Graham Correctional Center

Graham Correctional Center is a level IV medium-security prison for male inmates located in Hillsboro, Illinois. Owned and operated by the Illinois Department of Corrections, this facility also houses a Reception & Classification Center.

Graham Correctional Center houses several special populations, including substance abuse treatment, sex offender treatment, and inmates in a kidney dialysis program. Graham continues to offer numerous academic and vocational programs.

Graham is located on 117 acres and has 50 buildings within the facility. This facility opened in 1980 with a capacity of 750 inmates. Today, it has an operational capacity of 2,013. Currently, the population at the Graham Correctional Center is 1,500, and the population at the Reception and Classification Center is 419. The total population is 1,919 and the average annual cost per offender is $24,220.

Graham Correctional Center has one appearance in pop culture. The facility was mentioned in the 2017 science fiction novel The Dispatcher, written by John Scalzi.

Prison Insights

Visiting Hours and Rules

General Population (Offenders not in C-Grade)

• 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. seven days a week. 
• Offenders are permitted seven visits per month, with no more than two on weekends or holidays. 
• Visitors will be processed beginning at 8:30 a.m. No visitors will be processed after 2:30 p.m. every day of the week and must arrive before 2:30 p.m.

Receiving and Classification Offenders:

• Reception & Classification 60 days or less - No visits are allowed for phase I Orientation inmates in R&C who were received 60 days or less from intake.
• Reception & Classification in diagnostic status beyond 60 days and Reception & Classification who have been approved to transfer to Graham General Population and have been in Reception Center for more than 60 days:
• Visiting hours are 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m., Mon-Fri, No weekends or holidays. Visitors will be processed beginning at 8:30 a.m. No visitors will be processed after 1:00 p.m.
• Reception and Classification Offenders are allowed two Non-Contact visits per month.
• Reception and Receiving Offender visits are limited to two hours.
• Only one adult and one lap size child will be allowed to visit Reception and Classification Offenders.

Segregation & General Population Non-Contact Offenders and C-Grade Offenders:

• 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. No weekends or holidays. 
• Visitors must arrive no later than 1:00 p.m. in order to visit. 
• Offenders in Segregation Non-Contact, General Population, and C-Grade status are only allowed 1 hour visiting privileges.

Please note, should overcrowding occur, time limits will be established so all visits may be accommodated.

General visiting guidelines

You must be on your inmate’s approved visitation list in order to be granted a visit.  The inmate is responsible for arranging their visits and notifying their visitors of their visiting status.  

To check if you are on the offender’s visitor list, you should write a letter to your inmate because staff can’t tell you whether or not you are on an offender’s visitation list when you call the facility.  

All adult visitors age 18 and over must complete a Prospective Visitor's Interview (PVI) form on their first visit to Graham Correctional Center. This PVI form can be completed in advance and brought in on the first visit.

Visitors must submit to a body search by officers at the Visitor Center. If you are intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol or drugs, you will not be allowed to visit.

Visitor Property Policy

Visitors are not allowed to bring electronic devices such as cell phones or tablets. Other items not allowed in the visiting room include food, drink, smoking materials, currency, packages, purses, bags, sacks, books, magazines, sunglasses, or personal keys.   

Visitors may place personal items in small lockers available in the Visiting Center for 25 cents.  The locker key may be carried into the facility after the visitor secures personal responsibility for these items.  The facility will not assume responsibility for these items.

No baby food, except two plastic baby milk bottles are to be taken into the Visiting Room.  Baby items may consist of one baby blanket and two diapers.

Required Identification

All adult visitors will be required to produce photo identification (ID) and verification of his or her date of birth.  Be sure to bring two forms of identification with youㅡone should be a current state issued photo ID.

Dress Code

All visitors must be dressed appropriately for a prison environment or the visit will not be permitted.  Clothing must be in good taste and not advertise or suggest any items in such a manner to signify a Security Threat Group or other illegal activity.  Visitors should not wear clothing that is sexually explicit, offensive, or degrading. All visitors must wear underwear and female visitors must wear a bra.  Visitors should not wear clothing which reveals the buttocks or breasts.

Examples of inappropriate dress for visitors are: short shirts or dresses, wrap around skirts, see-through clothing, see-through or low-cut blouses, tube tops, halter tops, tank tops, swim suits or swim suit tops, short shorts, clothing with “cutouts” or leggings.  Dresses or skirts should extend to the knees.

Contraband

Bringing contraband into an Illinois DOC facility is a criminal offense as specified in the Illinois Criminal Code of 1961.

