Ward County Detention Center

Ward County Detention Center is an ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) detention facility located in Minot, North Dakota. It falls under the St. Paul Field Office ERO field office area of responsibility.

Facility quick reference

How to locate or contact a detainee

To locate someone in ICE custody, use the ICE Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov. You will need the person’s A-number (Alien Registration Number) and country of birth, or their full name, country of birth, and date of birth.

ICE publishes two different numbers for this facility. To ask whether someone is held here, call (701) 857-6530 (menu option 1). To leave an urgent message for a detainee, call (701) 792-6930 and give the detainee’s full name, alien registration number (A-number), and your name and a phone number where you can be reached; the facility passes the message on. The general facility line (701) 857-6535 is for other questions. Detainees cannot receive incoming calls — they place outgoing calls themselves. Have the person’s biographical information ready when you call (full legal name and any aliases, date of birth, and country of birth). Contact and visitation hours vary by facility — confirm current hours by calling (701) 857-6530 (menu option 1) or checking the official ICE page linked above.

Visiting in person

ICE’s page for this facility (checked October 16, 2026; page updated 08/06/2026) says:

• Friends and family: start the process at InmateCanteen.com. All family and other social visits are non-contact, and each detainee receives one twenty-minute visit every 72 hours.
• Minors: 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 restrictions: everyone requesting admittance is subject to a pat-down search, an inspection of belongings and a metal scan search; anyone refusing a reasonable search is not admitted. Visitors may not pass or attempt to pass items to detainees and may not carry any items into the visitation area. No firearms or weapons; no electronic devices (cell phones, pagers, radios, etc.) in the secure areas. Visitors who are or appear to be intoxicated are not allowed to visit.
• Clergy may visit at any time but must make prior arrangements with the Chaplain’s Office.
• Consular officials may meet their detained nationals at any time; ICE requests that prior arrangements be made, to the extent possible, with the ICE Supervisory Deportation Officer at (612) 409-7799, and that officials bring appropriate credentials.
• Parking: free public parking is available at the facility.

Sending mail, commissary funds, and personal items

For this facility, ICE says letters must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number, plus the sender’s name and address (details below). Each facility publishes its own exact format. ICE lists each facility’s format on that facility’s page at ice.gov. This facility’s own ICE page says incoming mail “is not read upon opening, only inspected by the delivering officer” and that detainees may seal their own outgoing letters. ICE’s 2019 national standard allows more than that. Under ICE’s National Detention Standards, Revised 2019, §5.1(E) — cited here for comparison only, because ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight inspected this facility in March 2026 under the Federal Performance-Based Detention Standards (FPBDS, May 2025) instead (inspection report), and we have not reviewed that standard’s mail rules — 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). 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. This facility’s deposit route, accepted form of payment and contacts are in the Sending Items to Detainees section of its own ICE page (linked above).

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

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

• Letters go to the address below and must include the last four digits of the detainee’s A-number, plus the sender’s name and address:

Detainee Name
PO Box 907
Minot, ND 58702

• Not accepted through the mail: packages, obscene or pornographic materials, personal checks, cashier’s checks, postage stamps or stamped envelopes, any type of food, and periodicals not sent directly from the publisher.
• Money is not to be given directly to the detainee. It can be placed on the detainee’s account through Turnkey Corrections at team3.inmatecanteen.com, or by U.S. mail to WCDC, PO Box 907, Minot, ND 58702, referencing the detainee’s name on the money order. Funds received in the mail are placed in the account and receipted; ICE cautions detainees not to have cash sent to them in the mail.
• Packages: before sending one, contact Ward County Jail Admin at (701) 857-6530 during normal business hours. A detainee may receive items determined necessary for the sole purpose of travel or release from custody, with the ICE Deportation Officer’s approval.
• Outgoing mail: detainees may seal their outgoing letters; outgoing mail is routed to the post office within 24 hours of receipt by facility staff, and a mail pick-up and delivery schedule is posted in all housing units.
• Stamps: detainees may buy them; 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.
• Luggage for removal: one small piece is allowed; if the person has none, luggage can be sent or delivered after approval from the Supervisory Deportation Officer. No electronic devices (cell phones, electric razors, laptop computers, radios, etc.) are accepted.

