| Address/phone | 450 Bauchet St, Los Angeles, CA 90012 (map) (213) 473-6100 |
| Find an inmate | Inmate locator |
| Visiting hours | Schedule online |
| Send care packages (including prepaid phone cards) | Keefe Commissary |
The Los Angeles Twin Towers Correctional Facility is operated by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and consists of two towers (hence its name):
- a medical services building, and
- the Los Angeles County Medical Center Jail Ward.
This facility houses maximum security inmates as well as a large portion of the county’s mental health inmates.
Inmates who suffer from various levels of acute medical and mental illness needs are incarcerated in the medical services building. Those requiring severe health care services are housed in the medical center.
The only female inmates who are housed at this facility are those who require medical attention. Otherwise, they are incarcerated at the Century Regional Detention Facility.
Male inmates may be alternatively housed at the
Measuring 1.5 million square feet, the Twin Towers Jail in downtown Los Angeles is considered the world’s largest jail.
In this article, our Los Angeles County criminal defense attorneys1 will answer the following frequently-asked-questions about the Twin Towers Jail:
- 1. How can I post bail?
- 2. Is my loved one at Twin Towers Jail?
- 3. How can I make phone calls?
- 4. When can I visit my loved one?
- 5. How do I send mail?
- 6. How can I transfer money for commissary purchases?
- 7. What services does the jail provide?
- 8. How does my loved one release their property to me?
If, after reading this article, you would like more information, we invite you to contact us at Shouse Law Group.
Twin Towers Jail is located at 450 Bauchet Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012.
1. How can I post bail?
Once your loved one has been booked into the Twin Towers facility, you can pay bail 24/7 at the L.A. Inmate Reception Center (IRC) located in between the two towers. The IRC accepts:
- cash paid in full
- money orders or California bank-drawn cashier’s checks for the entire bail amount, made payable to the L.A. Sheriff’s Dept. (the check should include the inmate name and booking number)
- bail bonds.
If you post bail by cash, money order, or cashier check, you will get your money back (minus an administrative fee) at the conclusion of the case as long as your loved one never misses court. Otherwise, your bail money is forfeited.
If you hire a bail bondsman (the most common way to post bail), you pay the agent a non-refundable fee of 10% of the full bail amount. As long as your loved one makes all required court appearances, you never have to pay the remaining 90% to the bail bondsman.
You should consult with a skilled Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer who can schedule a bail hearing to argue that the bail amount be reduced or eliminated so that your loved one can be released on their own recognizance.
Bail for Twin Towers Jail inmates is set according to the Los Angeles County bail schedule.
2. Is my loved one at Twin Towers Jail?
To check if your loved one is incarcerated at Twin Towers Jail, you can:
- call the L.A. Inmate Reception Center (IRC) at (213) 473-6100 to speak with a sheriff deputy, or
- search online at the Los Angeles Sheriff’s inmate information website.
The website will also provide you with your loved one’s booking number, next scheduled court date, and bail information.
That said, inmate information is usually not available until at least two hours after the time of booking.
3. How can I make phone calls?
The Twin Towers Jail does not permit incoming calls for inmates. Instead, your loved one can call you.
All Twin Towers Jail visits must be scheduled online.
4. When can I visit my loved one?
You must schedule an appointment online to visit your loved one at Twin Towers Jail. Visiting hours are:
- Saturday and Sunday: 7:30am – 10:45am and 12:30pm – 3:45pm
- Monday and Tuesday: 9:30am – 3:45pm and 5:30pm – 6pm
Visits are limited to one adult and one child. General population inmates can have four 15-minute visits per week, and special handle inmates can have two 30-minute visits per week.
All visitors are subject to a search and a warrant check. The only items you can bring to the jail are your car keys and government-issued ID, such as:
- a California driver’s license,
- a California identification card,
- a U.S. Passport,
- an alien registration card, or
- a U.S. military card.
You may not be allowed to visit the Twin Towers Jail if you are on probation or were convicted of a felony. Call the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) Legal Unit at (213) 974-0103 for more information.
Visiting hours are subject to change without prior notice, which means that you should probably call the inmate information line at (213) 473-6080 prior to planning a visit. There are no visitors during lockdowns.
5. How do I send mail?
If your loved one is at the Los Angeles County Twin Towers Correctional Facility, you can address letters to:
[Your loved one’s name and seven-digit booking number]
Terminal Annex
P.O. Box 86164
Los Angeles, CA 90086-0164
You may not send any items other than:
- the paper your letter is written on
- up to five photographs that are at least 3″x 5″ and no bigger than 4″ x 6″ and which do not contain any nude, sexually suggestive, or gang-related content,
- a money order or cashier’s check greater than $200.
All mail is inspected, so do not reveal anything incriminating. Also, your mail will be returned if it contains:
- envelopes with metal clasps,
- paper clips,
- staples,
- glitter,
- stickers,
- postage stamps,
- glued or gummed labels,
- cellophane tape or any type of tape on a letter,
- envelopes with gang -or suggestive drawings/art work,
- musical-, plastic- or blank greeting/postcards larger than 6″ x 9″
As far as reading materials are concerned, you may send up to three softcover books per week and up to three magazines per week as long as they are mailed directly from the publisher or retailer. Plus, the materials cannot be sexually explicit in nature.
Even though you are personally prohibited from mailing packages, you can order a care package through the Keefe Commissary website.
You may not mail packages, but you can order commissary care packages through Keefe.
6. How can I transfer money for commissary purchases?
To put money on your loved one’s books at the Twin Towers, you can go to the Inmate Reception Center located between the two towers. It is open 24/7.
Alternatively, you can mail a California bank-drawn cashier’s check or a money order to:
[Your loved one’s complete name and seven-digit booking number]
Terminal Annex
P.O. Box 86164
Los Angeles, CA 90086-0164
Though be sure to follow the rules/regulations described in the previous section regarding inmate mail.
Learn more in our article, How do I send money to an inmate in the Los Angeles County Jail?
7. What services does the jail provide?
Because the Twin Towers Correctional Facility is the world’s largest jail and the nation’s largest mental health facility, it offers a number of services to its inmates.
In addition to providing a variety of medical and mental health services, examples of some of these “extras” include:
- a commissary where residents can purchase a variety of items such as food, reading materials, hygiene products, games, etc.,
- outdoor recreational activities,
- television privileges,
- a library (and a law library for inmates who wish to represent themselves, otherwise known as “pro per” representation),
- vocational training,
- chapel services for all major religious denominations, and
- Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA) and other substance abuse and alcohol counseling.
8. How does my loved one release their property to me?
Anyone booked at the Los Angeles Twin Towers Jail can sign a property release form designating you to pick up their belongings, which typically consists of their wallet and keys. You can then collect the property by going to the Inmate Reception Center located in between the two towers. For the most current instructions, call the property information line at (213) 473-6191.
If you are trying to get your loved one’s vehicle released, you must contact the arresting agency. They will be able to provide details about the particular vehicle in question, such as where the vehicle is located and whether or not it has been impounded (in which case, it may have to remain impounded for a specific period of time).
Call us for help…
Call us for help…
For more information about the Twin Towers Correctional Facility in LA County, or to discuss your loved one’s case confidentially with one of our experienced Los Angeles criminal defense lawyers, do not hesitate to contact us at Shouse Law Group.
References:
- Our Los Angeles County defense attorneys have local law offices in Beverly Hills, Burbank, Glendale, Lancaster, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Pasadena, Pomona, Torrance, Van Nuys, West Covina, and Whittier.