MONTHLY SPOTLIGHT
DECEMBER
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL WRAPS UP THE YEAR WITH AN UNANIMOUS VOTE TO SUBMIT TWO PROPOSALS TO REDUCE THE HARRIS COUNTY JAIL POPULATION
In the December Harris County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC) meeting, co-chaired by Commissioner Rodney Ellis and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, unanimously voted to submit two proposals to reduce the current jail population to the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) Steering Committee for funding consideration. Signed into law on March 11, 2021, ARPA is expected to provide Harris County with $915 million in additional funding to provide additional relief to address the continued negative impact of COVID-19 on the local economy, public health, individuals, and businesses to be spent by the end of 2026.
In June 2022, the CJCC charged the Jail Population Subcommittee, chaired by Mr. Perrye Turner (Office of County Administration) with identifying jail population trends and forecasts, reviewing initiatives and strategies to safely reduce jail populations, and prioritizing initiatives that protect the safety and health of staff and persons held in custody. After extensive research and collaboration among many system stakeholders, the subcommittee agreed to submit the Expansion of the Jail-Based Competency Restoration (JBCR) Program and the Data Capacity Development, Metrics, and Implementation of Pretrial Database for Analytics as vetted strategies for ARPA funding consideration.
Jail-Based Competency Restoration (JBCR) is a collaboration between Harris County Sherriff's Office and the Harris Center funded by Health and Human Services in January 2022. Competency Restoration is the process used when an individual charged with a crime is found by a court to be incompetent to stand trial, often due to an active mental illness or an intellectual disability. It utilizes a compassionate, competent, person-centered approach designed to engage incarcerated individuals in the court-education process using a multidisciplinary treatment team in a jail-based setting. The program has succeeded with a 93% restoration rate since its inception. The expansion request of approx. $1 million will allow an increase from a current capacity of 20 patients to 50 patients. Harris County’s average waiting list for CY 2022 is 255. The expansion would have a positive impact on the local wait list, but also impact the state, the county, the jail, and the patients themselves.
Currently, Pretrial Services does not have a mechanism to effectively use assessment data to produce foundational pretrial metrics or risk profiles, to assess outcomes by charge or a combination of risk and pretrial outcomes. This restricts the department’s ability to measure its progress, communicate patterns, or contribute to collaborative solutions with other local criminal justice stakeholders. The Data Capacity Development, Metrics, and Implementation of a Pretrial Database for Analytics is a strategy that will do just that. The requested one-time investment of $550k creates a database with which other Harris County justice agencies may interface.
To learn more visit CJCC website here and to view the presentation click here.
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WRAPPING UP 2022! - A YEAR IN REVIEW |
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JANUARY
HIGHLIGHTS FROM JAD'S NEW INDEX-CRIMES RATE DASHBOARD & A NEW YEAR, A NEW CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL
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JANUARY - In January OJS released a Crime Index Dashboard and saw the newly developed Criminal Justice Coordinating Council become official. Here are the articles from our JANUARY newsletter below.
HIGHLIGHTS FROM JAD'S NEW INDEX-CRIMES RATE DASHBOARD
This dashboard shows crime trends over time in Harris County and compares crime rates between Harris County, other counties in Texas, and large counties in the United States.
This article contains some common questions and highlights of some of the data snapshots that can be ascertained from the dashboard in an effort to provide context to the raw data and assist the public in fully utilizing the dashboard.
Where does the data come from? The crime rate data for Harris County and other counties in Texas are sourced from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Website, which is available for public use. Law enforcement agencies submit this data to the DPS. The data for large counties in the United States. are sourced from various public websites, which are also available for public view/use.
What does JAD’s dashboard show? The new dashboard shows counts of index crimes reported annually; the counts are normalized by population to show counts per 100,000 residents and year-on-year percentage changes. “Index Crimes” refers to the seven index crimes that make up the Federal Bureau of Investigation's uniform crime index: murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny (theft), and motor vehicle theft. Trends are shown from 2015 through 2020 for Harris County and other counties in Texas and from 2018 through 2020 for other counties in the United States.
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Data highlights:
Harris County Index Crime Rates From 2010 to 2020 Compared to Other Texas Counties
An analysis of Harris County Index Crime rates from 2010 to 2020 compared to Bexar, Dallas, El Paso, Tarrant, and Travis County revealed the following:
Harris County’s Index Crime rate was lower in 2020 than in any year from 2010-2016 and was relatively consistent with 2017 and 2019.
