Deuel Vocational Institution (DVI)

23500 Kasson Road, Tracy, CA 95376, (209) 835-4141

This prison, located in the San Joaquin Valley about thirty miles east of San Francisco, has two purposes. First and in most cases, it is a reception area for newly-committed folks who will be serving time. You or your loved one will be transferred there for evaluation and orientation before being assigned to another state prison within California. This means he or she will mix with the full spectrum of felons, both violent and non-violent.

Deuel, as one can understand, has a high violence level due to this mix of prisoners, many of whom are new to being incarcerated and thus are frustrated. The second purpose is a general prison with Level 1 (minimal security) and Level II (medium security) inmates.

The prison operates a dairy with 1,200 head of cattle. 550 are milked on any given day. Minimum security prisoners work the dairy as well as an adjacent 450 acres of land that grows corn, oats and alfalfa for the cattle. The prison also has a furniture fabrication plant that some of the prisoners work.

The city of Tracy is in a bit of a triangle, east of I-5, I-580 to the southwest and I 205 to the north. The prison is named after California State Senator Charles H. Deuel. It opened in 1953. In January, 2006, there were approximately 3,700 inmates assigned to Deuel, of which about 3,100 were assigned to the reception center.

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