What we check, what we show, what we leave up to you, and what to do if something goes wrong.
Before any profile goes up, we check four things about the person: who they are, where they are held, their expected release date, and their convictions. We check them against the official public records. That means the federal or state prison lookup, federal court records (PACER), state court records, or, for a county jail, the jail's public roster and the court docket.
What we find goes on the profile in plain words: the convictions, the sentence, and the earliest release date. We write that summary from the record itself. A second person at InsideLines reads every summary against the record before it goes live.
We do not turn anyone away because of the kind of crime they were convicted of. People convicted of sex offenses, crimes against children, crimes against women, violent crimes, or other serious crimes can apply on the same terms as anyone else. We believe real human connection is part of coming back from prison. Shutting people out for good because of a past conviction makes them more alone, and that makes coming home harder.
We check the record. We show what it says. We trust you to decide whom to write. We do not hide any profile from you based on what we think is right for you.
This is a change from an earlier version of this policy. That version shut out whole groups of people based on their conviction. We changed our minds. "We did the research for you" turns out to be a promise nobody can keep at scale. And shutting people out for good went against what we say we believe about people coming home.
People held in county and local jails can be listed. If a case is still open, the profile says plainly "Charges pending — not convicted" and lists the charges as they appear on the court docket. It never says or hints that the person is guilty. If the person has been sentenced, the profile shows the conviction and sentence the same way a prison profile does. Jail profiles have a small "County jail" label next to the facility.
We check prison profiles again every three months. We check jail profiles again every 30 days, because people move in and out of jails quickly. If a person in jail is moved, we pause the profile until we confirm the new facility and ID number. Then we update it and turn it back on. When an open case ends, we rewrite that line on the profile the same day we confirm the outcome. A charge that is dropped, or that ends in a not-guilty verdict, comes off the profile. If anything on a profile is wrong, tell us at [email protected]. We fix it within one business day.
Some corrections systems restrict pen-pal listings. We check each system's rules once before listing anyone there and we tell you what we find. Depending on the rules, we may list the person normally, allow Letter Relay by paper mail only, ask the person inside to sign a plain-language note saying they understand the risk, or say no. If we say no, there is no charge. We do not name individual systems or their rules on this site. Ask us about a specific facility.
Every profile on InsideLines is operated by InsideLines on behalf of the person listed. The person inside does not have internet access and does not maintain the page. Nothing is published until the person has agreed in writing, in their own words. A family member or friend can start the process and pay, but cannot agree for them.
Some profiles are of people convicted of sex offenses, crimes against children, or other serious crimes. The convictions are right there on the profile. If you want to know more about a person's record before you write, these public sources are open to anyone:
We encourage you to use these before you write to anyone. The profile shows the person's checked record. These sources let you see the wider picture and make up your own mind.
In a single case, we may say no when, in our judgment, a profile is a real, current danger that showing the record does not fix. Some examples:
We decide these one at a time, never by group. The decision belongs to the owner of InsideLines. If we say no, the money paid is refunded in full. We write down why we said no, with the evidence, in our own records.
Every profile goes through the same five steps before it goes up. We log each step in our own records.
We pull the person's record from the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator (or the state prison lookup, or the jail roster and court docket) and from PACER or the state court records, as the case needs. We copy the charges exactly as the record states them, then write a plain, neutral summary. A second person checks the summary against the record. This step does not decide whether a person can be listed. What we find goes on the profile. The only time we say no at this step is when the public record itself shows a real, current danger.
We look at every photo sent with the profile. No nudity, no gang signs, no other people who can be recognized unless they agreed, nothing in the picture the facility would not allow. If a photo does not pass, it can be swapped for another. We do not say no to a whole profile over a photo.
We read the bio. We do not change how it sounds or try to make it more appealing. The person's voice is the person's voice. We do flag a few things: naming other people without their okay, describing crimes beyond what the public record already shows, saying or hinting at guilt when a case is still open, or anything that breaks the facility's rules about mail and messages.
We confirm the person is at the facility on the profile, using the prison lookup or jail roster, and that the mailing address is in the right format. People get moved between facilities from time to time. We check again every three months, and every 30 days for jail profiles.
A second person at InsideLines, not the one who did the first steps, reads the finished profile against the record and signs off. Once they do, the profile goes live on insidelines.org. Saying no at this step is rare. When it happens, it is because of a real, current danger the earlier steps did not catch.
Every profile shows:
These things never go on the profile:
Once two people are writing, we do not read or screen their letters. Letter Relay passes every letter through exactly as written. We do not edit or filter either side. That is on purpose. Relay goes through the facility's own messaging system, in the writer's words, with paper mail if you ask. If a facility's system blocks or flags relayed messages, we pause relay for that facility the same day. The facility already reads every message for its own reasons. We do not add another layer on top. That would copy the facility's job without the authority to do it, and it would put us in the middle of judgment calls that belong to the people writing and to the facility.
The one exception: if someone who is writing to a listed person reports a letter that worries them (a threat, a request for contraband, anything outside what two consenting adults would write), we log it, look into it, and act. That can go as far as taking the profile down. Use the report form below, or email [email protected].
We do not have a list of every victim of every crime committed by every person in prison. We check and show convictions, but we cannot know every personal connection. If someone listed here committed a crime against you or your family, write to [email protected] or use the form below. We take the profile down the same day a person reads your message. We will not ask you to prove anything. We will not tell the listed person who contacted us. The matter stays private. The person who paid for the listing is refunded without being told why.
We check active prison profiles again every three months, and county-jail profiles every 30 days. Each time, we look for new charges, a move to another facility, or any change in the prison or court record. We are not second-guessing our earlier decision. We are catching changes in the record. Profiles come down within 30 days of release, or at any time the person asks us in writing.
Did a letter from a listed person worry you? A threat, a request for money or contraband, pressure, or anything that crossed a line? Did you find a profile that should not be up? Tell us here. A person reads every report. We look into each one and may pause the profile, take it down, or add a warning to it, depending on what we find and can confirm. We reply within 2 business days, and we act the same day on anything involving a threat, a child, or a victim of a listed person's crime.
Thank you. Your report is in. A person reads every report. We act the same day on anything involving a threat, a child, or a victim of a listed person's crime, and we reply within 2 business days if you left a way to reach you.
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