Iowa Admin. Code r. 201-51.16

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 6, September 18, 2024

Rule 201-51.16 - Communication

(1)Telephone calls upon arrest. Detainees shall be permitted telephone access to their family or an attorney, or both, without unnecessary delay after arrest, at no charge if made within the local calling area, as required by Iowa Code section 804.20.

(2)Attorneys and ministers. Attorneys and ministers shall be permitted to visit detainees upon request of the detainee at reasonable hours if security and daily routine are not unduly interrupted.

(3)General visitation.

a. All detainees in normal status shall be allowed reasonable visitation.

b. Rules shall specify who is allowed to visit and when and how often visitors are allowed.

c. Facility staff shall document the date and time of visit, name and address of each person visiting, and the name of the detainee visited. Computerized logs are acceptable.

d. A visit may be denied if reasonable suspicion exists that the visit might endanger the security of the facility. A record shall be made of such denial and the reason(s) therefor.

(4)Detaining non-U.S. citizens. When non-U.S. citizens are detained, they shall be advised of the right to have their consular officials notified or the nearest consular officials shall be notified of the detention, whichever is required by the Vienna Convention. Consular officials shall be given access to non-U.S. citizens in the facility and shall be allowed to provide consular assistance. When a facility administrator becomes aware of the death of a non-U. S. citizen, consular officials shall be notified.

(5)Detainee mail.

a. Detainees held beyond 24 hours shall be furnished a reasonable amount of writing materials upon request. Jail officials may prohibit a detainee from corresponding with a person who states in writing that the person does not want to correspond with the detainee. This mail restriction does not include a "prior approval" list.

b. A reasonable amount of postage shall be provided to indigent detainees who are held beyond 24 hours for communication with the courts and for at least two letters per week of a personal nature when other means of communication are not available.

c. General correspondence may be opened and inspected; it may be read for security reasons if the detainee is notified of this procedure.

d. Privileged correspondence if so marked may be opened only in the presence of the detainee and then only to detect the presence of contraband; privileged correspondence may not be read except by the detainee. Privileged correspondence is defined as incoming and outgoing mail to or from:

(1) An attorney;

(2) A judge;

(3) The governor of Iowa;

(4) The ombudsman office;

(5) A member of the state or federal legislature.

e. Written policy, procedure, and practice require that, excluding weekends and holidays, incoming and outgoing letters be held for no more than 24 hours and packages be held for no more than 48 hours for inspection before delivery to the detainee or post office.

Iowa Admin. Code r. 201-51.16

Amended by IAB August 1, 2018/Volume XLI, Number 3, effective 9/5/2018