United States · CA · San Quentin
San Quentin Rehabilitation Center
Data is aggregated from public sources and may be incomplete or out of date.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 San Quentin Rehabilitation Center
Step-by-step guidance using the United States system — addresses, money services, visit booking, what to bring on your first visit.
Gallery
From Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-SA where not otherwise stated).
Photo by Jesstess87 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Photo by Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Photo by George Frederick Keller via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Photo by Daderot via Wikimedia Commons (CC0)
Photo by California Department of Corrections via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Photo by The San Francisco Call Bulletin via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Photo by The San Francisco Call Bulletin via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
Photo by The San Francisco Call Bulletin via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
California adult institution operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. CDCR code: SQRC.
Background
San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (SQ), formerly known as San Quentin State Prison, is a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation state prison for men, located north of San Francisco in the unincorporated place of San Quentin in Marin County. Established in 1852, and opening in 1854, San Quentin is the oldest prison in California. The state's only death row for male inmates, the largest in the United States, was located at the prison. Its gas chamber has not been used since 1993, and its lethal injection chamber was last used in 2006. The prison has been featured on film, radio drama, video, podcast, and television; is the subject of many books; has hosted concerts; and has housed many notorious inmates.
Source: Wikipedia article lead, CC-BY-SA.
Capacity
3,082
Current population
3,300
Occupancy
107%
Year opened
1852
Operational
Facility profile
Operator
California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
Population held
male
Opened
1852
Region
CA
Security level
Maximum
Death-row facility
No
Conditions
Newly rebranded as a rehabilitation center. Death row population (~600) transferred to other prisons under a 2022 executive order.
Visiting
Friday-Sunday visits with prior approval via CDCR Visitor Processing. Photo ID required.
Mailing
Inmate Name, CDCR #, San Quentin Rehabilitation Center, San Quentin, CA 94964.
Practical info
GTL ConnectNetwork for phone/video. JPay accepted. The San Quentin News is one of the few inmate-run newspapers in the US.
Known issues
COVID-19 outbreak in 2020 caused 28 inmate deaths; California Court of Appeal called response 'morally indefensible'.
Notable inmates
Charles Manson (briefly), Stanley 'Tookie' Williams (executed 2005), Sirhan Sirhan.
Contact & address
Conditions Risk Score
Derived signal — not a judgement. How it's calculated
- Overcrowding
- 5/30
- Oversight reports
- 0/30
- Structural flags
- 5/15
- Death signals
- 5/15
- Conditions text
- 0/10
What the score is responding to:
- · Operating at 107% of design capacity
- · Substantial documented known-issues record
- · In-custody-death signal in sources
Compared to other facilities in United States
3134 peersHigher risk than 91% of peer facilities in United States.
Data completeness
100%How many of our profile fields are populated. We surface this so families and researchers know the limits.
Sources
- CDCR facility — San Quentin Rehabilitation Center
- CDCR Facility Locator
- Wikipedia — Wikimedia Foundation
- California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation — Facility Locator — State of California
- See /data-sources for our overall methodology.