You can read the rest of the highlights on our blog, click below.
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A NEW YEAR, A NEW CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL
On September 28, 2021, Commissioners Court discussed the importance of Harris County having an effective Criminal Justice Coordinating Council (CJCC). To assist Commissioners Court in determining how the CJCC could be strengthened, JAD produced a memo that provides how and why the CJCC was formed, challenges with the current structure, the characteristics and best practices of high-functioning CJCCs, and recommendations for Commissioners Court consideration.
The CJCC has experienced challenges with effectively tackling pressing justice issues in recent years. The sheer size of the Council largely drove these challenges. The 35-member body which includes appointed and elected officials from Harris County, City of Houston, and community representatives, made it difficult to hold meetings and achieve a quorum, hindering the decision-making process.
In November, JAD hosted two workshops—where 20 members or their representatives attended in person—and eleven one-on-one interviews to ask the following questions:
- What has and has not worked during your time on the Council?
- What can we do in Harris County to duplicate best practices from other jurisdictions?
- What topic do you feel is the most important topic the Council should be addressing?
In response to the feedback received during the workshops and interviews, and based on recommendations from JMI on best practices, JAD made the following recommendations:
- Prioritize the completion of a strategic planning process to articulate its vision and goals,
- Consolidate the CJCC membership,
- Hold Council meetings more frequently,
- Utilize committees to implement the vision of the CJCC, which will allow the Council to include perspectives from subject matter experts, community members, and relevant stakeholders beyond CJCC membership, and
- Amend Bylaws to reduce the CJCC membership composition, establish priority-focused committees, and allow for additional rule changes to allow the CJCC to be nimbler in prioritizing and addressing justice issues in a timely manner.
Commissioners Court approved the recommendation to consolidate the membership and implement best practices of other high-functioning CJCCs
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FEBRUARY
JAD AND HARRIS COUNTY EXTEND A WARM WELCOME TO THE FIRST DEPUTY COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR FOR JUSTICE AND SAFETY & JAD AWARDS THREE LOCAL NON-PROFITS
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GRANTS
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FEBRUARY - In February OJS and Harris County welcomed its first Deputy County Administrator for Justice & Safety. Perrye Turner joined Harris County to help guide justice and safety-related departments across the County. Also in February, OJS announced the recipients of the Community Engagement Grants. The non-profit recipients will utilize the grants to help promote programs to encourage safe and equitable practices in the justice system. Here are the articles from our FEBRUARY newsletter below.
HARRIS COUNTY IS PROUD TO WELCOME PERRYE K. TURNER, SR. AS THE FIRST DEPUTY COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR FOR JUSTICE & SAFETY
Turner brings more than 30 years of experience in law enforcement and security operations in the public, private, and education sectors. Most recently, he has led the Houston Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) as Special Agent in Charge since 2014, directing daily operations including all National Security, criminal investigative programs, operational, administrative, financial, and security functions.
Turner’s exceptional experience and dedication to public safety have prepared him to drive Harris County’s ongoing efforts to enhance public safety and reform the criminal justice system in support of the 4.7 million residents of Harris County.
Highlights from his 30-year tenure with the FBI include leading FBI Field Office management of security operations for Super Bowl LI, the MLB World Series, and Hurricane Harvey recovery and response, and serving as on-scene commander for the Santa Fe High School and Naval Air Station (Corpus Christi) active shooter investigations.
In 2015, Turner was a recipient of the Presidential Rank Award, one of the most prestigious honors in the federal career civil service, which is only given to the top one percent of Senior Executives by the President of the United States.
Turner’s recruitment follows Harris County’s recent hiring of Dr. Tina Petersen to serve as Director of the Harris County Flood Control District (FCD); Dr. Milton Rahman who will lead the Engineering Department (ENG) as County Engineer; and Daniel Ramos who has been named Executive Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Welcome to the County, Mr. Turner!
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JAD AWARDS THREE LOCAL NON-PROFITS
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GRANTS
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The community engagement grants aim to promote one or more of the following objectives:
- Preventing involvement in violent or criminal activity as either a perpetrator or victim among those who are at risk,
- Diverting youth or adults from formal system involvement at the pre-arrest, arrest, or earliest stage possible,
- Reducing the risk of reentry or re-involvement in the criminal justice system and,
- Contributing to community healing through restorative justice practices.
