USP Leavenworth: The Complete Guide

• Official name: United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth (USP Leavenworth)
• Security level: Medium-security U.S. Penitentiary, with an adjacent minimum-security satellite prison camp
• Gender: Male only
• Location: 1300 Metropolitan Avenue, Leavenworth, KS 66048
• Operator: Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), North Central Region
• Nickname: "The Hot House" — the nickname stuck from Pete Earley's 1992 book about the old maximum-security penitentiary that stood on the same grounds

The original USP Leavenworth opened in 1903 as the country's first federal penitentiary. In 2005 the BOP reclassified it from high- to medium-security, and it operates today as a medium USP with a small camp attached.

Federal defendants do not pick their prison. After sentencing, the BOP's Designation and Sentence Computation Center (DSCC) in Grand Prairie, Texas reviews the case and assigns a facility based on the inmate's security score, medical needs, and — when possible — proximity to release residence within 500 driving miles.

USP Leavenworth typically receives medium-security men with:

• Sentences generally between roughly 10 and 30 years, or
• Shorter sentences with disciplinary or management concerns, or
• Ties to Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, or Nebraska for family proximity.

The satellite camp is for minimum-security men, most with under about 10 years left and no history of violence, sex offenses, or escape.

USP Leavenworth allows in-person social visits on Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays. General visiting hours run 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with processing typically closing an hour before end of visitation. Confirm the current schedule on the BOP website — hours change for staffing and lockdowns.

Getting on the visitor list

1. The inmate requests a Visitor Information Form (BP-A0629) from their counselor and mails it to each prospective visitor.
2. The visitor completes and returns the form to the prison.
3. The BOP runs a background check — typically 4 to 8 weeks.
4. Once approved, the visitor's name appears on the inmate's list. You cannot show up and visit before approval.

What to bring — and what to leave in the car

• Government-issued photo ID (driver's license, state ID, or passport).
• Up to $50 in small bills or coins for vending machines — no wallets inside.
• Clear plastic bag for money and a car key.
• No cell phones, smart watches, cameras, tobacco, or vapes.

Dress code

Visitors turned away for dress-code issues is the #1 avoidable problem. Avoid khaki (staff color), avoid revealing clothing, avoid clothing that resembles inmate uniform. Skirts and dresses must reach the knee. No open-toed shoes, no hats indoors, no camouflage.

Most defendants sentenced in the District of Kansas who are eligible for voluntary surrender — meaning the judge allows them to report on their own rather than being taken into custody at sentencing — go through the same general sequence:

1. Sentencing order. The judge orders "voluntary surrender" and usually gives 30 to 90 days before you must report.
2. Designation letter. Within 4 to 8 weeks the BOP DSCC mails a letter naming the facility, report date, and time. Report time at USP Leavenworth is generally no later than 2:00 p.m. local time.
3. Report to the main entrance. Arrive early. Bring only a government-issued photo ID, the designation letter, and prescription eyeglasses. Do not bring luggage, phones, or money — anything you bring other than ID and glasses will be sent home at your expense or destroyed.
4. Intake. Staff process you into custody. You are strip-searched, issued clothing, medically screened, and assigned a housing unit.
5. Admission and Orientation. The first 3–4 weeks include an A&O program covering rules, work assignments, education, and how to add contacts for phone, TRULINCS email, and visits.

Late self-surrenders can be charged with escape under 18 U.S.C. § 751. If something goes wrong on report day — car trouble, medical emergency — contact your attorney and the U.S. Marshals Service immediately, not the next day.

Phone calls

Inmates are generally allowed 510 phone minutes per month (300 in some months historically, then expanded). Calls are limited to 15 minutes and must go to approved numbers on the inmate's phone list. Calls are recorded and monitored, with the exception of properly designated attorney calls.

Email (TRULINCS / CorrLinks)

The BOP uses TRULINCS for inmate email. Family and friends sign up for a free CorrLinks account and accept the inmate's contact request. Messages are text only, monitored, and delayed by up to an hour on each side.

Mail

Address general mail to:

INMATE NAME, REGISTER NUMBER
USP LEAVENWORTH
U.S. PENITENTIARY
P.O. BOX 1000
LEAVENWORTH, KS 66048

Photos are allowed (limit 25 at a time, no polaroids, nothing sexually explicit). Books and magazines must ship directly from the publisher or an approved retailer like Amazon.

Sending money

Send funds through MoneyGram (BOP Receive Code 7932), Western Union, or the U.S. Postal Service using a money order made out to the inmate's register number. Personal checks are not accepted. Cash never.

USP Leavenworth is a medium-security prison, which means controlled movement, razor-wire perimeters, and a stricter environment than a low or a camp. That said, the inside is not the cinematic max-security penitentiary Hollywood imagines.

• Housing: Two-man cells in the USP; open dormitories at the camp.
• Jobs: Nearly everyone works — food service, orderly, UNICOR (Federal Prison Industries) when slots are open. Starting pay is roughly $0.12/hour; UNICOR is higher.
• Education: Mandatory GED programming for inmates without a high-school diploma. ACE classes, ESL, and parenting are commonly offered.
• Programs: RDAP (Residential Drug Abuse Program) is available and can reduce sentences by up to 12 months for eligible inmates plus additional halfway-house time. First Step Act earned time credits (FTCs) apply.
• Commissary: Once per week; roughly $360/month spending limit.
• Rec: Yard, weights, basketball, softball. Indoor rec on weather days.

The vast majority of felony federal cases in the District of Kansas — filed in Kansas City, Topeka, or Wichita — do not end at USP Leavenworth. Most Kansas federal defendants score into low or minimum security and end up at facilities like FCI El Reno, FCI Yazoo City, or the Leavenworth camp itself.

USP Leavenworth designation usually signals a higher security score driven by a longer sentence, a violent offense, a firearms enhancement, or prior serious criminal history.

Want to see roughly where a case might land in the guidelines? Run a free 60-second estimate for the District of Kansas. It's an educational estimator, not legal advice.