The Allegheny County Jail at 950 Second Avenue in Pittsburgh holds pretrial detainees, sentenced county inmates, and ICE immigration detainees. Here is a complete practical guide for families.
Finding Your Loved One
Allegheny County Jail does not have a standalone public inmate search, but current booking and housing status can be found through:
- Pennsylvania Unified Judicial System Web Portal — ujsportal.pacourts.us — for case and docket information including current detention status
- Calling the jail directly: (412) 350-2000 — the ACJ can confirm housing status by name
- For ICE detainees: locator.ice.gov
Phone Calls: ICSolutions
Allegheny County Jail uses ICSolutions for inmate telephone services:
- Create a free account at icsolutions.com
- Register the phone number where you want to receive calls
- Fund your account
- Confirm your number is on the inmate's approved call list
Inmates call out — you cannot call in. All calls except attorney calls are monitored and recorded.
Sending Money: JPay
Allegheny County Jail uses JPay for inmate trust fund deposits. Go to JPay.com, search the inmate under Allegheny County Jail (Pennsylvania), and deposit by card. Fees apply. Money orders are also accepted at the facility.
Visiting
The ACJ operates a visiting system that requires advance scheduling:
- Visits must be scheduled in advance — walk-in visits are generally not permitted
- Contact the ACJ at (412) 350-2000 or check the county website for current visiting registration procedures
- Valid government-issued photo ID required
- Dress code enforced — no camouflage, no orange (inmate uniform color), no revealing clothing
- Visiting schedules and any COVID-related restrictions are subject to change — confirm before traveling
The jail also offers video visitation through the ICSolutions platform as an alternative to in-person visits.
Mail to ACJ inmates:
[Inmate Full Legal Name] [Booking Number] Allegheny County Jail 950 Second Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15219
All mail except legal mail is screened. The jail has moved to a mail processing system — confirm current policy on photos and cards at (412) 350-2000.
Legal Resources
- Allegheny County Public Defender: (412) 350-2400 — represents people who cannot afford private counsel
- Allegheny County Pretrial Services: (412) 350-4040 — monitors pretrial release conditions
- Abolitionist Law Center: abolitionistlawcenter.org — advocates for detained people and their families in Allegheny County
Allegheny County Jail: 950 Second Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Main phone: (412) 350-2000. County website: alleghenycounty.us/jail.
Further reading for families
For practical guidance on supporting your loved one, see our step-by-step guides on how to bail someone out of jail, how to write a letter to an inmate, and why inmate phone calls are so expensive — and what families can do to reduce those costs.
Many of these services are run by private companies. See how the main providers work, including fees and how to sign up: Securus, ViaPath (GTL), JPay, Access Corrections, CorrLinks, GettingOut. For every phone, video, money, mail, and care-package company, browse our full inmate service provider directory.