Legal access, attorneys, and immigration court information

Detainees have the right to speak with an attorney, and attorney–client visits and calls are confidential. For information about a case before the immigration court (EOIR), EOIR’s automated line 1-800-898-7180 (toll-free, 24 hours a day, English and Spanish) gives the next hearing date and case status; callers enter the 9 digits of the A-number, without the letter A (EOIR, checked October 24, 2026). 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. If you 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

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

• In-person attorney visits: legal representatives are authorized to visit their clients 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. (the page does not list the days).
• 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.
• Legal calls and video teleconferencing (VTC): legal calls are scheduled through the main office at (701) 857-6530, 24 hours before the desired appointment time. Appointments run 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. in 30- to 60-minute increments. ICE says legal representatives are not limited in the number of VTC appointments they can request, but no representative may have more than one 60-minute appointment with a detainee in a single day.
• Only legal representatives, legal assistants and interpreters may take part — no family or friends; outside interpretation services may be contacted during the call. A visitation officer stays outside the confidential room, out of earshot but within eyeshot. Representatives and their staff may not video or audio record any virtual or in-person visit or call.
• BIA: ICE’s page for this facility gives (703) 605-1007 for information about a matter before the Board of Immigration Appeals (automated information, or a live representative during office hours).
• Case information for people held here can be requested at Jail.Admin@wardnd.gov; this mailbox does not accept applications for Stay of Removal or case appeals. To learn who a client’s Deportation Officer is, contact the St. Paul Field Office at (612) 409-7799; a G-28 must be on file for any information to be disclosed.
• Non-confidential messages: the facility has tablets; ICE points to Reliancetelephone.com for how to send a non-confidential message.

Sending legal documents to a detained client

When timely communication through the mail is not possible, the facility administrator may, in his discretion, allow a reasonable amount of electronic written communication between the detainee and the designated legal representative. ICE says legal representatives can email legal correspondence to Jail.Admin@wardnd.gov, stating in the subject line that it is legal correspondence/mail and attaching the documents with a cover sheet giving the detainee’s full name, A-number, the sender’s return fax number, the total number of pages, and the notation “Legal Mail.” The documents are inspected for contraband but not read, then delivered. Requests are processed Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., excluding holidays. ICE says the list of pro bono (free) legal organizations is posted in all housing units and updated quarterly, and that contacting a provider for an appointment is the detainee’s responsibility.

Feedback, complaints, and oversight

To report a concern about conditions at this facility or the conduct of an ICE or contract employee, contact the ERO St. Paul Field Office that oversees this facility, or file a complaint 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 (checked October 16, 2026) adds these channels:

• Comments on service, or a misconduct complaint to the field office: Field Office Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement St. Paul Field Office, 1 Federal Dr. Ste 1601, Ft. Snelling, MN 55111.
• ICE Office of Professional Responsibility (by mail): Director, Office of Professional Responsibility, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, P.O. Box 14475, Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, D.C. 20044.
• Joint Intake Center: 1-877-2INTAKE or joint.intake@dhs.gov.
• DHS OIG (as given on the ICE page): DHS Office of Inspector General, Attn: Office of Investigations - Hotline, 245 Murray Drive, Building 410 Stop: 2600, Washington, DC 20528; fax (202) 254-4292; DHSOIGHOTLINE@DHS.GOV.

A news reporter who wants to interview someone held here must apply in writing to the St. Paul Field Office of Enforcement and Removal Operations, indicating familiarity with and agreement to comply with the facility rules and regulations provided by staff. ICE says a detainee has the right not to be interviewed, photographed or recorded by the media, and the reporter must first obtain the detainee’s written permission. Media inquiries about ICE activities go to the ICE Office of Public Affairs at ICEMedia@ice.dhs.gov.

ICE inspection record

ICE’s Office of Detention Oversight (ODO), part of ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility, issued Inspection 2026-006-009 of the Ward County Jail in Minot, North Dakota, dated March 19, 2026 (ODO report). Per ICE’s March 2026 inspection report, its findings are organized by the Federal Performance-Based Detention Standards (May 2025) major categories, and the report is filed under ERO Saint Paul.

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 North Dakota
• Other ICE detention facilities in North Dakota
• All facilities under the St. Paul Field Office