be established by contacting Paytel at 1-800-729-8355 or online at Paytel.com.
• Paytel provides for different payment options:
• (Phone Account) – Paytel.com
• (Commissary) – Jailatm.com
• Please call 1-800-729-8355 with any questions

Pre-Paid Accounts
Initial pre-payments must be in the form of cash, money order, credit card, Money Gram or Western Union. Subsequent pre-payments may be made by personal check. The dollar amount of each phone call you receive will be deducted from your pre-payment. When your account balance goes under $.25 the amount required to accept at least a 5 minute call, your account will be suspended until another pre-payment is made. You may place additional money on your account at any time to ensure that you do not run out of calls.

Debit Calling
Debit calling allows inmates to prepay for calls with the money they have in their account at the facility. If you add money to the inmate’s account at the facility, he or she can use those funds to call any phone number.

Account Access:

• IVR system
  Our Interactive Voice Response (IVR) system allows you to check your balance and add money to the inmate’s account at the facility, he or she can use those funds to call any phone number.
• Online Account Access
  You can also visit us online at Paytel.com where you can set up a new account, check your balance, make pre-payments, view your statements and update your information 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Closing your account
  You must call Paytel when you wish to close your account. If you have a credit left on your account Paytel will issue you a refund check for the credit balance.
• Third party and calling cards are prohibited. All inmate telephone calls are recorded. Telephone privileges for inmates in disciplinary detention and medical isolation are restricted.

ZERO TOLERANCE

The Perry County Prison maintains a zero tolerance for offender-on-offender sexual activity, including but not limited to sexual abuse or assault, and staff sexual misconduct and sexual harassment toward offenders. Every allegation of sexual assault/misconduct and harassment is thoroughly investigated. The zero tolerance applies to all employees, volunteers and contract staff of the Perry County Prison. The reporting number for an alleged allegation of sexual activity is 717-866-823-6703.

History

On July 7, 1824, the County Commissioners advertised for proposals for erecting a stone jail, the dimensions of which were to be 35 x 50 feet, two stories high, with walls two and one-half feet in thickness. The lower floor was to have four rooms and the upper six, with the cost estimated at $2,400, but its final cost proved to be $2,600. On October 1, 1827, a stone wall enclosing the jail yard was constructed at a cost of $950. This original jail, with slight alterations and improvements, served the County for the remainder of the Century.

On April 4, 1902, bids were received for the erection of a new brick jail, in which was also to be the residence of the sheriff. The contract was for $26,000, but changes in the plans increased its cost to over $30,000.

The two tier, twelve cell prison was constructed at West McClure Street and occupied on January 1, 1903. It remained virtually unchanged until the mid 1970’s when an electrical locking system was installed on the six cell doors of the lower tier and the two security doors entering the cell block. A closed circuit television monitoring system was also installed.

Prisoner population rarely exceeded six until the mid 1970’s. The 1980’s brought an influx of prisoners and by 1988 the prison was filled to capacity. Early in 1989 an exercise room was converted to hold an additional four prisoners. This alleviated the over population problem only temporarily. By the end of 1989 the population had reached a total of 55. The majority of the overflow was being housed in Juniata and other surrounding Counties. Prior to this, the County Commissioners had realized the necessity for a larger, more secure facility and secured 14.6 acres of ground at the south end of New Bloomfield Borough.

Ground breaking ceremonies were held July 1989. The cost was estimated at 3.4 million. However, various changes were required and the final cost is estimated at approximately 3.7 million.

Population at the old jail averaged around 45-50 inmates. The New County Prison will house approximately 125 at full capacity. There are 52 individual cells with 48 having the capability of double bunking. Also, there is a large housing unit which will be available for work-release and trustee inmates. With this unit fully occupied, it will bring the population to 125.

This will allow the prison to be certified as a minimum/maximum institution. Plans are to begin accepting inmates at the new facility on October 22, 1990.