The Community Engagement grants are a critical part of our work as a site for the Safety + Justice Challenge. These grants are tools that support our public safety through advancing and investing in our nonprofit organizations in our community that provide support to Harris County residents. We anticipate work to begin immediately. The first round of grants were awarded in October 2020 to the Center for Urban Transformation, Tahirih Justice Center, and Beacon of Downtown Houston.
For individuals interested in learning more about the work of these grantees please contact [email protected]. |
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MARCH
NEW ONE-OF-A-KIND DASHBOARD REVEALS BAIL BOND SYSTEM INFORMATION FOR HARRIS COUNTY & JAD COLLABORATING WITH THE JUVENILE PROBATION DEPARTMENT
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MARCH - In the March newsletter, OJS announced the one-of-a-kind bail bond dashboard that reveals bond amounts and court information in Harris County. Also in the March newsletter, we got a peek into the collaboration between OJS and our collaboration with the Juvenile Probation Department. Here are the articles from our MARCH newsletter below.
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NEW ONE-OF-A-KIND DASHBOARD REVEALS BAIL BOND SYSTEM INFORMATION FOR HARRIS COUNTY |
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On November 9, 2021, the Harris County Commissioners Court unanimously approved a motion made by Commissioner Adrian Garcia, calling for the creation of a public-facing dashboard to improve transparency around Harris County's bail practices.
With their leadership and support, JAD, in partnership with Universal Services, has created a one-of-a-kind dashboard based on a compilation of data from Harris County departments, allowing the public to view it all in one centralized location.
As part of a Harris County public safety initiative, JAD launched phase one of the interactive Harris County Bail Dashboard. The community can view aggregate data information on misdemeanor and felony bond-related items.
The dashboard includes misdemeanor and felony offense type, types of bonds being granted, the court to which a case is currently assigned, and a list of bondsmen with the highest total bond amount. The dashboard also includes the types of crimes for which defendants are being bonded out, the demographic make-up of those receiving a bond, and a definitions page to help guide the user through the proper terminology of the bail system.
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Following the initial launch of phase one, JAD introduced some new enhancements to this phase, including the following:
- Introduction of a new page to show monthly totals for the current year for both misdemeanors and felonies
- Expanded the bond amount breakdown ranges for felonies
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To provide context to the dashboard and to help you navigate the interactive data, JAD has published a Dashboard Guide.
JAD is currently working on gathering the requirements to begin phase two programming of the dashboard. Please look for the stage two updates to this dashboard to be announced in the coming months.
To view the Harris County Bail Dashboard and JAD's other dashboards, visit our website data page here.
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JAD COLLABORATING WITH THE JUVENILE PROBATION DEPARTMENT
JAD serves the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department in a supportive role on various programming and policy objectives. The Youth Justice Reinvestment Fund, which will expand community-based supportive services in underserved areas of Harris County, is one example. In furtherance of this partnership, on February 11, 2022, JAD had the opportunity to tour the newly renovated Youth Village in Seabrook, Texas.
Upon arrival, Youth Villages gives the impression of a treatment-oriented facility where youth have the opportunity to grow into productive law-abiding citizens. Set on a large parcel of land the impression of a treatment-oriented on a large parcel of land with green manicured lawns and hundred-year oak trees, there is no fencing nor Constantine wire typical of many juvenile secure facilities. The property is surrounded by residential housing, which once housed astronauts like Gus Grissom during the golden age of space exploration. On the other side of the property is Mud Lake, which despite its descriptive name is blue with birds, fish, and the occasional alligator.
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The buildings on this beautiful setting house Youth Villages. This program provides comprehensive treatment programming for young people who have not maintained success in community-based programs. While the typical stay is about 3 months, young people, supported by their families, have a chance to reset and learn better the connection between thoughts, actions, and behaviors. Youth Village offers programming for young people that have a history of violence or other significant maladaptive coping skills. Programming includes school, therapy, medication management, health care, and other skill-building. Traditional forms of therapy-based treatment are provided to both parents and families to learn better methods of handling the stressful situations that life can present. In addition to the traditional forms of therapy, other modalities such as equine therapy will be available to young people. A newly renovated barn will serve as an eventual home for abused horses. Young people will have the opportunity to work with the horses and not only heal the horse from their trauma but themselves as well.
