Colorado State Penitentiary Overview
Colorado State Penitentiary, often shortened to CSP, is operated by the Colorado Department of Corrections at the East Canon correctional area in Canon City. The Fremont County facility map lists the location as East Hwy 50 and Evans Ave., Canon City, CO 81215, with front lobby phone 719-269-5120. The research file identifies Warden Stephanie Sandoval and the mailing address as PO Box 777, Canon City, CO 81215-0777.
CSP opened in 1993 as a Level V and administrative-segregation facility, with Phase II cells added in 1995. The research file describes housing for Close Custody MCUHR, MCU, CCTU, and medium-or-below incentive pod offenders. It also notes outdoor exercise yards for MCU and CCTU that followed 2016 construction, with recreation beginning in January 2017. This is high-control state prison custody, not county jail booking.
Fremont County's official correctional-capital page highlights Colorado State Penitentiary as part of the county's unusual concentration of state and federal prison facilities. The county page says CSP opened in 1993 as the state's primary close-custody facility and houses the execution chamber. CDOC's current facility profile remains the authority for present operations, visiting contacts, and programs.
The matched screenshot comes from CDOC's Colorado State Penitentiary facility profile.
Use that CDOC source for facility-specific information, and use CDOC Offender Search for a person-specific custody lookup.
Colorado State Penitentiary Capacity and Population
The research file did not extract a current CSP population or rated capacity from CDOC's monthly report files. CDOC publishes current and historical population and capacity reports through its statistics page, and facility profiles point readers there for current data. Do not use the Fremont County jail's renovation service load, the countywide CDOC prisoner total, or the federal prison population as a CSP-specific count.
For population research, use the CDOC statistics page. For an individual prisoner, use CDOC Offender Search. For a recent Fremont County arrest, use the sheriff's office and Fremont Combined Court because the person may never have reached CDOC.
CDOC statistics are also the better source when comparing CSP with other Canon City prisons. A single Fremont County address area can include facilities with very different custody missions, so population figures should be tied to the named institution and report month before being used for planning, reporting, or family-contact decisions.
How to Look Up an Inmate at Colorado State Penitentiary
The correct lookup for CSP is the Colorado Department of Corrections offender search. The documented fields are DOCNO, last name, first name, gender, and a captcha answer. Search results should be read carefully because CDOC placement can change, and a name may match more than one person. A DOC number is the most reliable identifier when family, attorneys, or court documents have it.
- Open the CDOC Offender Search.
- Search by DOCNO when available, or by first and last name.
- Use gender to narrow common-name results.
- Complete the captcha and open the matching record.
- Verify that the current facility says Colorado State Penitentiary before using CSP visiting or mail contacts.
The official CDOC search form is shown in the manifest screenshot from doc.state.co.us/oss.
If the person is not found, check whether the matter is still in county jail, another CDOC facility, federal custody, or a court-only status. Court cases after a Fremont County arrest are searched through Colorado Judicial Branch dockets, not through the prison locator.
Colorado State Penitentiary Address and Contact
Use CSP's front lobby for facility routing and the visiting contact for scheduling. Use CDOC's statewide search first so questions can be tied to the correct DOC number and current location.
Colorado State Penitentiary
East Hwy 50 and Evans Ave.
Canon City, CO 81215
719-269-5120
Mailing address: PO Box 777, Canon City, CO 81215-0777.
Visiting Someone at Colorado State Penitentiary
CSP visiting is CDOC visiting and must be handled through the facility's approval and appointment process. The research file says approved visitors must arrange appointments, and visiting questions or scheduling go to doc_csp_visiting@state.co.us or 719-269-5252. Because CSP houses close-custody and management-control populations, visiting availability can depend on unit status, security restrictions, disciplinary status, or operational changes.
| Topic | Detail | Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Visitor approval | CDOC visitor approval required before appointments. | CDOC visiting process |
| Scheduling | Approved visitors arrange visits with CSP. | doc_csp_visiting@state.co.us |
| Phone | Visiting questions and scheduling line in research. | 719-269-5252 |
| Security limits | Visits may be affected by unit status or facility operations. | Confirm before travel |
Mail, Phone, and Money at Colorado State Penitentiary
The research file provides CSP's mailing address but not a CSP-only commissary fee table. Use CDOC's centralized family services for sending money, phone setup, mail rules, and visiting applications. Mail should include the inmate's committed name and DOC number, and it should follow CDOC rules on content, photos, books, publications, and prohibited items. Do not send money to an address unless CDOC's current instructions say that is the correct method.
| Service | Provider or Detail |
|---|---|
| Mail address | Colorado State Penitentiary, PO Box 777, Canon City, CO 81215-0777. |
| Phone | Use CDOC inmate phone guidance and facility restrictions. |
| Money deposit | Use CDOC Send Money resources and verify current fees before payment. |
Intake and Classification at Colorado State Penitentiary
CSP is not an arrest-intake jail. A person reaches CSP after prosecution, sentencing, CDOC reception, and classification. The placement may reflect close-custody needs, management-control status, incentive-level movement, program requirements, disciplinary history, medical or mental-health factors, and bed availability. A local booking record from Fremont County, if one exists, remains a sheriff record even after the person moves to CDOC.
For newly arrested people, call the Fremont County Sheriff's Office at 719-276-5555 and check court dockets after filing. For sentenced Colorado prisoners, use CDOC. For federal prisoners in Florence, use the BOP locator. CSP should not be mixed with the county jail, the BOP complex, or ICE searches.
About Colorado State Penitentiary
The research file lists several CSP programs, including high school equivalency, Breakthrough, RESTORE/WAGEES reentry, violence reduction, moral reconation therapy, anger management, victim impact, Second Chance Pell, peer advocates, and drug and alcohol programming. Program access can vary by custody status and unit. For families, the practical point is that a CSP assignment may carry more restrictive communication and visiting rules than minimum or medium facilities.
CSP is one part of the East Canon and Fremont County correctional landscape. Nearby CDOC facilities include Arrowhead, Four Mile, Centennial, Colorado Territorial, Fremont Correctional Facility, and Skyline. Federal facilities near Florence use a different federal locator. Whenever a search result or court record is unclear, match the agency first: sheriff for county jail, CDOC for state prison, BOP for federal prison, and Colorado Judicial Branch for court dockets.
Note: Confirm CDOC location, visiting approval, and CSP appointment status before traveling to the facility.