How to Fill Out the Trumbull Correctional Institution Visitation Form (DRC2096)

To visit someone at Trumbull Correctional Institution in Leavittsburg, Ohio, you need to complete the Trumbull Correctional Institution visitation form, officially known as Form DRC2096 (Adult Visitor Application), and mail it to the prison with a photocopy of your government-issued photo ID. The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction then runs a background check, and only after you’re approved can you schedule a visit. The form itself is two pages, but missing documents or incomplete answers will send it back unprocessed.

What to Gather Before You Start

Have these items in front of you before you open the PDF:

A state driver’s license or state ID card. You’ll write down the ID number, issuing state, and expiration date, and you must include a legible photocopy with the application.
The incarcerated person’s full name and ODRC number. If you don’t have the number, the ODRC offender search tool on the department’s website will give it to you.
Your full legal name as it appears on your ID, residential address, phone number, email, and date of birth.
Details on any criminal history. The form asks whether you’ve ever been incarcerated, are on probation or parole, are a party to a criminal proceeding, or were a co-defendant or victim of the person you want to visit.
A letter from your probation or parole officer if you’re currently under supervision. Without it, your application stalls.

The form does not ask for a Social Security number. Your driver’s license or state ID number is the primary identifier used for the background check.¹

Filling Out Form DRC2096

The form is a PDF on the ODRC website at drc.ohio.gov/visiting.¹ Print it, fill it out by hand, and sign it. The top collects your personal details and the incarcerated person’s name and number. Below that are seven yes-or-no questions about your background.

Answer every single question. The form warns in bold that failing to answer any question or providing false information will result in automatic disapproval.¹ A prior conviction doesn’t necessarily disqualify you. Lying about one will. If any answer is “yes,” use the explanation space the form provides. Brief and honest beats blank.

You’ll also describe your relationship to the incarcerated person. If you’re a friend rather than a family member, the form asks you to describe the nature of the friendship and whether you knew the person before incarceration.¹ The question about past ODRC employment covers contract employees, volunteers, interns, and unpaid staff, not only full-time corrections officers.

Where to Send It

TCI requires a hard copy of the completed form and your supporting documents.² There is no online submission option for initial applications. Mail or deliver the DRC2096 and photo ID copy to:

Trumbull Correctional Institution
5701 Burnett Road
Leavittsburg, OH 44430²

Do not send it to the ODRC Mail Processing Center in Youngstown. That address is for letters and cards to incarcerated people. Visitor applications go to the institution.

What Happens After You Submit

Once the facility receives your application, staff verify your information and run the background check. The ODRC visiting packet states that the application will be verified and either approved or denied, and the incarcerated person will be notified of the decision and any follow-up needed.³ The institution communicates the outcome to the person you applied to visit, not directly to you. They then let you know whether you’ve been cleared.

Ohio Administrative Code 5120-9-15 lists the grounds for denial: posing a security threat, having a prior felony conviction, being a party to a criminal proceeding, or being a co-defendant of the person you want to visit.⁴ The form adds that an application can be denied if the visitor “will not have a positive effect on the incarcerated person’s attitude, behavior, overall adjustment, or reentry efforts.”¹

Visitors With Felony Convictions

A felony conviction is grounds for denial but not an automatic bar for family members. The administrative code specifically allows family members with prior felony convictions to apply for visiting privileges. If that family member is under the supervision of the adult parole authority, they need written permission from their parole or probation officer plus approval from the warden.⁴ The code does not carve out the same exception for non-family visitors with felony records, so that path is harder.

Visitors on Probation or Parole

If you’re currently on probation or parole, the letter from your supervising officer is mandatory. The form is explicit about it, and submitting without one holds up the application.³ Contact your officer before you mail anything and give them time to write it.

Scheduling Your First Visit

Approval is step one. Before you can walk into TCI, you also need to register online and reserve a time slot. All visits at Trumbull require a reservation through the ViaPath (formerly GTL) portal at gtlvisitme.com.²

After your DRC2096 is approved, create an account on the portal. Unit staff then confirm your account in the system, which can take up to five business days. Once confirmed, you can book visits.² Do not register on ViaPath before your application has been approved. Doing so can delay the ViaPath confirmation.

Reservations must be made at least three days and no more than 30 days in advance. Cancellations also require three days’ notice to avoid a penalty. Every person attending the visit, including children, must be listed on the reservation and on the approved visitors list.²

Visiting Hours at TCI

In-person hours vary by housing assignment:²

General Population: Wednesday through Sunday, 8:00 a.m.–10:30 a.m. and 11:40 a.m.–2:45 p.m.
Limited Privilege Housing: Wednesday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.–10:30 a.m.
TCC Security Level 1: Wednesday through Sunday, 8:00 a.m.–10:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.–2:40 p.m.

Visits are limited to five visitors per incarcerated person at one time, including any walking children over age ten, unless the facility has approved special arrangements in advance.²

Bringing Minor Children

Children under 18 can visit, but their paperwork is stricter. Under ODRC Policy 76-VIS-01, every minor visitor must either be related to the incarcerated person or be accompanied by an approved visitor who is the child’s parent, legal guardian, or guardian.⁵

At the first visit, bring the child’s birth certificate or a custodial court order naming the custodial parent or guardian. Once verified, the child is added to the approved list and won’t need the document again.⁵

If someone other than the custodial parent or legal guardian is bringing the child, you need a notarized Authorization for Minor Child Visitation Form (DRC4371). Without the notarization, the child will not be admitted. The authorization expires after one year and has to be resubmitted. The incarcerated parent cannot be the person who signs the form.⁵

If Your Application Is Denied

A denial doesn’t always mean you’re permanently locked out. Common reasons include an unresolved criminal case, a felony conviction without the required authorization, a missing probation or parole officer letter, or incomplete or false information on the form.⁴ Appeals of visiting privilege suspensions are submitted in writing to the managing officer. If the denial came from a fixable problem, like a missing letter or an unanswered question, correcting it and resubmitting is usually the fastest route back.

1
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Adult Visitor Application
2
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Trumbull Correctional Institution (TCI)
3
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Adult Visitor Application
4
Ohio Legislative Service Commission. Ohio Code 5120-9-15 – General Visiting
5
Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. 76-VIS-01