Blackburn Correctional Complex Overview
Blackburn Correctional Complex is the Kentucky DOC adult institution physically located in Lexington. The official facility page identifies it as the Division of Adult Institutions' largest adult male minimum-security institution. The institution provides care, housing, custody, control, and governmental services jobs to inmates. It is a state prison, not a county jail, which means the LFUCG Current Jail Population portal is the wrong search tool once a person has moved into DOC custody.
The facility address is 3111 Spurr Road, Lexington, KY 40511. The official page lists Warden Jesse Stack and ADA Coordinator Kathryn Aquadro. It also reports that Blackburn opened in 1972, covers 456 acres, has total staff of 147, and is ACA accredited. The page's demographic snapshot lists Black inmates at 33 percent and White inmates at 67 percent. Those figures are facility data from the DOC page, not Fayette County jail statistics.
The official Blackburn facility source is the Kentucky DOC Blackburn Correctional Complex page.
The DOC facility page is the source for Blackburn's address, phone, security level, population figure, staffing, costs, accreditation, and facility leadership details.
Blackburn Correctional Complex Capacity and Population
The Kentucky DOC Blackburn page listed a population of 320 in the facility capture. It also listed annual cost per inmate at $21,715.28, daily cost per inmate at $59.49, and an annual operating budget of $8 million. Unlike the county jail report, the available DOC material did not provide a rated-bed capacity figure for Blackburn. The sourced number to use is the DOC page's current population figure, while acknowledging that state prison counts can change with transfers, classification decisions, and releases.
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Security level | Minimum security | KY DOC Blackburn page |
| Population | 320 | KY DOC Blackburn page |
| Facility acreage | 456 acres | KY DOC Blackburn page |
| Annual operating budget | $8 million | KY DOC Blackburn page |
How to Look Up an Inmate at Blackburn Correctional Complex
Search Blackburn prisoners through Kentucky Online Offender Lookup, usually called KOOL. KOOL is the statewide Kentucky DOC offender locator. It is the correct channel for current DOC inmates and sentenced offenders, including people housed at Blackburn. Do not use the Fayette County Detention Center roster to find a Blackburn inmate unless the question is whether the person is still in local jail before DOC transfer.
- Open KOOL at kool.corrections.ky.gov.
- Search by last name first; add first or middle name if the results are broad.
- Use the photo-only or aliases filters when those options help confirm identity.
- Review the offender profile for DOC location, offender identifier, photo when available, and sentence or offense information.
- Confirm the location says Blackburn Correctional Complex before applying Blackburn-specific visiting or mail rules.
KOOL is different from the county roster. A Fayette County defendant may start at the detention center after arrest, appear in District or Circuit Court, and later move to DOC custody after sentencing or classification. Once that transfer occurs, the county jail roster no longer controls the location record. For victim notification, Kentucky VINE covers prison releases at 1-800-511-1670.
Blackburn Correctional Complex Address and Contact
Contact the facility for institution-specific visiting, mail, accessibility, and records routing. Kentucky DOC facility rules control state-prison processes, so county jail staff at Old Frankfort Circle should not be treated as the source for Blackburn custody status, visiting approval, inmate accounts, or mail handling.
Blackburn Correctional Complex
3111 Spurr Road
Lexington, KY 40511
(859) 246-2366
Warden fax: (859) 246-2376; Records fax: (859) 246-2585
Visiting Someone at Blackburn Correctional Complex
Blackburn visitation follows Kentucky DOC facility rules rather than Fayette County Detention Center video-visitation rules. DOC facility pages govern state-prison visitation, mail, phone, and money, but the available Blackburn material does not provide a day-by-day visiting schedule. For that reason, the reliable approach is to confirm approval, scheduling, identification, dress code, and current visiting windows with Blackburn or Kentucky DOC before traveling.
| Visit step | Timing | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Visitor approval | Before scheduling | Kentucky DOC facility process |
| Schedule confirmation | Confirm with Blackburn | State-prison visit, not county jail video visit |
| Arrival and ID check | Use current facility instructions | In-person DOC facility screening |
| Special access or ADA question | Confirm before travel | Facility or ADA coordinator routing |
Because the available DOC material did not include a specific weekly schedule, a table of invented days or hours would be unreliable. The accurate point is that Blackburn is a prison visit under DOC control, and visitors should verify the current schedule directly with the institution.
Mail, Phone, and Money at Blackburn Correctional Complex
Mail, phone, and money for Blackburn are Kentucky DOC processes. Do not use the Fayette County Detention Center Smart Communications mail address, SmartInmate video system, My Care Pack jail commissary instructions, Access Corrections jail deposit language, or Securus jail note unless Kentucky DOC separately instructs that a service applies to Blackburn. The county jail's scanned-mail format and 600 Old Frankfort Circle rules are for LFUCG custody, not Blackburn.
| Service | Provider / detail |
|---|---|
| Mail address | Use Kentucky DOC and Blackburn instructions for the inmate's name, DOC number, and approved mail format. |
| Phone | Confirm the current DOC phone provider and account rules with Kentucky DOC or Blackburn. |
| Money deposit | Use the current Kentucky DOC deposit process for state prisoners, not the LFUCG jail kiosk. |
| Victim notification | Kentucky VINE prison release notifications are available at 1-800-511-1670. |
DOC Classification and Intake at Blackburn Correctional Complex
Blackburn is not the booking point for a street arrest in Lexington. Booking happens at the Fayette County Detention Center for local arrests, and formal court records then develop through Fayette District or Circuit Court depending on the case. A state-prison placement occurs after sentencing, classification, transfer, or another DOC custody decision. At that stage, the relevant questions are DOC offender location, sentence information, eligibility, program assignment, release planning, and institution rules.
A person sentenced in Fayette County may be assigned to Blackburn or another Kentucky DOC institution depending on classification, gender, sentence, medical needs, programming, and available space. A Lexington address for Blackburn does not make the prisoner part of the county jail population.
About Blackburn Correctional Complex
Blackburn's official profile emphasizes minimum-security custody and governmental services work. The facility is ACA accredited and was opened in 1972. It sits on Spurr Road, placing it near Fayette Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Lexington's broader correctional footprint. Fayette County is unusual because the local adult jail, a state prison, a federal medical prison, and a juvenile detention facility are all inside the county, but each uses a separate custody system and a separate public lookup process.
The distinction is especially important for families trying to locate someone after conviction. The LFUCG roster answers "is this person currently in the Fayette County Detention Center?" KOOL answers "is this person in Kentucky DOC custody and where?" BOP answers federal prison questions. DJJ juvenile detention information is confidential and not handled as an adult public roster.
Note: Confirm KOOL location and current DOC visiting instructions before traveling to Blackburn or sending mail.