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Pleasant Valley State Prison
Pleasant Valley State Prison (PVSP) contact, address, visiting, phone, mail and travel details. Confirm custody and current rules with the responsible agency.
Facility record · California
PVSP · Coalinga · Fresno County
- SecurityLevels I–III
- Population3,208
- Occupancy139%
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Pleasant Valley State Prison (PVSP) is a state prison in Coalinga, Fresno County, California. By capacity it is the 15th-largest of the 30 state prison records listed for California with a published capacity. It is one of 10 correctional facilities in Fresno County, and California operates 30 state prisons in total.
Contact & details
CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026), period ending 30 April 2026
Finding someone first
Nothing below works without two things: confirmation that the person is at Pleasant Valley State Prison, and their CDCR number. Book a visit without them and you will be turned away; post a letter without the number and the mailroom cannot route it.
CDCR's public search covers people in CDCR custody. A disclaimer must be accepted before searching, and CDCR states the tool is informational rather than an official record. County jail populations are held separately.
CIRIS — California Incarcerated Records and Information Search ↗
Visiting Pleasant Valley State Prison
This is what the institution publishes, in the order you will meet it: when visits run, how to get approved, how to book, when to arrive, and what you may carry in.
When visits run
Visiting open · 30 July 2026Holidays: Facilities A, B, D and Level I: 8:30 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Facility C Group I: 8:30–11:30 a.m.; Group II: 12:30–3:00 p.m.
Get approved
You must be approved before booking. The incarcerated person first sends you a signed CDCR Form 106 Visiting Questionnaire. Complete that exact copy, then mail it directly to PVSP’s Visiting office.
Send it to: Mail the completed questionnaire to Pleasant Valley State Prison, Attention: Visiting, P.O. Box 8500, Coalinga, CA 93210.
What not to do: Do not mail the completed questionnaire back to the incarcerated person. Send it directly to PVSP’s Visiting office at the institution address above.
Book through the scheduling application
Use VSA for ordinary and RHU appointments. The request period opens eight days before the visit at 6:30 a.m. and closes five days before it.
Open the Visitation Scheduling Application ↗
Walking in: Walk-ins begin no earlier than 10:00 a.m., first come and space available. RHU does not accept walk-ins.
Non-contact and restricted-housing visitsNon-contact visiting is not a choice — it is what applies while someone is in reception (newly admitted to CDCR, or just transferred between prisons) or is segregated.
Arrive, and report to visitor processing
Check the facility’s current visiting status before travel. Visitor processing can involve a wait; processing continues until one hour before posted visiting ends. Follow posted arrival limits and allow time for security processing.
Parking: CDCR states that all prisons have a separate visitor parking lot, including marked disabled parking. The walk to processing may be long and at some prisons a van or bus is used.
Where to report: Use the designated Visitor Parking Lot at 24863 West Jayne Avenue and report to the Visitor Processing Center. Scheduled visitors should arrive early enough for screening; RHU visitors are specifically told to arrive about 30 minutes before the appointment.
Bring the right things, and only those
Allowed in
- Visitors may bring only the narrowly listed allowable items. Core limits include a small clear plastic bag, identification, up to two keys, prescribed allowable medical items with documentation, and specified baby supplies. Weapons, unauthorized electronics, and other unlisted property should not be brought into the secure visiting area.
Identification: Adults must present valid, current photo identification: a state driver’s license or DMV ID, armed-forces photo ID, ICE ID card, U.S. or foreign passport with photo, or Mexican Consulate photo ID.
How many may visit: In-person general-population visits are limited to five visitors at one time. Non-contact visits are limited to three visitors and are usually limited to one or two hours.
Bringing a child: Visitors under 18 must be accompanied by an approved adult. Bring a certified birth certificate; guardians must also bring proof of guardianship, and another accompanying adult needs the original notarized parental/guardian consent form naming the incarcerated person and proposed visit dates.
Video visits and cost: Weekend video visiting at adult institutions ended in July 2023. CDCR states that incarcerated people with tablets are eligible for a free 15-minute video call every two weeks; confirm current tablet access with the institution.
Phone calls, money and mail
Phone calls
You cannot call in. CDCR states that it is up to the incarcerated person to initiate the call, and that calls are limited to 15 minutes. That single fact explains most of what families find confusing: the switchboard will not connect you, there is no voicemail, and a call arriving from an unfamiliar number is normal. What you can do from the outside is make sure the call can reach you — that your number is not blocked by your carrier, that it is not a VoIP or virtual number the system will refuse, and that whatever account arrangement the facility uses is set up and funded before he tries. For anything urgent, a message goes through the institution rather than the phone system.
