§ 93.3. Inmate visiting privileges.
(a) Approved list of visitors. A list of approved visitors may contain up to 20 names or more if permitted by the Department. Inmates who can show that they have more than the number of visitors permitted by the Department may be permitted to add additional names to their approved lists. Except for members of an inmate’s immediate family, a minor’s name may be placed on the approved list only with permission of the minor’s parents or guardian. Children under 18 years of age may visit only when accompanied by an adult approved by his parent or legal guardian and need not be placed separately on the official list. A person may not be on more than one inmate’s visiting list except in cases when the person is part of the immediate family of more than one inmate, unless special permission is granted by the facility manager. Changes or additions to the approved list may be made in accordance with established procedures. The name of a visitor may be removed for good cause upon authorization by the facility manager.
(b) Religious advisor. Designation by an inmate of a religious advisor as defined in § 93.6 (relating to religious activities) may be made at any time. The designation shall be in addition to the names on the approved list and will not be counted against the total approved by the Department.
(c) Attorneys. An inmate may designate attorneys for whom the inmate desires visiting privileges at any time. The designation shall be in addition to the names on the approved list and will not be counted against the total approved by the Department.
(1) The confidentiality of the attorney-client relationship will be honored. Personnel will not be stationed in a manner as to be able to overhear normal conversation.
(2) An attorney who has been designated by an inmate as the inmate’s legal advisor may permit persons, such as law students or investigators to visit the inmate to act as the attorney’s agents. Each person shall present to the facility at the time of the visit a written statement signed by the attorney on the letterhead of the firm of the attorney identifying each person as the attorney’s agent and attesting that the visit is for the purpose of a legal consultation.
(3) Attorneys and their agents are subject to the same rules and regulations as other visitors.
(d) Former inmates. A former inmate may visit only with special permission of the facility manager.
(e) Prerelease inmates. Inmates in prerelease status may visit other inmates only with the approval of the Secretary or a designee. Application for permission to visit shall be made by both inmates through their respective facility managers.
(g) Initial visits. The inmate’s first visit after admission should be scheduled following the medical quarantine period and may be held in the presence of a staff caseworker.
(h) Number, time and place of visits. Inmates shall be permitted to have visits as often as the situation at the facility will allow.
(1) Visiting days. Visits may be permitted every day of the year at the discretion of the facility manager and shall reasonably accommodate family members.
(2) Visiting hours. Morning and afternoon visiting hours will be maintained at the discretion of the facility manager. Evening visits may be maintained at the discretion of the facility manager. Visiting hours shall reasonably accommodate family members.
(3) Length of visits. Visits should be at least 1 hour in duration. The length of a visit depends on the inmate’s program status and available space.
(4) Frequency of visits. One visit per inmate per week will be permitted. Additional visits may be permitted.
(5) Number of visitors at one time. The number of visitors an inmate may have at any one time may be limited depending upon the available space.
(6) Place. Inmates in the general population will be permitted contact visits in a relaxed setting, under official supervision unless otherwise restricted as set forth in the Department of Corrections Inmate Handbook, or any Department document that is disseminated to inmates.
(7) Special visit. Provisions will be made for the approval of a special visit by persons who may not be on the approved list who have come a substantial distance and of a family visit to a seriously ill or injured inmate. Special visits will be approved only by the facility manager or a designee. Absent this approval, only those persons on the approved visiting list may visit.
(i) Restriction of visitation privileges.
(1) If a visit is a threat to the security and order of the facility, the visit may be terminated or disallowed.
(2) Outside visitors are subject to search before and after visiting.
(3) A visitor who cannot produce identification or who falsifies identifying information will not be allowed in the facility.
(4) Visitation may be restricted or suspended or special security precautions imposed for violation of visiting rules or as warranted by the temperament of the inmate involved.
(5) Restriction of visiting privileges will not be used as a disciplinary measure for an unrelated facility rule infraction. However, visiting privileges may be restricted as a result of changes in housing or program status made as a result of unrelated infractions.
(6) Normal visitation will be suspended during a state of emergency.
(j) Media representatives. Media representatives will have the same visiting privileges as visitors on an inmate’s approved list of visitors as described in Department policy concerning inmate visitation. A media representative will not be in addition to the names on the approved list and will be counted against the total approved by the Department.
(1) Media representatives may obtain a copy of the Department’s policy regarding inmate visitation on the Department’s website (www.cor.state.pa.us).
(2) Media representatives and inmates will abide by all applicable rules, regulations and policies of the Department while on facility property. Violations of any rules, regulations or policies of the Department may result in the visit being denied, termination of the visit, suspension of visiting privileges or revocation of visiting privileges.
(3) Visits with a media representative shall be subject to the frequency of visit limitations contained in subsection (h)(4).
(4) For inmates under a sentence of death and prior to the Governor’s warrant being issued, media representatives will only be permitted to have noncontact visits with the inmate. After the Governor’s warrant has been issued, noncontact visits will only be entertained if the media representative has obtained an order of court of competent jurisdiction granting the relief and has properly served the Department with the court documents seeking or requesting the relief prior to obtaining the order.
(5) Media representatives for the purpose of this section include: representatives of general circulation newspapers; magazines of general circulation sold through newsstands or mail subscriptions to the general public; and National/international news services or radio/television stations holding a Federal Communications Commission license.
Authority The provisions of this § 93.3 amended under section 506 of The Administrative Code of 1929 (71 P. S. § 186).
Source The provisions of this § 93.3 adopted August 14, 1971, effective August 15, 1971, 1 Pa.B. 1655; amended January 14, 1972, effective January 1, 1972, 2 Pa.B. 60; amended February 17, 1984, effective February 18, 1984, 14 Pa.B. 534; amended September 18, 1998, effective September 19, 1998, 28 Pa.B. 4719; amended December 21, 2001, effective December 22, 2001, 31 Pa.B. 6932; amended April 15, 2005, effective April 16, 2005, 35 Pa.B. 2279. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (297101) to (297103) and (286429) to (286430).
Notes of Decisions Constitutional Construction
Neither the attorney visitation policy in general nor the application thereof by State correctional officials violated prisoner’s right to access to the courts. Moore v. Lehman, 940 F. Supp. 704 (M. D. Pa. 1996).
Procedure for Redress
A declaratory judgment would not be an available remedy to an inmate who failed to raise a grievance concerning attorney visitation privileges through the available internal grievance procedures. Buehl v. Department of Corrections, 635 A.2d 217 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1991); affirmed 635 A.2d 113 (Pa. 1993).
Temporarily Transferred Inmate
Except for attorney visits, this general regulation permitted, but did not require visitation privileges. Thus, visits to temporarily transferred court bound inmates housed in a special housing unit could be restricted to exclude weekend visitation as officials should not have to reallocate resources and personnel to accommodate weekend visits to inmates in restricted housing. Bronson v. Zimmerman, No. 93-6881, 1995 U. S. Dist. LEXIS 3704 (E. D. Pa. March 23, 1995).
Visitation
Visitation was a discretionary matter, subject to restrictions for security purposes, and mandamus did not lie to compel a discretionary act. Feigley v. Jeffes, 522 A.2d 179 (Pa. Cmwlth. 1987); appeal denied 532 A.2d 438 (Pa. 1987).
Warning prison visitor of possible loss of visitation privileges if visitor did not consent to search did not constitute coercion, but a valid exercise of authority to reduce threat to the security of the prison. This section did not mandate that the visitor be identified by name. Commonwealth v. Gumby, 580 A.2d 1110 (Pa. Super. 1990).
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