"Contraband" means items which are prohibited by criminal law, departmental, or facility rules or posted notices.  They are items which an offender has no authority to possessㅡproperty which is in excess of that which is authorized by the facility.

All persons, vehicles, and items brought onto State property are subject to search. Failure to  submit to a search will result in denial, suspension, or restriction of visiting privileges. 

Information about Vending Machines

The visiting rooms at the facilities offer a variety of products for purchase in vending machines provided by outside vendors.

Vending machine items may only be purchased using a debit card.  Visitors may purchase a debit card at the facility, normally at the gatehouse. The price of the debit card will vary by facility depending upon the vendor providing the service.

Any vending items purchased must be consumed during the visit and may not be carried out of the visiting room.

Video Visits

The Illinois DOC has partnered with Global Tel*Link (GTL) to provide video visitation services for the Graham Correctional Center.

All potential visitors must register with GTL. Registration process will include completing a Prospective Visitor Interview Form. All visitors must fully complete this form with GTL even if they have completed this form at a facility.

All visitors must be on the offender’s approved visitation list in order to be granted a visit. Video Visitation Hours are as follows:

Sunday through Saturday, 8:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.; 4:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Visitors should log on to the GTL site 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time, and all video visits will be scheduled through the GTL website. Do not call the facility to schedule a video visit. 

You should check before scheduling the video visit of dates and times that are available for the offender. Staff at the facility can’t tell you if a date or time will work with an offender’s daily schedule. The facility will inform the offender of the pending visit and arrange for the offender to be present.

In order to accommodate all offenders at the Graham Correctional Center:

• An offender may only receive one video visit per day.
• No more than three approved visitors per video visit for offenders confined in general population or protective custody status.
• An offender may receive only two video visits per week. This is counted against allotted visits.
• Visitors may only schedule one video visit per day.
• All video visits must be scheduled at least seven days in advance.
• Visits may be scheduled up to 30 days in advance.
• Only scheduled visitors may appear in the video visit monitor.
• One visitor on screen at a time, excluding children who need assistance sitting for the visit.

Video Visitation is a privilege and is only available to offenders in general population or in the health care unit. Offenders housed in Segregation, in orientation, or temporarily housed at the facility will not be permitted video visitation. 

All video visits are monitored live and recorded, any violation of visitation rules, inappropriate conduct, or language may be subject to immediate termination of the video visit with or without warning. The visit Dress Code policy applies to video visitation.

How to Call an Inmate

Inmates at the Graham Correctional Center can’t receive incoming calls. However, they do have access to a phone during assigned times and can make outgoing calls. For complete details on how to call an inmate in Illinois, please click here.

How to Send Money

You can send money to an inmate at Graham Correctional Center via GTL (ConnectNetwork), JPAY, Western Union, or money order.

Funds up to $5,000 may be sent to inmates via the following methods, except MoneyGram, who has a maximum limit of $3,000.

• GTL (ConnectNetwork) at https://web.connectnetwork.com/facilities/illinois-department-of-corrections/
• JPAY at www.jpay.com
• MoneyGram locations using the Blue MoneyGram Express Payment Formー receiving code is 7364
• Western Union at www.westernunion.com or at locations using the Quick Collect Form – code city and state are ILDOC  IL

For all electronic transfer of funds, the inmate IDOC number and incarcerated last name must be used. Funds sent via GTL, JPAY, and Western Union are anticipated to be applied to the inmate's account within 24-48 business hours.  

Money Orders

Please note that a money order must be sent directly to the lockbox, NOT to the facility. Money orders must be sent with the lockbox deposit slip and must be complete with the inmate name, IDOC inmate number, sender’s name, and address.

Deposit slips are available by clicking here. The money orders should be sent with a deposit slip, be made payable to JPay, and sent to the following address:

JPay
PO Box 260250
Hollywood, FL 33026

​Programs For ​Inmates

Academic:

• ABE (Adult Basic Education)
• GED (General Education Development)

Vocational:

• Auto Body
• Auto Mechanics
• Career Technologies
• Construction Occupation
• Custodial Maintenance

Industries:

• Furniture Making

Volunteer Services:

• Religious Services

Other:

• Orientation
• Title 1
• Special Education
• TRAC I and II
• Parole School I and II
• Lifestyle Redirection
• Life Skills
• Substance Abuse
• Leisure Time Activity
• Library
• Sex Offender Program
• Chaplaincy
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Narcotics Anonymous

Pictures of Graham Correctional Center

Careers at Graham Correctional Center

If you are interested in a career with the Illinois Department of Corrections at the Graham Correctional Center, you can find available positions by clicking here.