Ozark County Jail

Ozark County Jail is an ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) detention facility located in Gainesville, Missouri. It falls under the Chicago Field Office ERO field office area of responsibility.

Facility quick reference

How to locate or contact a detainee

ICE’s Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov finds people in ICE custody. A search takes the person’s A-number (Alien Registration Number) and country of birth, or their full name, country of birth, and date of birth.

To ask whether someone is held here, and to leave an urgent message for a detainee, ICE publishes one number: (417) 679-4633 (menu option 2). ICE asks the caller to give the detainee’s full name, alien registration number (A-number), and the caller’s own name and a phone number where they can be reached; the facility passes the message on. Detainees cannot receive incoming calls — they place outgoing calls themselves. ICE asks callers to have the person’s biographical information ready (full legal name and any aliases, date of birth, and country of birth). ICE says this line can be called 24 hours a day (checked October 16, 2026). To send a non-confidential message to a detainee, ICE points to NCIC. This facility’s visiting rules are below.

Visiting in person

What ICE’s page for this facility says (checked October 16, 2026):

• Days and hours: Monday – Saturday, 9 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
• Length: detainees are allowed one hour of visitation per week, which can be divided into two 30-minute visits.
• Scheduling: by phone at (417) 679-4633 option 2, per ICE. A visit must be scheduled at least one business day before the desired date.
• Non-contact: all family and other social visits are non-contact.
• ID and minors:
  • Visitors must have a government-issued photo ID with them.
  • Unaccompanied visitors must be at least 18.
  • Persons under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian, and proof of the relationship is required (a birth certificate or court-ordered guardianship).
• Search and items:
  • Everyone requesting admittance is subject to a pat-down search, an inspection of belongings and a metal scan search. Anyone refusing a reasonable search will not be admitted.
  • Visitors may not carry any items into the visitation area, and may not pass or try to pass items to detainees.
  • No firearms or weapons of any kind are permitted.
  • No electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, radios, etc.) are permitted in the secure areas.
  • Visitors who are or appear to be intoxicated will not be allowed to visit.
• Clergy may visit at any time but must make prior arrangements with the Chaplain’s Office.
• Consular officials may meet with their detained nationals at any time. ICE asks that they arrange the visit with the ICE officer in advance to the extent possible and bring appropriate credentials. The ICE officer is reached through the Chicago, IL detained unit at CHI-ERO-Detained@ice.dhs.gov or (872) 351-3990.
• Phone funds: ICE directs friends and family to NCIC Correctional Services at (800) 943-2189 (international callers: +1-903-247-0069) or ncic.com.
• Parking: ICE says free public parking is available at the facility.
• Disability access: ICE’s page says the facility “does not discriminate based on disability and provides detainees with disability-related accommodations, as needed, to access its programs and activities” (checked October 19, 2026).

Sending mail, commissary funds, and personal items

For this facility, ICE’s page says letters are addressed with the detainee’s name and the last four digits of the A-number, and must include the sender’s name and address (checked October 16, 2026). The full address format is below. This facility’s own ICE page says all incoming mail is subject to screening for contraband and that it “is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivery officer.” It also says detainees may seal their outgoing letters.

The following national rule is cited for comparison only: ICE’s September 2025 inspection of this facility applied the National Detention Standards 2025, whose mail rules we have not reviewed. Under ICE’s National Detention Standards, Revised 2019, §5.1(E), incoming general mail is opened and inspected for contraband, and outgoing general mail may be inspected and read if it is addressed to another detainee or staff have reason to believe it threatens the facility’s security or order, endangers someone, or could facilitate criminal activity. Only special correspondence — mail to or from attorneys and other legal representatives, courts and judges, government attorneys, embassies and consulates, the President and Vice President of the United States, members of Congress, the Department of Justice (including the immigration courts), DHS (including ICE/ERO, IHSC, CRCL and the DHS Inspector General), grievance administrators, and the news media — may not be read or copied by staff. Incoming special correspondence is inspected for contraband in the detainee’s presence; outgoing special correspondence is not opened, inspected or read, and if a need exists, any inspection takes place in the detainee’s presence. The standard limits any inspection to detecting physical contraband and confirming that enclosures qualify as special correspondence. Mail counts as special correspondence only if the envelope unambiguously identifies the title and office of the sender (incoming mail) or of the addressee (outgoing mail). Under that standard, an ordinary letter does not get the no-reading protection that special correspondence gets. Rules for commissary (account) deposits and permitted personal items vary by facility, and so does the number that handles them — ICE names a separate facility mail clerk on some facility pages. ICE publishes the deposit route, the accepted form of payment, and who to call in the Sending Items to Detainees section of this facility’s own ICE page (linked above).

