Pre-Release (Transient, Substance Abuse) · State Pre-Release Facility · TDCJ

Havins Unit

Brownwood, Brown County, Texas

Visiting schedules change without notice. Always call before traveling.

Call Visiting Office: (325) 643-5575 Info last verified: June 2026

TDCJ pre-release unit in Brown County near Brownwood, in Central/West Texas, with a substance-abuse treatment mission and weekend visitation.

Statewide rules that apply at every TDCJ unit

These rules are set by TDCJ and apply at every unit. The full list — including all permitted and prohibited items and the approval process — is in Visiting in Texas.

Dress code

Tight-fitting, revealing, or see-through clothing is not allowed.
Sleeveless shirts and dresses are allowed only if the shoulders stay covered.
Shorts and skirts must be no shorter than three inches above the middle of the knee while standing.
Clothing with profane or offensive images or language is not allowed.
Visitors may not wear all-white clothing (incarcerated people wear white). Sandals and open-toe shoes are allowed.

ID: Each adult visitor (18 or older) must present a current government-issued photo ID, and at least one ID document must show a current physical address.
What to bring: No cell phones, smartwatches, cameras, other electronics, tobacco, paper money, food, or outside drinks. A small clear bag or change purse and up to $35 in coins for vending machines are allowed.
Scheduling: Visits are booked through the TDCJ Online Visitation Portal, at least one and no more than seven days ahead. One visit per weekend is standard.

Full statewide rules: Visiting in Texas

Overview

The Havins Unit is a TDCJ pre-release facility near Brownwood, in Brown County. TDCJ lists it at about 596 beds, and it opened in July 1994. As a pre-release unit, it holds men working toward release, and the population turns over more often than at a long-term general-population prison.

Two facts shape almost everything about visiting here: the unit’s pre-release role and its location in Central/West Texas, away from the major metro areas.

What Makes the Havins Unit Different

A pre-release facility rather than a general-population prison, so stays are often shorter and a person can transfer out with little notice; the TDCJ inmate locator shows the current assignment
Carries a substance-abuse treatment mission, including an In-Prison Therapeutic Community (IPTC) program
Operates a faith-based dorm and the GO KIDS family-engagement program
Located near Brownwood in Central/West Texas, reached by road from the surrounding region rather than a nearby metro grid

Visiting

The statewide rules above — approval, ID, prohibited items, and dress code — apply at Havins. What follows is specific to this unit.

Visiting format follows the incarcerated person’s classification rather than one unit-wide rule, so the type of visit can differ from one person to the next on the same weekend. Because this is a pre-release unit, visiting arrangements and any program-tied scheduling are best confirmed directly with the unit before traveling.

Getting There and Parking

Havins is near Brownwood, in Brown County, in the Central/West Texas region. The unit is reached by road from the surrounding area, and a private vehicle is required.

Brownwood is the nearest service center for gas, food, groceries, and lodging. There is no fixed-route transit to the unit, so the trip is by car.

Mail

Contact has a sequence to it. A phone number must be on the incarcerated person’s approved contact list before calls can connect, and after intake or a transfer that approval can take time to process. Calls are placed by the incarcerated person on TDCJ’s Securus phone system; a prison cannot be called into. Account setup, rates, and video options are covered in Phone & Video Calls.

Learn More

For detailed information about visiting and communicating with someone at a Texas state prison:

Visiting in Texas — TDCJ approval process, dress code, scheduling
Mail & Packages — what you can send and what gets rejected
Phone & Video Calls — Securus accounts, call costs, video visits
Sending Money — how to add funds to a TDCJ trust account
Medical & Mental Health — healthcare in TDCJ facilities
Transfers — what happens during transfers

Sources

This page is compiled from the following publicly available sources. Policies change without notice — confirm current details with the facility before relying on them.