The George Beto Unit is a Texas Department of Criminal Justice men’s prison at 1391 FM 3328, Tennessee Colony, TX 75880, roughly six miles south of Tennessee Colony in Anderson County.1Texas Department of Criminal Justice. George Beto Unit If you have a loved one housed there, contact runs through TDCJ’s standard channels: an approved visitor list managed by the warden, weekend in-person visits, remote video and tablet visits, a centralized digital mail system in Dallas, Securus phone and messaging accounts, and trust fund deposits for commissary. Each has its own rules, and missing a detail can cost you a trip or a deposit.
Getting on the Approved Visitor List
You cannot add yourself. The inmate has to request your name using an RO-1 form (Request for Placement on Visitors List) submitted through the warden’s office. The only exception is a court-appointed guardian, who may initiate the request directly.2Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Rules and Regulations for Visitation
Each inmate may list up to 10 people. Every entry needs the visitor’s physical address, phone number, and relationship to the inmate. The warden reviews each name and approves or denies it, and the inmate receives a copy of the finalized list.2Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Rules and Regulations for Visitation
Here’s the part families often learn the hard way: institutional inmates can only add or delete names once every six months. Updating an existing visitor’s phone number or address doesn’t restart that clock, but adding a person who was left off does. Make sure the inmate includes everyone who might realistically visit when the list is first submitted.
Visiting Hours and Scheduling
The Beto Unit runs visitation on Saturdays and Sundays from 8:00 AM to 5:30 PM, and those hours cover every visit type: contact, non-contact, restricted, and video or tablet.3Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Unit Visitation Schedule Each inmate is allowed one visit per weekend.4Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Visitation A regular in-person visit lasts two hours.2Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Rules and Regulations for Visitation
You have to schedule through the TDCJ Online Visitation Portal or the warden’s office at least one day, and no more than seven days, in advance.2Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Rules and Regulations for Visitation Check the TDCJ homepage the morning of your drive. Unit-wide visitation cancellations happen and are posted there.
What to Bring and What to Wear
Visitors 18 and older need a current government-issued photo ID, and at least one ID document must show a current physical address. If your ID raises questions, staff can ask for backup like a birth certificate or a pictured credit card. Children 17 and under may need a birth certificate or student ID if their age is in doubt.5Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Forms of Identification
Dress conservatively. Tight, revealing, or see-through clothing is not allowed. Sleeveless tops must cover the shoulders. Shorts and skirts must fall no shorter than three inches above the middle of the knee. Anything with profane or offensive language or images is out. Sandals and open-toe shoes are fine. The duty warden has final say on whether an outfit passes.6Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Dress Code When in doubt, dress more conservatively than you think necessary. Cell phones and personal belongings stay in your vehicle.
Contact, Non-Contact, Video, and Tablet Visits
Contact visits allow a brief physical greeting and let the inmate and visitors share a seated space. Non-contact visits (sometimes called general or regular visits in TDCJ terminology) place a glass wall or partition between you. Inmates in pre-hearing detention or on death row are limited to non-contact visits. An inmate generally won’t be scheduled for both a contact and a non-contact visit in the same day or week.2Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Rules and Regulations for Visitation Which type your loved one gets depends on their custody level and disciplinary status.
If Anderson County is a long drive, TDCJ has two remote options. Tablet visits are booked through the Online Visitation Portal at no cost, one 60-minute session per month per inmate. Video visits are booked through Securus, cost $10.00 per session, and also run 60 minutes per month. Neither counts against the in-person weekend allowance.7Texas Department of Criminal Justice. TDCJ News – Visitation
Sending Mail
Do not mail letters to the Beto Unit address. TDCJ now routes all incoming general mail to a central Digital Mail Processing Center in Dallas, where it’s opened, sorted, and scanned in color. Inmates with tablets see the full-color scan and can save it; inmates without tablets receive a black-and-white printed copy.8Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Digital Mail
Address mail this way:
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
[Inmate’s Full First and Last Name] + [TDCJ Number]
PO Box 660400
Dallas, TX 75266-04008Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Digital Mail
All incoming and outgoing correspondence is reviewed and can be rejected under TDCJ’s uniform correspondence rules.9Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Frequently Asked Questions – Inmate Digital Mail Because everything is scanned, bulky enclosures don’t make it through. Stick to standard letters and flat photographs.
Phone Calls and Electronic Messages
Phone service runs through Securus Technologies. Calls last up to 30 minutes each with a one-minute warning before disconnection, and inmates have unlimited minutes per month. You have three ways to pay: accept collect calls, open a Friends and Family prepaid account tied to your phone number, or fund a Securus debit account the inmate draws from.10Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Technology Services
Securus also runs the electronic messaging system. You buy digital “stamps” to send and receive messages, and stamp pricing varies by facility, so the applicable rate shows up after you select the inmate in the Securus system.
Depositing Money and Buying Commissary
Inmates use a trust fund account to buy hygiene items, snacks, stationery, and other approved goods from the unit commissary. You can deposit money through eCommDirect (via Texas.gov, which accepts Visa, MasterCard, and Discover) or JPay (Visa and MasterCard credit or debit).11Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Inmate Trust Fund Deposit Options Money orders and cashier’s checks are also accepted.12Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Business and Finance Division – Commissary and Trust Fund Department Both electronic services charge a service fee. You’ll need the inmate’s TDCJ number for any transaction.
One detail that catches families off guard: any single deposit of $500 or more, along with insurance checks, payroll checks, and estate disbursements, is held for 14 days before the inmate can spend it.12Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Business and Finance Division – Commissary and Trust Fund Department Smaller deposits generally clear faster, but don’t count on same-day access.
Inmates can spend up to $105.00 on commissary items every two weeks.13Texas Department of Criminal Justice. General Information Guide for Families of Inmates Through eCommDirect, family members can also buy approved items and have them sent directly to the inmate. Those direct purchases are capped at $70 per quarter for January through September and $95 for the October through December holiday quarter, and the cap is shared across all approved senders for one inmate.14Texas Department of Criminal Justice. eCommDirect Inmate Direct Purchase Program
Medical Care and the Sick-Call Copay
Healthcare at Beto is run by the University of Texas Medical Branch, with medical, dental, and mental health services available around the clock and a 46-bed assisted living infirmary on site.1Texas Department of Criminal Justice. George Beto Unit Families sometimes ask about cost. When an inmate initiates a visit to a healthcare provider, the copay is $13.55 per visit, capped at $100 per state fiscal year. The copay applies only to self-initiated sick calls; emergency care and chronic-care follow-ups are not charged the same way, so cost isn’t a reason an inmate should skip an emergency.15Texas Department of Criminal Justice. TDCJ Annual Health Care Services Fee Pamphlet
Filing a Grievance
If your loved one has a complaint about treatment, conditions, or a specific incident, TDCJ uses a two-step internal process. Step 1 is Form I-127, filed with the warden, who reviews and responds. If the inmate isn’t satisfied, they escalate at Step 2 with Form I-128 to the division director. Completing both steps is generally required before a federal lawsuit can be filed under the Prison Litigation Reform Act.