The incarcerated individual must complete and sign an Incarcerated Individual's Telephone List – incarcerated individual Phone Policy “Indiana Code – 11-8-2-5(a)(8), identifying no more than 20 names and the telephone numbers of who could be called.
The 20 names are for 20 individuals, regardless of whether they have the same telephone number. For more detailed information about telephone privileges read policy 02-01-105 Telephone Privileges on our policy page.
Accepting a Call
There are several ways to receive calls from incarcerated individual, including collect, prepaid collect, and inmate debit calls. incarcerated individual have the option of placing collect calls to telephone numbers approved by the correctional facility. Collect calls are billed to the called party every month through their phone carrier company.
If you receive a high number of collect calls, you may have reached the billing limit allowed by your local phone company. Once you reach a maximum phone bill amount, you may be at a risk of being blocked from receiving future collect calls from an incarcerated individual. In such instances, you can call ViaPath at (800) 483-8314 to sign up for a prepaid calling account and begin receiving calls again.
Blocking a Call
There are multiple ways to block calls from incarcerated individual as needed. Any incoming call can be refused at any time by either hanging up or pressing “1″ when prompted. The call will be disconnected and the inmate will be informed their call was not accepted.
Any incoming call can be blocked permanently from a correctional facility by pressing “6″ when prompted. You will be asked to provide a 4-digit personal identification number (PIN) to confirm the block. This PIN will be required to remove the block in the future if needed.
You can also call the ViaPath customer service department at 877-1650-4249, and they will be able to help block future calls from a facility. If you are being physically threatened, you should contact your local law enforcement agency to obtain a Personal Protection Order.
If you are receiving unwanted correspondence or telephone calls from an incarcerated individual, you should contact the Warden at the facility where the inmate is currently being housed. A written correspondence and/or telephone restriction may be placed on the inmate after a fair and impartial review of your request. We will make every effort to restrict contact from the incarcerated individual after your request is approved. However, if you should receive any contact after the restriction, please contact the Warden at the facility where the incarcerated individual is being housed.
If you are being threatened by an incarcerated individual, you should contact the Warden at the facility where the incarcerated individual is currently being housed. Our office will also forward your e-mail concerns to the Parole Board, Crime Victims Notification, and the Warden.
Unblocking a Call
You can remove a block on your telephone number by calling the ViaPath customer service department at (877) 650-4249 and speaking to one of the representatives. They will submit a request to have the block removed. The time frame for a block removal is 1–2 business days.
Please note there are other reasons why your phone number may be blocked from receiving collect calls from correctional facilities.
These include:
- Your local telephone company does not offer billing on collect calls
- You have reached the maximum dollar amount limit allowed for collect calls
- You are trying to receive collect calls on a cell phone or work phone
Incarcerated Individual Telephone Services
ViaPath provides the opportunity for inmate telephone accounts to be created and minutes purchased through multiple payment solutions.
Prepaid Collect
ViaPath's prepaid collect option, AdvancePay®, allows a friend or family member to set up a calling account to his or her phone number without the restrictions of standard billing. Every time calls are made and accepted to a prepaid number, the charges are deducted from the account. Prepaid accounts can be set up for all types of numbers, including cell phones. Friends and family should visit ConnectNetwork.com or call 800.483.8314 to set up an AdvancePay® account today!
Debit
Debit calling puts the inmate in control of their phone account. They will be able to purchase debit minutes from the commissary, which they can then use to call friends and family members
Friends and family members are also able to purchase phone minutes for an inmate’s PIN Debit account by creating an Offender Phone account through ConnectNetwork.com. Once the payment has been made, the amount is credited to the offender and may be used to make phone calls to any allowed phone number. Inmates can call any approved phone numbers, including cell phones, with their debit account.
Collect
Calls to certain approved numbers and the call charges will remain the same as they do today on your monthly phone bill. However, note that collect calls cannot be made to cell phones, office phones, or hospital numbers.
For any questions regarding our calling options, friends and family members should call ViaPath at (877) 650-4249