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United States · California · Los Angeles

Mdc Los Angeles

Federal prisonMaximummixedUnder capacity (97%)LowHigh
Verified · Data dated
Aging · 5mo ago
Sources last reviewed on · data-as-of

Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date. Always verify with primary sources before acting on any figure. See data sources.

For families

How to send mail, money, and visit Mdc Los Angeles

Step-by-step guidance using the United States system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.

Open toolkit
Photograph of Mdc Los Angeles

Mdc Los Angeles is a federal prison located in Los Angeles County, California. Rated capacity: 735. Reported population: 713. Security level: Maximum. Data sourced from the HIFLD Prison Boundaries open dataset.

Background

The Metropolitan Detention Center, Los Angeles (MDC Los Angeles) is a prison in downtown Los Angeles, California, which holds male and female inmates prior to and during court proceedings, as well as inmates serving short sentences. It is operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, a division of the United States Department of Justice.

Source: Wikipedia article lead, CC-BY-SA.

Capacity

735

Current population

713

Occupancy

97%

Year opened

1988

Operational

Figures from official sources · verified 2 Jun 2026 · methodology

Facility profile

Population held

mixed

Opened

1988

Region

California

Security level

Maximum

Death-row facility

No

Conditions

BOP-operated facility; conditions reports issued by the DOJ Office of Inspector General on a multi-year cycle.

Visiting

Visiting days and hours are set by the Warden and vary by housing unit; consult the facility's official visiting regulations for the current schedule. All visitors must be on the inmate's approved visitor list (submitted on BOP form BP-A0629) and present government-issued photo ID. Dress-code and contraband restrictions apply — review the visiting regulations before arriving. Call 213-485-0439 to confirm hours before your visit. Full regulations: https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/los/

Mailing

Address mail to: [Inmate Name & Register Number], MDC Los Angeles, METROPOLITIAN DETENTION CTR, Los Angeles, CA 90053. No cash, staples, or metal fasteners. Books must be sent directly from a publisher or approved retailer. Photos must not be Polaroid and may not exceed limits set by policy. Money orders payable to the inmate's name and register number; or use Western Union QuickCollect to the BOP Trust Fund. TRULINCS (CorrLinks) provides email where the inmate has subscribed.

Practical info

Inmate funds via Western Union QuickCollect to the BOP Trust Fund (receiver: inmate name, prisoner ID, BOP Trust Fund). Email service via CorrLinks where the inmate has subscribed.

Known issues

Contact & address

535 North Alameda Street, Los Angeles 90012
(213) 485-0439
[email protected]
Official site

Conditions Risk Score

Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated

0/100
Low concern0/100
Overcrowding
0/30
Oversight reports
0/30
Structural flags
0/15
Death signals
0/15
Conditions text
0/10

This facility scores 0. The national average across 7,437 scored United States facilities is 2 — 2 points below national average.

Related facilities

All in United States →

Same country, matched on type + security level where possible.

Compared to other facilities in United States

7436 peers
Conditions risk scorethis: 0/100 · peers avg: 2/100 (100%)

Higher risk than 0% of peer facilities in United States.

Occupancythis: 97% · peers avg: 93% (+5%)
Capacity (beds)this: 735 · peers avg: 547 (+34%)

Data completeness

100%

How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.

Sources

Cite this page

Under CC-BY-4.0. Include the URL and access date; the site is a living reference and entries can change.

APA
World Prisons. (2026). Mdc Los Angeles. Retrieved October 20, 2026, from https://worldprisons.com/prisons/mdc-los-angeles
Chicago
"Mdc Los Angeles." World Prisons. Accessed October 20, 2026. https://worldprisons.com/prisons/mdc-los-angeles.
BibTeX
@misc{worldprisons-mdc-los-angeles,
  author = {{World Prisons}},
  title = {Mdc Los Angeles},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://worldprisons.com/prisons/mdc-los-angeles},
  urldate = {2026-10-20}
}