CARE IN CUSTODY

Medical & mental-health help

Give the clinical team the information they need, know where to send it, and follow up when a concern is urgent.

01Urgent concern? Call now.
02Prepare the health history.
03Send, confirm and follow up.

When someone may be in danger

For an urgent healthcare concern about someone in LASD custody, call the Medical Command Center. LASD publishes this line as available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Do not wait for a routine fax to be read if you believe the person may harm themselves or needs immediate medical attention.

Give the booked name, booking number, current facility, what happened and when, and your callback number. State clearly if the concern involves suicidal statements, self-harm, a missed essential medication or an acute change in condition. Describe what you know; the clinical team determines treatment.

If the person is still in a city jail, contact that jail’s watch commander. If an emergency is happening to someone outside custody, call 911.

Medical Command Center · 24/7: (213) 893-5544
Current housing / booking number: (213) 473-6100

Prepare a useful health summary

LASD accepts information from family and friends. Use its medication form when available, or prepare a written fax with the following information. Keep the content about health; leave out discussion of the criminal charges.

Full legal name, date of birth, booking number and current housing location.
Diagnoses and the treating doctor’s or psychiatrist’s name, address and telephone number.
Each prescribed medicine, dosage, schedule and the last dose if known. Identify the pharmacy so clinicians can verify the prescription.
Allergies, serious side effects, medicines that did not work, recent hospital care and medical equipment needs.
Recent suicide threats or attempts and other urgent conditions. Include dates and distinguish what you witnessed from what someone told you.
Your name, relationship, callback number, and whether the person has signed consent to share health information with you.

Print a health-information worksheet

Where to fax the information

These are the routing details currently published on LASD’s custody page. For combined medical and mental-health concerns, LASD instructs families to send to both services. Its page does not clearly identify a separate daytime general-medical fax; call Medical Command for that routing rather than sending sensitive records to an unverified number.

Men’s mental-health fax: (213) 972-4002
Monday–Friday, 6 a.m.–5 p.m. Pacific; excluding holidays.
Women’s mental-health fax: (323) 415-1893
Monday–Friday, 7:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Pacific; excluding holidays.
Correctional Health Services fax: (213) 217-4850
After hours, weekends and holidays, as listed by LASD. This is a fax, not the urgent telephone line.

Keep a record and follow up

Keep a copy and the fax transmission report. Record the date, time, destination and name of anyone you speak with.
Ask whether the information reached the clinical team and which service should receive a follow-up. A successful fax transmission does not prove a clinician has reviewed it.
If housing changes, LASD says to fax the information again. Recheck the receiving service first.
If the condition becomes urgent, call Medical Command instead of waiting for a routine response. If concerns remain unresolved, document them and notify the assigned attorney.

Prescription glasses and medical equipment

LASD’s published eyeglass procedure goes through the MCJ Legal Unit. It calls for a medical court order, non-metal frames and a plastic case. Confirm approval and the recipient’s current housing before delivery. The published processing estimate is at least one week.

For other medical appliances, outside medication or special footwear, ask the clinical team about approval and delivery before bringing or mailing anything. Do not place medication in ordinary personal mail.

MCJ Legal Unit: (213) 974-0103

Mental-health support in court

Ask the assigned attorney about the Mental Health Court Liaison Program, treatment connections and any case-specific options. Give the liaison the name, date of birth, booking number, housing, attorney contact and a concise clinical history. Participation and legal eligibility require individual review.

Court Liaison Program headquarters: (626) 403-4370

YOUR NEXT STEP

Confirm their current facility.

Choose a facility above to keep it at hand as you move through the guides.

View facility information

Sources & review

Reviewed 2026-09-25. Live records, appointments and transactions are handled by the responsible agency or provider.

Review dates & unresolved details