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Contact or Visit Someone in Custody

Find all the information needed to contact or visit an adult in custody at the Washington County Jail. This page reviews sending mail, visiting, and phone service.
Image of Washington County's Jail lobby

Adults who are lodged in our jail go through an orientation and receive a manual to help them learn the jail rules, including stipulations regarding mail, phone calls, and visits.

Staying connected with friends and loved ones is an essential component of an Adult in Custody's (AIC) return to the community.  We are committed to making this process as easy as possible while keeping all those involved safe. Even though there are daily opportunities to connect with others outside our jail, it is at the AIC's discretion.

Find details regarding the following contact methods below:

Sending mail

Refer to our Mail Guides which contains the information you will need to write to an AIC in our jail, such as addressing the envelope, what you can or cannot send, and how to send an AIC money.

WCSO Jail Mail Directions (PDF 247.71 KB)
AIC Mail Guide (PDF 383.35 KB)

Social visits

Hours updated 03/01/2024

DayMorningAfternoonEarly Evening
Mon-Thurs9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pm5pm-6:00pm
Friday9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pmNo evening visits
Sat-SunNO SOCIAL VISITING
Holidays9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pm5pm-6:00pm
Social visiting rules

Refer to our Social Visiting Guide for rules, standards, and guidance regarding in-person visits.

Video visits and messaging

Friends and family may set up an account with Viapath to visit, message, or deposit funds on an AIC's accounts. In order for accounts to be validated, the following are required:

  • Full name
  • Email address
  • Birth date
  • Valid street address with city, state and zip code
  • Last 4 digits of Social Security number
  • A profile image
  • Photos of front and back of valid ID

Accounts that fail to provide the required information may be subject to termination

The person who schedules the video visit, whether an AIC or visitor, will be the party charged for the visit. People may deposit money for AICs using the Viapath kiosks located at the jail lobby or online. The cost of one 30-minute call is $7.50.

AICS are allowed an unlimited number of video visits per week during video visiting hours—staff monitor all video visits for compliance with jail rules.

Video visiting hours
DayMorningAfternoonEarly EveningEvening
Mon-Fri9am-10:45 am1:30pm-3pm5pm-6pm8pm-9:30pm
Sat-SunNo visitsNo visitsNo visitsNo visits
What you'll need

Viapath assists with this process 24 hours a day by phone.

Professional visits

Attorneys and their representatives may meet with Adults in Custody (AIC) in a manner that maintains jail safety, security, and good order and meets legal requirements while complying with jail visiting rules. Before their first visit, professional visitors must read and sign a Jail Visitor Agreement, available at the jail lobby at the time of their first visit. The agreement is kept on file and needs to be completed once per year.

Refer to our Professional Visiting Guide for further details and specific information.

Professional visiting hours

The attorney of record for an AIC should visit during regular lobby hours; however, staff will work with attorney visitors to meet visiting needs on a case-by-case basis. If an attorney not named "attorney of record" in the court file wishes to visit an AIC, the rules for social visiting will apply. AICs have the right to refuse any visit.

Monday and Friday visiting hours are reserved solely for professional visitors. Professional visits may also occur during regular social visiting hours. The following table shows all hours available for professional visitors.

DayMorningAfternoonEarly Evening
Mon-Thurs9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pm5pm-6:00pm
Friday9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pmNo evening visits
Sat-SunNO VISITING
Holidays9am-10:45am12:45pm-3:45pm5pm-6:00pm
Pre-court appearance visits by attorneys

If you need to change or check an arraignment date, you may contact Court Calendaring Unit at (503) 846-2297. If you have questions about modifying a release agreement, responsible party questions, court-appointed attorney concerns, or other types of arraignment issues, you may contact a Court Release Officer at (503) 846-6360.

Allowable items for professional visits

Jail staff let professional visitors take into the jail only those items needed for the business of the visit. Early case resolution attorneys may take a cell phone on a visit to a central visiting booth. We also allow laptops or tablets under the conditions found on the Laptop User Agreement.

Laptop User Agreement (PDF 194.44 KB)
Passing legal documents

Visitors may deliver documents and request jail staff pass them to an AIC for signature.

Contact visits

In rare cases, the jail may approve contact visits. The visitor must contact Jail Administration at (503) 846-2798 during regular business hours 24 hours before the desired visit. The person must explain why a contact visit is required, and Jail Command must approve the visit.

In addition, such professional visitors must read and sign a contact visiting agreement, available at the Jail Lobby, in advance of the first visit and then again, every two years as a refresher.

Lobby staff will closely inspect all containers and personal belongings that professional visitors need to take with them on a contact visit. In addition, deputies will frisk search all professional contact visitors before letting them enter the jail's secure perimeter. If a visitor declines a search, jail staff will not allow the person to visit the AIC.

Contact visiting hours

DayMorningAfternoon / Early Evening
Mon-Fri7am-10:45am1pm-6pm
Sat-Sun7am-10:45am1pm-6pm
Holidays7am-10:45am1pm-6pm

Phone services

An AIC's health and well-being depend on continued connection with family and loved ones. Telephones are located throughout the jail housing units for AICs to make outgoing calls.

Each housing unit has specific rules concerning the location of telephones, hours of use, and the length of calls allowed.

General rules
Phones for visiting with an adult in custody.
  • AICs have access to telephones during their out time
  • AICs cannot receive telephone calls
  • Jail staff cannot relay messages
  • AICs may place collect calls (subject to fees by phone service provider), or use the prepaid phone account service, Viapath 
  • AICs are not allowed to make 3-way calls
  • Phone calls are recorded, except those made to an AIC's attorney and verified clergy members
  • TTY services for the hearing impaired are available upon request
Prepaid phone accounts

AICs at our jail have access to Viapath, an outside telephone service provider offering prepaid phone accounts at a lower per-minute cost than regular collect calls. Viapath offers accounts for a specific phone number or a specific AIC. AIC's prepaid accounts allow an AIC to place collect calls to any unblocked phone number.

For more information, please get in touch with Viapath. AICs can purchase prepaid phone time using funds in their account through the jail commissary.

If you have questions about the jail that do not involve phone services, please contact us at (503) 846-2600.

Rejecting or blocking calls from Adults in Custody

If you receive a call from an AIC, you have the option of accepting the call, hang up, block all calls from the AIC, or block all calls from any AIC in the Washington County Jail. Follow the phone prompts during the call.

Telephone activity reports

In 2019, the Oregon legislature enacted SB 498 in response to AIC call costs and quality concerns. The legislature capped fee amounts charged for these calls and required each facility to post quarterly reports. Facilities must report the fees charged to AICs for phone calls, how much the facility earned from those calls and the number of complaints made about call quality. Telephone activity reports are public information and are available for public consumption.

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