Address:
401 W. Sample Street
South Bend, IN 46601
Phone:
574-245-6500
St. Joseph County Jail allows inmates to purchase commissary. This can be snacks, hygiene products, stamps, stationary, clothing and even electronics.
You can buy commissary for an inmate using an online service called Access Securepak.
There is a monthly limit of $200-300 on how much inmates can spend on commissary items.
This amount is subject to change so call the facility at 574-245-6500 in order to confirm the amount that cannot be exceeded.
Inmates have access to both an in-house commissary store, and commissary packages that can be purchased and shipped to the inmate by friends and family.
Scroll down for information on the St. Joseph County Jail's service they use for you being able to purchase commissary items online and have them shipped directly to the inmate.
You can also go to our Inmate Money page for information on how to send money to an inmate.
Access Securepak carries over 1,000 different items in the following categories:
- Food and Snacks
- Personal Hygiene Products
- Electronics
- Apparel
Registration Process:
1. Register here.
2. Select Indiana.
3. Select St. Joseph County Jail.
4. Find your Inmate.
5. Deposit Funds.
6. Order Commissary Items.
Once you are logged in, you will receive instructions on how much (and what products) you can send your inmate.
Contact Information:
* If you have any questions, you can call Access Securepak at 800-546-6283.
* You can email My Care Pack at customerservice@securepak.net.
* You can write them at:
Access Securepak
10880 Linpage Place
St. Louis, MO 63132
* You can Live Chat with a Representative online: (bottom left corner of page)
Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.–11 p.m. CST,
and Saturdays, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. CST.
*Note* Access Securepak will issue a refund for or replace broken, damaged, or missing products reported by St. Joseph County Jail staff. They will not honor reports of discrepancies from inmate's families or friends.
My CarePack is the St. Joseph County Jail's outside vendor for Commissary Items. They have a very good mix of Chips, Snacks, Candy, Meat, Seafood, Hygiene products, Letter writing materials, Electronics and Apparel items for sale on their website.
*NOTE* -- Once you are fully registered and have selected the inmate you wish to send commissary to, you will receive instructions on how much you can deposit, how much (and what) you can purchase for your inmate, and how often you can send commissary.
Whatever cash the inmate has on their person when booked into the facility will automatically deposited and credited to their commissry account. When they are released released any money left in the account will be returned to them in the form of a check from the Sheriff's Department or the St. Joseph County Jail Trust Account.
Option 1 - Dropping Money at the Jail
Bring money to the jail in person.
Either the jail personnel will process the Inmate Account payment or you will use a self-serve kiosk in the lobbies that accepts cash, debit or credit cards.
Option 2 - Mail the Inmate Deposit to the Jail
Mailing a deposit takes more time to process than the other methods but can be done if you live too far away to bring it in person.
Never send cash. Always send a Money Order or Cashier's Check from the US Post Office, a reputable bank or Western Union.
Make the Money Order out to the inmate's name and put their Inmate ID# in memo section of the Money Order.
Mail to the St. Joseph County Jail:
Inmate's Full Name & Inmate ID#
St. Joseph County Jail
401 W. Sample Street
South Bend, IN 46601
Failure to do this properly will delay your inmate getting his commissary account credited and may require you to have to resubmit a second money order.
Call 574-245-6500 to ask any questions about this.
St. Joseph County Jail may offer hot 'take-out' style food for their inmates using the Access Securepak website. This food needs to be ordered online, or by phone by calling 800-546-6283, by you.
This program is not available in all facilities that use Access Securepak, but is rolling out in new facilities daily... check their website to see if it's available in St. Joseph County Jail today.
Some of the food offered includes pizza, hamburgers, cicken sandwiches, donuts and french fries.
What items can inmates purchase in jail and prison?
How much money can an inmate spend on commissary each month?
How often can inmates purchase commissary?
How can a friend or family member deposit money for an inmate?
What companies do jails use to send money to inmates?
How do I send an inmate money by mail?
Can I send an inmate money using the internet?
How expensive are items on commissary?
How much money can an inmate have in his commissary account?
Can I send an inmate a package or care pack?
Can an inmate buy gifts on commissary?
Commissary, also known as Canteen, is the ‘store’ within a jail or prison where inmates can purchase items that they want or need to make their stay in jail or prison less of a burden.
Snacks and comfort foods, branded hygiene products they are used to, sneakers and t-shirts, prayer blankets, radios, headphones, television sets, tablets, stationary products and art supplies; depending on the facility, there are thousands of products to choose from.