What ICE publishes for this facility’s mail, money, and packages

Checked October 16, 2026:

• Mailing address (letters must include the sender’s name and address):

Ozark County Jail
C/O Detainee Name, last four digits of the A Number
1818 County Road 806
Gainesville, MO 65655

• Commissary money online: orders.tigercommissary.com.
• Commissary money by mail:
  • Detainees may also receive funds by United States Postal Service money order sent to the address above.
  • The money order must reference the detainee’s name plus the last four digits of the A-number.
  • The processing officer gives a receipt for all funds received.
  • ICE says detainees “are cautioned not to have cash sent to them in the mail.”
• Phone-minute funds: through NCIC.
• Packages:
  • Only items determined necessary for the sole purpose of travel or release from custody are accepted, and only with the ICE Deportation Officer’s approval.
  • ICE’s page says to contact CHI-ERO-Detained@ice.dhs.gov before sending a package.
• Luggage for removal:
  • Detainees being removed are allowed one small piece of luggage.
  • If a detainee has no baggage, one 40 lb bag can be sent or delivered, but only after approval from the Supervisory Detention and Deportation Officer.
  • No electronic devices (cell phones, electric razors, laptop computers, radios, etc.) are accepted.
• Outgoing mail and stamps:
  • Outgoing mail is routed to the post office within 24 hours of receipt by facility staff.
  • Detainees may buy stamps. ICE’s page says: “Generally, there is no limit to the amount of correspondence detainees may send at their own expense.” (checked October 19, 2026)
  • ICE says a mail pick-up and delivery schedule is posted in all housing units (checked October 19, 2026).
  • Indigent detainees (no means of financial support and no funds in their facility account) get a postage allowance at government expense.
• Transfers and departures: only legal mail is forwarded. General correspondence is returned to sender.

Legal access, attorneys, and immigration court information

Detainees have the right to speak with an attorney, and attorney–client visits and calls are confidential. EOIR’s automated hotline, 1-800-898-7180, gives information about a case before the immigration court (EOIR); it asks for the A-number. For a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the main line of EOIR (the Justice Department agency the BIA belongs to) is (703) 305-0289. Applications for relief from removal must be filed directly with the immigration court handling the case. For a person who cannot afford an attorney, the immigration court can provide a list of pro bono legal service providers — see the related resources below.

Booking legal visits, video calls, and legal calls

What ICE’s page for this facility says (checked October 16, 2026):

