Where to Begin
Helping you support your incarcerated loved one with clear, honest guidance.
Common Questions
What is an ISP?
ISP stands for Individual Support Person, formerly called case managers. This is your main contact for help and resources.
How to contact ISP?
Each incarcerated person has an assigned ISP as their first help resource.
In correctional facilities, an ISP serves as an incarcerated person's primary counselor, safety coordinator, and re-entry resource. Because communication is restricted for safety reasons, contacting them requires following specific internal or external channels.
For Incarcerated Individuals
Inmates can reach out to their assigned caseworker internally using these methods:
Digital Kites/Tablets: In modern facilities, individuals use housing unit kiosks or state-issued tablets to submit an electronic request ("kite") directly to their caseworker.
Paper Kites: In units without digital access, inmates fill out a physical request slip and place it in the designated staff communication box.
Housing Unit Rounds: Inmates can speak with their caseworker directly during scheduled walk-throughs in the housing unit.
For Families and Outside Support
Family members cannot call an institutional caseworker directly due to privacy and security laws. Instead, outside support must route messages through official channels:
Public Feedback Portals: State corrections departments (like the Utah Department of Corrections) maintain secure online portals to handle inquiries and concerns from families regarding an inmate's case.
Main Facility Switchboards: You can call the main phone number of the prison or jail, request the specific housing unit, and ask to be transferred to the caseworker's voicemail.
Institutional Mail: You can send a physical letter addressed to the caseworker at the facility. The envelope must clearly display the inmate’s full legal name and offender ID number.
Where to find BOPP rules?
Always refer directly to the handbook for current and accurate BOPP answers.
Neither you nor your incarcerated loved one should listen to ANYONE when it comes to the BOPP. Not a staff member, not another incarcerated individual, not another person with an incarcerated loved one. You should both go directly to the handbook and get CURRENT and ACCURATE answers to your questions
What happens on release day?
The release process in Utah depends entirely on whether an individual is leaving a local county jail or a state prison.
Local County Jails
Timeline: Processing takes 2 to 8 hours after the jail receives the court order or bail paperwork.
Timing: Court-ordered releases usually happen in the mid-afternoon (e.g., Utah County targets 3:15 PM), while posted bail can trigger a release at any hour.
Procedure: Inmates receive free local calls 15 to 30 minutes before release to arrange a ride. They are returned their personal clothing, property, and remaining commissary funds (via check or debit card).
Utah State Prisons (UDC)
Timeline: Discharges are highly structured and typically take place in the morning between 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM.
Procedure: Pickups occur at the designated Release Building on prison grounds. Families must bring a set of civilian clothes (one shirt, one pair of pants) for the individual to change into.
Next Steps: Released individuals must attend an on-site resources fair and receive mandatory check-in instructions for their assigned parole or probation officer.
Where to find job help?
Visit www.secondchancehub.org for employment resources after release.
R.O.P.E. (Rescue One Person Everyday) Support Group meets every other Saturday at 4:30pm at Phoenix Rising Treatment and Sober Living (392 East 3900 South Millcreek, UT 84107). Follow ROPE on social media @r.o.p.e801 to see when the next meeting is! All are welcome!
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