Harris County, TX Criminal Justice Reform

Houston Public Media: Two New Harris County Safety Programs Would Limit Police Interactions In Certain Cases

August 10, 2021

Houston Public Media wrote a piece highlighting Harris County's Holistic Alternative Responder Team program, or HART, which plans to send public health staff instead of law enforcement to nonviolent calls involving issues like mental health, homelessness, and substance abuse. Read the...

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Houston Chronicle: Fewer jailed and new arrests remain low, says report on Harris County’s bail system

September 3, 2020
In the Houston Chronicle, Gabrielle Banks writes, "Harris County’s newly revamped system for processing arrestees on minor offenses is working well, according to the first official report: It is preventing needless jailing of poor people without risking more crime." The GPL has been working with the Harris County’s Commissioner’s Court, Sheriff’s Office, pretrial services agency, mental health authority, and newly formed Justice Administration Department to support the county’s improvements to its bail practices, and this article... Read more about Houston Chronicle: Fewer jailed and new arrests remain low, says report on Harris County’s bail system

Texas Tribune: Report - Harris County’s bail reforms let more people out of jail before trial without raising risk of reoffending

September 3, 2020

In the Texas Tribune, Jolie McCullough writes, "A new report examining the impact of recent changes to bail practices in Harris County found that releasing more misdemeanor defendants from jail without requiring cash bail did not lead to an increase in arrests for reoffending." The GPL has been working with the Harris County’s Commissioner’s Court, Sheriff’s Office, pretrial services agency, mental health authority, and newly formed Justice Administration Department to support the county’s improvements to its bail practices, and this article shares details from the ...

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