In addition to treatment, the program offers comprehensive schooling administered by a local charter school that can accommodate the range of learning needs that exist for justice-involved young people. Additionally, the vocational component of programming exposes young people to various trades including printmaking and merchandising. The idea behind such programming is to entice young people to think about their future in a positive and prosocial manner. There is even a swimming pool where young people can learn to swim and gain lifeguard certification. Other programming includes a gym, basketball court, and a robust library rotated with books from the Harris County Public Library system.
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At the center of treatment is family involvement, as it is critical to a young person’s success. JPD encourages regular and meaningful visitation between families and young people. To facilitate visits, JPD will either pick families up or meet them at the nearest bus line. Young people and families can meet at various areas on the property. A newly installed fishing pier allows for young people to interact with families and other adults in a more natural environment. A phone is also available in the young person’s sleeping quarters so they can always contact their parents. The planned renovation will also include converting a house on the property into a therapy-visitation center.
The renovation of the Youth Villages program is a significant step towards the goal of transforming juvenile justice and creating programming that helps young people grow into productive and healthy citizens of Harris County.
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APRIL
JAD PRESENTS ON SUPPORTING SURVIVORS OF CRIME AT THE PARENTS OF MURDERED CHILDREN AND SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS OF HOMICIDE MEETING
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APRIL - In the April newsletter, we recognize the Parents of Murdered Children and Surviving Family Members of Homicide. CrimeStoppers invited OJS's Survivor of Crimes Specialist, Dr. Veronyka James to speak on the the local and national trend of victimization as well as share information on the various works and studies being done to support survivors of crime by OJS. Here is the article from our APRIL newsletter below.
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JAD PRESENTS ON SUPPORTING SURVIVORS OF CRIME AT THE PARENTS OF MURDERED CHILDREN AND SURVIVING FAMILY MEMBERS OF HOMICIDE MEETING |
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The Harris County Justice Administration Department (JAD) was invited to attend the Parents of Murdered Children and Surviving Family Members of Homicide meeting on April 12 at CrimeStoppers. Dr. Veronyka James, Lindsey Linder, Zachary Lee, and Laura Lucas attended the meeting, and Dr. James presented on the landscape of victimization both in Harris County and across the United States, as well as shared information on the various work JAD has done and will continue to do to support survivors. At the end of the presentation, attendees were asked for their suggestions on how JAD can better support survivors.
The first suggestion offered was for Harris County to provide a 24-hour hotline for survivors. Currently, family members of homicide victims are frequently sent to suicide-risk or PTSD hotlines, but survivors have not always found those hotlines as helpful as, for example, a conversation with another survivor—someone with the lived experience to better support them during their grieving process. Survivors also expressed frustration and anger at professionals (e.g., therapists) who were unable to help them or were ineffectual in working with them due to their unique situation. Attendees shared that some hotlines and therapists have told them that no one knows “how to deal with them,” and, as a result, survivors feel lost and cannot heal from the trauma they have experienced.
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Another suggestion centered on lethality assessments, which are a series of questions often asked at the scene of a domestic violence call to identify those cases that are more likely to result in homicide. Attendees suggested that lethality assessments should not necessarily be done by police officers because the officers, who may be securing a crime scene or conducting an investigation at the time they first meet a survivor, are not always able to communicate clearly regarding these lethality assessments. Instead, attendees suggested it may be more beneficial to have a social worker or counselor accompany police officers on certain calls to assist with this gap in communication. Additionally, following up with survivors, especially domestic-violence survivors, after the acute danger has passed and when they can think more clearly about the danger they may be in could be preferable to the practice of presenting a survivor with various life-changing decisions upon their first contact with law enforcement. JAD looks forward to following up with survivors and stakeholders to work on these suggestions to better support survivor communities within the County.
JAD is incredibly grateful for the invitation extended by CrimeStoppers to attend the monthly Parents of Murdered Children and Surviving Family Members of Homicide meeting, allowing us to present and hear from survivors themselves. Attending the meeting and hearing from survivors made it even more evident how important it is to fight for survivors, listen to them, support them, and help them heal. We cannot bring their family members back, but we can do our best to help them recover from this trauma and ease what is already an arduous process.