Putting money on the books
Before anything else you need the person's CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), and their current location from CDCR's facility locator. CDCR then lists three routes. Electronic funds transfer through one of its vendors: GTL/ConnectNetwork, JPay, or Access Corrections. A lock box deposit, which CDCR states carries no fee when sent by money order, personal check or cashier's check: complete the Money Order Deposit Form with the sender's name and address, make the payment payable to JPay, and mail it to JPay, 2202 South Figueroa St, Box #3001, Los Angeles, CA 90007. CDCR caps this at $999.99 per money order, holds personal checks for ten business days, and warns that any letter or note enclosed with a payment will be discarded. Or send a check or money order to the institution itself. Vendor fees vary by amount and method, so check the vendor's own figure before you send.
Writing to someone here
Anyone may write to a person in a California state prison. Incoming letters are opened and inspected for contraband, then forwarded. CDCR asks that the envelope carry the person's full committed name and CDC number, the institution name, the P.O. box and housing assignment where known (CDCR states housing is preferable), and the city, CA and ZIP. The housing assignment is the part most people do not have: get it, and the CDCR number, from California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS), from the institution's Public Information Officer, or from CDCR's Identification Unit. Note that the address mail goes to is not always the institution's street address, so confirm it before posting anything you cannot replace.
Full committed name · CDCR number · housing
Pleasant Valley State Prison (PVSP)
P.O. Box 8500, Coalinga, CA 93210
Getting there, and staying
These Coalinga properties are planning options, not endorsements. Confirm the room, accessibility features, deposit, cancellation deadline and the actual route to PVSP. Fresno County Rural Transit operates Coalinga Dial-A-Ride inside Coalinga city limits and an inter-city route between Coalinga and Fresno. The published services do not establish a regular visitor stop at PVSP on West Jayne Avenue.
Confirm the last mile: Coalinga Transit/FCRTA reservations and information: 1-855-612-5184. Local Dial-A-Ride publishes Monday–Friday, 8:30 a.m.–4:15 p.m.
Where to stay
Coalinga lodging areas are separated from PVSP’s visitor entrance. Map the morning route rather than estimating from the city name.
Somewhere to eat
| Place | What and when | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| McDonald’s396 W. Elm Avenue, Coalinga, CA 93210 | Downtown Coalinga location; use the official listing for current hours and ordering | (559) 935-1740 |
| McDonald’s25145 W. Dorris Avenue, Coalinga, CA 93210 | Dorris Avenue/I-5 corridor location with drive-through service | (559) 935-3614 |
Local planning notes
Road check: Check Caltrans QuickMap and PVSP’s live visiting page before leaving. The prison is outside central Coalinga; fuel early and preserve time for rural-road travel and processing.
Inside the institution
PVSP’s 2024 CDCR PREA audit records 23 housing units. The current visitor notice separates Facilities A, B and D plus Level I from Facility C’s bifurcated Group I/Group II schedule and from RHU non-contact visits.
Restricted housing
People housed in PVSP’s Restricted Housing Unit are eligible for visits, but every RHU visit is non-contact, one hour and appointment-only through VSA. No RHU walk-ins are accepted.
Health care, programs and release preparation
These services differ by institution. The details below describe what this prison reports, not a systemwide promise that every person qualifies for every program.
Health care
PVSP provides medical and mental-health services, including a licensed Correctional Treatment Center for short-term inpatient care, diagnostic evaluation and treatment, Mental Health Crisis Bed housing, and care for patients designated low to medical risk.
Education, training and work
Programs include Adult Basic Education I–III, GED/high-school diploma, college courses, and career technical education in electrical work, office services/electronics, small-engine repair, carpentry, building maintenance, auto body/paint, auto mechanics, welding, and HVAC.
Preparing for release
PVSP lists cognitive-behavioral and substance-use treatment, a Youth Offender Program, work programs, and an on-site family liaison/case manager who assists with pre-release preparation and family reunification.
Reported figures
These are the institution’s own returns to the state, and every group is dated. They have to be: the figures come from separate documents on separate cadences, and reading the whole set as one snapshot would be wrong.
Capacity and population
as at 30 April 2026How the population is housed
as at 30 June 2024Staffing
as at 30 June 2024Education and training
as at 30 June 2024CDCR Infrastructure Master Plan, Appendix 1 (May 2026) (Public record) · California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, SB601 Reporting (CC BY 4.0)
Guides that go wider than this institution
These cover the same ground across every facility in the directory, which is what you want if the person may be moved, or if you are helping someone in a different state.
Other facilities in Fresno County
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Can Jail411 tell me if someone is in custody right now?
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Does posting bond mean the person comes home?
Not always. A probation or parole hold, another county's warrant or an immigration detainer can keep someone in custody after bond is posted. Ask the jail what holds are on the booking before you pay.
What should I confirm before visiting?
The person's current facility, the visiting schedule, approval requirements, accepted identification and arrival instructions. Check the facility page and its official sources before you travel.
What if I find something that needs correcting?
Send us the page and the detail that needs attention. Include the official source when you have one. Do not send private booking documents or other sensitive personal information.
Plan the next step.
Practical guides for calls, visits, mail, money and release.