Some jail and prison systems run their own commissary store, others contract out to companies that serve dozens or hundreds of jails, where inmates and/or their friends and families can purchase products through a website from home, or a kiosk or tablet within their facility.
Commissary can be purchased directly by inmates using money deposited into the accounts, or purchased online by friends and family, which are then shipped to the inmate.
Food
• Cookies
• Pastries
• Candy
• Tuna and mackerel
• Coffee and Tea
• Soft drinks
• Energy drinks
• Pizza
• Hamburgers
• Chicken fingers
• Spices
Hygiene
• Shampoo
• Soap
• Shaving supplies
• Lotions
• Deodorant
• Oral care
• Toilet paper
• Nail care
Clothing
• Sweats
• Sneakers
• Shorts
• Underwear and bras
• Socks
• Jackets
• Hats
Electronics
• Televisions
• Radios
• Headphones
• Tablets
• Watches
Miscellaneous
• Playing cards
• Games
• Bibles
• Books
• Art supplies
• Stationery supplies
• Vaping products (only some states)
• Greeting cards
Generally, the maximum spend in jail is about $300 per month. Prisons allow a bit more as it is more of a permanent home, whereby jail is temporary. To find out how much an inmate in the St. Joseph County Jail can spend each month, call 574-245-6500 or review the commissay instructions.
Some jails allow the purchase of commissary twice a week, others once a week or every other week. A lot of the online stores care pack companies are once a month. To find out the exact schedule for the St. Joseph County Jail, call 574-245-6500.
St. Joseph County Jail has its own methods for receiving money for inmates, and that information can be found above or by calling 574-245-6500 and asking, however most jails and prisons receive money for an inmate’s trust and commissary account, as well as an account used for communications, pretty much the same way.
1. Mailing an inmate a money order or cashier’s check from a trusted source such as the Post Office, a local bank, or Western Union. The Money order should be be made out to either the inmate or the facility, with the inmate’s name and ID# on the memo line of the check.
When mailing a money order or cashier’s check, send it an envelope by itself. Never send it with a letter or photos for your inmate.
Never send personal checks or cash either.
2. Deposit cash or use a debit or credit card to send an inmate money using an ATM machine that is usually located in the lobby or visitation area of the facility.
3. Some jails have a reception desk or booth that is open during certain hours that they will list on their website. They will accept cash, money orders or cashier checks. Other facilities that don’t have a human manning the desk will have mail drop where you can leave a money order or check. No cash can be left in these boxes.
4. There are multiple companies that jails and prisons contract with which accept inmate deposits online, by mail or over the phone, or even in ATM machines you can find in check cashing stores and retail outlets across the country.
If one of these companies (listed in the next question) works with St. Joseph County Jail, this online deposit information will be outlined above.
There are many companies competing for the accounts of jail and prison inmates. Their intention is to alleviate the staffing and financial responsibility of handling inmate’s accounts. They usually charge a fee equal to 3-5% of the total deposit.
The companies, in alphabetical order, are:
Access Corrections
AllPaid (aka GovPayNet)
Care A Cell
Cash Bond Online
CIDNET
City Tele Coin
CommissaryDeposit.com
Correct Solutions Group
Correctpay
Ctel
Edevo
Express Account
gettingout
GTL
Inmate Canteen
InmateSales
JailATM
Jail Pack Store (McDaniel Supply)
Jailpayments.com
Jpay
NCIC
JailCanteen (Oasis)
Paytel
Pigeonly
Prodigy Sales
Reliance
Securus
Smart Communications
Tennessee Business Enterprise
Tiger
Touchpay
To send an inmate money by mail you first have to have the money converted to a money order, preferably from the US Post Office, or a Cashier’s Check. Never send cash, and never send a personal check.
To find the address for sending money to an inmate, call the jail at 574-245-6500 to confirm this address for the St. Joseph County Jail:
Inmate's Full Name & Inmate ID#
St. Joseph County Jail
401 W. Sample Street
South Bend, IN 46601
Almost every facility contracts with a company that helps friends and families of inmates send them money. The list can be found above.
To find out who St. Joseph County Jail contracts with for inmate deposits, go to the inmate money page or call them at 574-245-6500.
Items on commissary are no more expensive than they would be at a local Walmart store.
A commissary deposit is the money that a person on the outside deposits in an inmate’s trust account, so the inmate can have money to spend on commissary and communication services.