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MAY
THE HARRIS COUNTY JUSTICE ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT (JAD) ANNOUNCES INTERMEDIARY FOR THE YOUTH JUSTICE COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT FUND & MISDEMEANOR BAIL REFORM RESULTS IN MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN SAVINGS FOR HARRIS COUNTY AND TO INDIVIDUALS
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MAY - In the May newsletter, OJS announced via a press conference that Change Happens is the intermediary for the Youth Justice Community Reinvestment Fund and the ODonnell Monitors discuss how Misdemeanor Bail Reform results in millions of dollars of savings to both the County and Individuals. Here are the articles from our MAY newsletter below.
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CHANGE HAPPENS TO ACT AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE YOUTH JUSTICE COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT FUND
Change Happens, a local long-standing and well-respected non-profit organization, has been selected to act as administrator for the Youth Justice Reinvestment Fund. The Youth Justice Community Reinvestment Fund is a four-million-dollar reserve aimed at reducing reliance on the juvenile justice system by growing a cadre of local community-based non-profits, working directly in areas disproportionately impacted by juvenile justice. After a competitive county-based bidding process, Change Happens stands ready to grow Harris County’s continuum of services for families and young persons in need and at risk.
Poverty, trauma, or family struggles provide an accurate description of many justice-involved young persons, nationally and in Harris County. Many of these young persons present to the system with complex trauma, whether it be witnessing domestic violence, parental incarceration or absence, or childhood maltreatment. This untreated trauma often leads to poor decision-making and impulsivity. Coupled with the normal trials and tribulations of growing up, this can lead to unlawful behavior with dire consequences for the individual and community.
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To thwart unlawful behavior already involved in the juvenile justice system, it provides a community solution and remedy aimed at changing a youth’s trajectory to become healthy pro-social adults.
Change Happens and Harris County are interested in funding organizations entrenched in communities disproportionately impacted by juvenile crime. Programs should focus on enhancing public safety by addressing unlawful behavior at its roots. Such programming will have the effect of keeping youth out of detention, creating diversion programs for some juvenile justice offenses, and reducing recidivism.
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Programs could focus on a wide array of services from promoting family stability, supporting youth in school and community through mentoring, to robust transitional programs for emerging adults. Harris County and Change Happens are also keenly interested in local-driven solutions and further partnership with the community. Specific attention will be given to grassroots organizations that are doing the tough work in the community and need additional support to become sustainable non-profits that provide services to families in need, while also providing employment opportunities in such communities.
Contact:
If you are or know of an organization or community-minded individual that would be interesting in growing this movement to community-based solutions, please contact Helen Stagg with Change Happens at 713-402-8752.
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MISDEMEANOR BAIL REFORM RESULTS IN MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN SAVINGS FOR HARRIS COUNTY AND TO INDIVIDUALS |
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Misdemeanor bail reforms implemented through the ODonnell Consent Decree are saving nearly $100 million per year for Harris County departments and misdemeanor arrestees. Updated data released by the independent monitors led by Brandon Garrett at Duke University show savings exceed initial estimates in their March 3 regular report.
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“The ODonnell Consent Decree has provided an important opportunity to explore how policymakers can protect constitutional rights for the accused while also being financially accountable to taxpayers,” stated Brandon Garrett, ODonnell Consent Decree Monitor. “We are pleased to feature Harris County’s leadership in this regard – they are providing a model for the entire country."
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Harris County misdemeanor processing costs were an average of $15.6 million lower in 2021 compared to prior years. Reductions were driven by greater use of unsecured misdemeanor general order bonds under the Consent Decree, COVID-related policies to reduce arrests and bookings, and increased use of diversion programs to clear case backlogs tracing back to court shut-downs following Hurricane Harvey.
Even the modest declines in arrests and bookings under COVID protocols were a significant money-saver. Costs for these front-end processes fell by $5 million in 2021 compared to the prior six-year average. And with more low-risk defendants immediately released from custody, the county found additional savings of more than $1 million due to fewer pretrial screenings, bond hearings, and defense costs. The number of court settings and pretrial jail days per case first increased, then declined in recent years, ending with a $9 million cost reduction in 2021.
While saving money, these changes had no apparent effect on public safety. The rate of arrestees with a new offense has remained constant at around 24% year-to-year. Still, the nature of these new offenses may be different and potentially more costly to crime victims and county criminal justice departments, an issue being developed for the next monitor report.