• G-28s can be submitted through ERO eFile. Facility staff do not have access to it, so ICE says legal representatives should download copies of their submitted G-28 for any in-person or remote legal visit.
• In-person attorney visits: Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Appointments outside those hours may be granted on a case-by-case basis, and only if there are extenuating circumstances.
• Video teleconference (VTC) meetings and confidential legal calls:
  • How to request: email attorney@ozarkcounty.gov or call (417) 679-4633 option 2. The facility responds with a confirmed date and time.
  • Timing: appointments should be made 24 hours before the desired time. They are scheduled 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. in 30- to 60-minute increments.
  • Limit: ICE says legal representatives are not limited in the number of appointments they can request, but no representative may have more than one 60-minute appointment with a detainee in a single day.
• What the request email should include:
  • the representative’s full name, phone and email;
  • the detainee’s name and A-number;
  • a few proposed times;
  • a scan of the representative’s government-issued ID;
  • proof of active legal-representative status (such as a state bar card or attorney or paralegal license);
  • the G-28, unless the meeting is pre-representational.
  • A legal assistant joining alone must also attach a letter of authorization on the firm’s or organization’s letterhead and a scan of the assistant’s ID.
• Who may attend: only legal representatives, legal assistants and interpreters — no family or friends.
  • A visitation officer stands outside the room, out of earshot but within eyeshot, and knocks 5 minutes before the cut-off time.
  • Recording video or audio is not permitted. Violations may result in suspension or permanent revocation of VAV user privileges.
  • ICE says the same guidelines that apply to in-person attorney/client visits apply to VTC meetings and legal calls, and that “the attorney and/or his/her agents may contact outside interpretation services during the call or session” (checked October 19, 2026).
• Sending legal documents:
  • When timely communication through the mail is not possible, the facility administrator may, at his discretion, allow a reasonable amount of electronic written communication between the detainee and their designated legal representative. ICE says these go to attorney@ozarkcounty.gov, or by fax to the number ICE lists as (417) 679-4633 option 2.
  • Mark the subject line as legal correspondence.
  • Include a cover sheet with the detainee’s full name and A-number, the sender’s return fax number, the total number of pages, and the notation “Legal Mail.”
  • Documents are inspected for contraband but not read.
  • Requests are processed Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., excluding holidays.
• Case information: requests can be sent to Chicago.Outreach@ice.dhs.gov. This mailbox does not accept applications for Stay of Removal or Case Appeals.
• Identifying a client’s Deportation Officer: ICE directs this to CHI-ERO-Detained@ice.dhs.gov. A G-28 must be on file for any information to be disclosed.
• Pro bono list: ICE says a list of free legal organizations is posted in all detainee housing units, updated quarterly, and that contacting a provider is the detainee’s responsibility. EOIR publishes its List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers quarterly (January, April, July, and October).

Feedback, complaints, and oversight

A concern about conditions at this facility or the conduct of an ICE or contract employee can be reported to the ERO Chicago Field Office that oversees this facility, or in a complaint filed with the DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL). On its own Make a Civil Rights Complaint page DHS publishes one channel — the online portal at engage.dhs.gov/crcl-complaint; CBP additionally publishes, for the same office, the e-mail address CRCL@dhs.gov, fax (202) 401-4708, and the postal address DHS/CRCL, Compliance Branch, 2707 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE, Mail Stop #0190, Washington, DC 20528-0190. The DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) hotline is 1-800-323-8603.

This facility’s own ICE page adds these channels (checked October 16, 2026):

• Comments, or a misconduct complaint to the field office: Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 101 W Ida B Wells Drive, Suite 4000, Chicago, Illinois 60605, (872) 351-3990.
• ICE Office of Professional Responsibility (by mail): Director, Office of Professional Responsibility, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, 500 12th Street, SW, Suite 1049, Mailstop 5099, Washington, DC 20536-5005.
• ICE OPR Integrity Coordination Center: 1-833-4ICE-OPR or ICEOPRIntake@ice.dhs.gov.

Media interviews:

• A news reporter who wants to interview a detainee must apply in writing to the Chicago Field Office, Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations; ICE says the application must indicate “familiarity with and agreement to comply with the rules and regulations of the facility as provided to that person by staff.”
• ICE’s page says: “Ordinarily, live television or radio interviews will not be permitted in the facility.” (checked October 19, 2026)
• ICE says a detainee has the right not to be interviewed, photographed or recorded.
• The reporter must first obtain the detainee’s written permission.

ICE inspection record

ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight (ODO), under ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility, inspected this facility on September 17–18, 2025 (Inspection 2025-006-055; ODO report). The report names the facility as the Ozark County Sheriff’s Office, Gainesville, Missouri. Per ICE’s September 2025 inspection:

• Standard: findings are organized by the National Detention Standards 2025 major categories.
• Field office: the report is labeled ERO Chicago.
• Findings sections: the report’s table of contents lists inspection findings under Care, with sections for Food Service and Medical Care.

287(g) agreements in Ozark County

This facility is in Ozark County, Missouri (per the U.S. Census Bureau geocoder for the address ICE publishes). ICE's 287(g) participating-agencies workbook, dated October 9, 2026, records 2 agreements with agencies in that county:

Source: ICE, 287(g) program (participating-agencies workbook). A 287(g) agreement is between ICE and the law-enforcement agency; on its own it says nothing about this facility. What each model means · all agreements by state.

Related procedural resources

• Know Your Rights — what to do if ICE detains you
• EOIR immigration court schedules and procedures
• BIA-recognized legal-aid organizations in Missouri
• Other ICE detention facilities in Missouri
• All facilities under the Chicago Field Office