The limit that an inmate can have in their commissary account is usually about $300.00. To find out what the limit is for St. Joseph County Jail, call the facility at 574-245-6500.
Many jails contract with companies that send food, hygiene products and/or clothing to inmates. These can be purchased and sent by friends and family on a weekly or monthly basis.
You can only send items from the one that your jail has a contract with.
An inmate carepack is a pack of snacks and/or hygiene products that friends or family members of an inmate can purchase online and have shipped to an inmate. The carepack company needs to have a contract with the facility before it can be shipped to the inmate.
Check the Money Page or the Commissary Page for this information, or call the jail at 574-245-6500 to see which one that the St. Joseph County Jail works with.
Here are the commissary package companies, in alphabetical order, that provide this service to jails in the United States:
Access Securepak
Care A Cell
Commissary order
Correct Pay
Express Account
icare
Inmate Canteen
Jail ATM
Jail Pack Store (McDaniel Supply)
My Care Pack
Oasis (jailcanteen)
Prodigy Solutions
Tiger
Union Supply Direct
Not really. Other than the basic supplies mentioned above there are no gifts other than greeting cards that they can fill out and mail to a friend, family or loved one.
Does the St. Joseph County Jail allow packages to be shipped to an inmate?
Yes. The St. Joseph County Jail uses an online service called Access Securepak in which friends and family members can order everything from snacks, candy and hot food to clothes, stationary and electronics, and have them shipped directly to any inmate. The prices are reasonable and ordering is easy. Learn more about ordering Access Securepak packages online for an inmate in the St. Joseph County Jail. If you want to order by phone call 800-546-6283.
What kind of things can an inmate in the St. Joseph County Jail buy in commissary?
The St. Joseph County Jail allows a wide variety of food, snack foods, candy, clothing, electronics and other items to be purchased by inmates either through their commissary or by friends and family members sending in care packages from a third-party vendor called Access Securepak. All of the snacks and candy are brand name items that they are used to purchasing on the outside. Learn more about ordering Access Securepak packages online for an inmate in the St. Joseph County Jail. If you want to order by phone call 800-546-6283.
Why do inmates in the St. Joseph County Jail need commissary?
Inmates in the St. Joseph County Jail do not necessarily need commissary, as the jail provides the with the minimum food and hygiene products they need to subsist. But jail is a very stressful place, and by having a daily snack, or using a soap, shampoo or toothpaste that are used to using on the outside can bring a certain amount of normalcy and comfort to their life inside. Learn more about ordering Access Securepak packages online for an inmate in the St. Joseph County Jail. If you want to order by phone call 800-546-6283.
Are commissary items used for gambling in the St. Joseph County Jail?
Yes. Because inmates do not have access to actual cash money in the St. Joseph County Jail, snacks, candy, brand name hygiene products and other sundries inmates can get from commissary and care packages you ship to them are used as currency, thus for gambling. In addition to gambling, commissary items can be used to purchase services such as haircuts, tattoos and cell cleaning. Unfortunately, in many cases, commissary items are also used to purchase protection from other inmates who wish them harm. If your inmate is needing more than $10 a day for commissary, they are getting pretty fat or are using the items they purchase for gambling purposes or personal protection. Learn more about inmate commissary in the St. Joseph County Jail.
How much money should you send an inmate in St. Joseph County Jail for commissary?
A reasonable amount of commissary money you should send your inmate is whatever your budget allows. While jail is stressful for an inmate, it is just as stressful for their family members or loved ones on the outside. You are the one that still has bills to pay; rent, utilities, food, phone, children's needs, gas, car payments and all the other stresses of life. As hard as the pressure you are getting to send money, your needs and the children's come first. St. Joseph County Jail limits the inmates to receiving no more than $300-400 per month in commissary money and/or care packages, not including phone expenses, but realistically an inmate can get by on less than $100 per month of products and be comfortable. Learn more about inmate commissary in the St. Joseph County Jail.
I didn't get the items from Access Securepak that I ordered. Can I get a refund?
Access Securepak will issue a refund for or replace broken, damaged, or missing products reported by St. Joseph County Jail staff. They will not take your word for missing or broken items. You must get the jail staff to report it if you want a refund. Learn more about refunds from Access Securepak in the St. Joseph County Jail. Call the jail at 574-245-6500 or if you want to discuss a problem call 800-546-6283.