People facing low-level misdemeanor charges have also gained from system reforms, seeing nearly $80 million of benefits in 2021 versus earlier years. General order bonds brought the average cost of pretrial release down by 75 percent, and the share of people jailed before trial has fallen by about 20 percentage points since 2015. More unsecured release and less incarceration reduced the financial burden on families by nearly $16 million over prior years by lowering the costs of bond and averting family separation. Most significantly, arrestees avoided an estimated $63 million per year in current and future employment and benefit discounts as a result of detention or conviction. Additional savings of $800,000 per year resulted from avoiding assaults that can occur in jail.
To make these estimations, the monitor team calculated the difference in 2021 costs compared to annual averages back to 2015. Harris County fiscal year 2020 budget data was used to standardize case processing costs, and disposed cases were used to ensure complete information was considered. To eliminate the effect of variation in the number of case filings, case counts were held constant at 54,264 cases, the seven-year average.
These findings suggest that the restructuring of local criminal justice policies and systems may be more affordable than was previously believed. Moreover, the cost savings and other benefits accrue not only to public systems but also to the private lives of the defendants affected. Important questions remain, however, about whether these efficiencies come at a cost to public safety. Future analyses will aim to illuminate this issue.
Read the updated Fourth Monitor Report here.
About the ODonnell Consent Decree Monitors
Duke Law professor Brandon Garrett was appointed independent monitor and directs the seven-year monitoring project that includes ongoing analysis of Harris County data and intensive engagement with stakeholders. He works closely with deputy monitor Sandra Guerra Thompson, professor of law and director of the Criminal Justice Institute at the University of Houston Law Center, and Dr. Dottie Carmichael of the Public Policy Research Institute at Texas A&M University. Dr. Songman Kang of Duke University and Hanyang University (Korea) also plays a crucial role in data analysis for the monitorship.
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JUNE
THE LEGACY OF GEORGE FLOYD
TWO YEARS LATER
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JUNE - In the June newsletter, OJS recognizes the impact that George Floyd had on Safety and Justice two years after his death. In this edition of the newsletter, OJS looks at the motions requested by the Commissioners Court to improve community safety through the implementation of reforms in the legal system. Here are the articles from our JUNE newsletter below.
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This past May and June mark two years since George Floyd's death and burial. Following his murder by a police officer racial justice protests and calls for police, reform spread across the country. President Joe Biden has signed a new executive order meant to change how police use force among other measures, which experts say is a small — but important — step in preventing more tragedies like Floyd's death. Harris County Commissioners Court has also called for motions for research and recommendations to engage in safer practices regarding the Use of Force, mental health, and substance abuse, as well as addressing racial and ethnic disparities. Below you can read the report by JAD that includes updates on initiatives sparked by the death of George Floyd. Additionally, Commissioner Rodney Ellis recently unveiled, "A Conversation with George" a statue to recognize Mr. Floyd.
View the Presentation here.
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JAD PRESENTS ACTION STEPS ON REQUESTS FROM COMMISSIONERS COURT SURROUNDING GEORGE FLOYD-INSPIRED INITIATIVES
On June 9th, 2020, the day of Mr. George Floyd’s funeral, Commissioners Court passed 11 motions meant to improve community safety by implementing reforms to create a more effective, fair, and equitable criminal legal system. This memo is in response to Precinct One Commissioner Rodney Ellis’ June 14, 2022, request for an update from the Justice Administration Department (JAD) regarding the motions that Commissioners Court approved.
This update includes a brief description of the motions, as well as links to relevant documents regarding the following topics: community engagement in the budgeting process; non-punitive responses to address issues of poverty, homelessness, mental health, and substance use; the impact of fines and fees on criminalizing poverty; a county-level emergency responder program; violence interruption; law enforcement best practices; indigent defense; and addressing root causes of racial and ethnic disparities.
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JULY
VIDEO SERIES HIGHLIGHTS JAD'S COLLABORATIVE WORK
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JULY - In the July newsletter, OJS released a series of videos that demonstrates the work and collaboration accomplished by OJS and our partners, stakeholders, and community. Take a look at the article and videos from our JULY newsletter below.
