How to Communicate With an Inmate in Crain Unit

Christina Melton (formerly the Gatesville Unit) is a mixed custody prison-based out of Gatesville, Texas. It has been running for 41 years and houses around 1,500 women in the main unit, 321 in the Trusty Camp, and 288 in the substance abuse unit. Crain Unit has women on all custody levels: G1-G4, outside trusty, transient, substance abuse, and developmentally disabled.

The prison offers parenting classes, life skills, substance abuse education, and victim awareness courses. It also provides basic education, GED, literacy lessons, computer systems, culinary arts, and restaurant management.

Where Is Crain Unit Located?

is located along Texas State Highway 36, three miles north of central Gatesville in Coryell County. It sits on approximately 1,300 acres and is co-located with other units like Hilltop, Dr. Lane Murray, and Mountain View, which houses women inmates on death row.

Physical Address	Crain Unit 1401 State School Road Gatesville, TX 76599-2999
Phone Number	(254)-865-8431 (**024)
Website	https://www.tdcj.texas.gov/unit_directory/gv.html
Mail Address	Inmate Name, ID Number Crain Unit 1401 State School Road Gatesville, TX 76599-2999

How to Contact Inmates at Crain Unit

allows physical visits as well as calls and letters.

Visit: Inmate visitation happens on Saturdays and Sundays from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Regular visits run for 2 hours, while special ones go up to 4 hours but are subject to approval.

Physical Address:

Crain Unit

1401 State School Road

Gatesville, TX 76599-2999

Call: Alternatively, you can call the inmate at (254)-865-8431 (**024). You can also call Ombudsman Visitation Hotline (936) 437-4927 or toll-free at (844) 476-1289 for visitation questions. Before you visit, ensure you apply and get approval from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. And when you visit, dress conservatively.
Mail: In addition to calling or visiting in person, you can send letters to your loved one in Crain Unit and address them to

Inmate Name/DOC Number

Crain Unit

1401 State School Road

Gatesville, TX 76599-2999

eMessages: Lastly, you can leverage technology to send a message through JPAY. However, this can be costly because of the monopoly.

DoNotPay can serve as a great option for reaching out to your loved one in Crain Unit. It has systems that make communication easy on your side and that of the inmate.

How to Send Money to Crain Unit

There are many ways to send money to Crain Unit, including

Direct deposit to their account when you visit
Wire transfers
Money order

The inmate will receive the money in their accounts in a day. Note that there is a service fee with the transaction.

How to Send Packages to Crain Unit

Before sending a package, it's best to familiarize yourself with the rules and ensure you address the mail correctly. You may also want to call the Crain Unit first to know what's acceptable and what's not.

Steps to Take Before Calling or Writing to a Prisoner

Here are a few things to do before getting in touch with a prisoner:

Find the location. First, you want to know where the inmate is. Placing an intrastate call is usually cheaper than an interstate one. DoNotPay can help you locate a prisoner to know what you're dealing with. Through our Connect With an Inmate product, you can locate an inmate in any jail or prison in the US. Just head over to your web browser to try out our phenomenal product.
In the Connect With an Inmate tab, choose to Locate Someone. Specify the inmate's name and state.
Submit the request.

Our systems will do the hard work for you and provide the exact location of the person you are looking for in seconds. DoNotPay can also help:

Difficulties You May Encounter When Contacting a Loved One in Crain Unit

For friends and family who have inmates in Crain Unit, a simple voicemail, in-person visit, or handwritten letter can go a long way in impacting that person's life. But like many other correctional facilities, the Christina Melton Crain Unit does not just barely allow inmates to send and receive composed letters – unless they do so through JPay. Inmates can also only make less than 15 minutes of calls through GTL.

In addition to the restrictions, you also need to ensure you use the right envelope, indicate the correct inmate ID, and use the right unit number to get a mail to your loved one. Not to mention the hassle you'll have to go through to write and mail the letter. Luckily, solutions like DoNotPay exist to make it all seamless. DoNotPay can help connect you to your incarcerated loved one by sending a personalized letter, locating an inmate, and providing a virtual mailbox to check for any new email.

Get in Touch With Your Loved One via DoNotPay

Inmates are human beings, and like everybody else, they yearn for connection with the outside world. In fact, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, most inmates said knowing Someone cares is what keeps them going. But with all the hard work that goes into contacting inmates, you might be on the verge of giving up. DoNotPay can take this stress from you.

How DoNotPay Can Help You Connect With Inmate in Crain Unit

Our Connect with Inmate product allows you to inmates in Crain Unit directly from our app or website. You can also receive responses from inmates for an easy two-way communication experience. All you have to do is

Locate the Connect With an Inmate service on DoNotPay.
Choose whether you want to locate a loved one, create a virtual mailbox, or send a personalized letter.
If you want us to find your loved one, provide his or her personal details and the state they are located in. We'll then conduct a search on the appropriate state database.
If you want to create a virtual mailbox, just provide your full name! We'll set one up for you so you can easily receive incoming mail from your loved one.
If sending a personalized letter, tell us which facility your loved one is located in and what you would like to say to them. You can even include a photo! Your letter will be delivered automatically - just wait 10 days for it to arrive to your loved one!