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Over the past few months, JAD had the opportunity to sit with some of our community partners, stakeholders, and colleagues to share thoughts on the value of JAD, collaboration, challenges, and opportunities to facilitate meaningful improvements in Harris County justice systems. In this edition of, In Progress, JAD would like to share with you this series of videos featuring Mike Lee, Assistant Chief, Harris County Sheriff's Department, Commander Caroleta Johnson, Houston Police Department, and member of the Racial Ethnic and Equity Committee with JAD, Chris Rivera, member of the Racial Ethnic and Equity Committee with JAD, and Jerry Garcia, Constable, Harris County Precinct 2.
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AUGUST
JAD REVEALS NEW NAME: THE OFFICE OF JUSTICE AND SAFETY (OJS) & CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL DISCUSSES JAIL POPULATION AND CRIMINAL CASE BACKLOG IN LATEST MEETING
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AUGUST - Name change! In the August newsletter, the department formerly known as JAD announces its new name, the Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) and the CJCC met to discuss jail population trends and work towards solutions to trend downward. Read the articles from our AUGUST newsletter below.
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We are thrilled to announce that the Harris County Justice Administration Department has changed its name to The Office of Justice and Safety. in the upcoming months OJS will make all necessary modifications to reflect our name.
Commissioners Court approved the change in our department’s name to better reflects the overarching Justice and Safety goal of Harris County that states: Harris County will promote safe, healthy, thriving communities through restorative and evidence-based strategies that foster public trust, prevent violence and trauma, reduce racial and economic disparities, and minimize criminal justice exposure where at all possible.
The newly named Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) is designed to be a think tank for Harris County. OJS will continue to serve Commissioners Court, work with the Office of County Administration, and support criminal justice and safety stakeholders while partnering collaboratively to assist the various key system actors to fulfill the goals and vision of the County. In particular, OJS will continue working to advance innovative approaches to justice consistent with the County’s Justice and Safety goals listed above.
This is an exciting time for the team, as well as for our partners and stakeholders as we continue offering research and data to help create a just, safe, and disparity-free community.
For more information, visit the OJS website here.
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL DISCUSSES JAIL POPULATION AND CRIMINAL CASE BACKLOG IN LATEST MEETING
The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, CJCC, met on August 18th to discuss the jail population, criminal case backlog trends, and efforts to continue developing solutions to these issues that have plagued our criminal justice system since Hurricane Harvey and throughout the pandemic.
The Chair of the Council, Commissioner Rodney Ellis, welcomed new member, the Honorable Judge Genesis Draper, who is the Presiding Judge of the Criminal Courts at Law. The Council voted for chair and vice-chair and re-elected Commissioner Rodney Ellis and Sheriff Ed Gonzalez to serve in those capacities for another year.
Commissioner Ellis articulated the goal of the meeting, which was to receive an update on the state of our jail population and court backlog. Deputy County Administrator of Justice and Safety Perrye Turner led the discussion, which included providing an overview of trends and key data points throughout the system. He shared some of the work members of the new CJCC Jail Population Subcommittee are exploring to address the case backlog and the jail population.
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Ron Cherry from Harris County Sheriff's Office updated the Council on jail population and data trends. Council members discussed various issues affecting the jail population and how stakeholders can work together to address these issues.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez spoke about the effort to re-purpose the Little Baker Jail to house 400 to 500 minimum and medium security female defendants, potentially freeing up much-needed space while having a positive impact on the lives of the women housed in Little Baker through greater programming offerings targeting their needs. Turner shared that the Harris County District Court active cases pending have experienced a 16 percent decrease.
There was robust discussion on improvement strategies from District Attorney Kim Ogg, Houston Police Chief Troy Finner, Honorable Kelli Johnson, Alexa Aragonez with Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office. Commissioner Adrian Garcia brought up the importance of effectively addressing issues with evidence, and Honorable Judge Kelli Johnson articulated some of the challenges courts are facing while highlighting the strategies they have implemented to address the criminal case backlog. DA Kim Ogg spoke about the importance of automation and a uniform system to capture evidence. Additionally, the council discussed information on the breakdown of evidence analysis for each respective agency, city, county, and DPS as an issue to be taken on with the case backlog issues. Overall, the participation of members demonstrates their commitment to addressing the challenges we face in the Council, which presents us with an opportunity for committees to dive deeper into topics discussed.
Council members were given a Jail Population report put together by the Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) at the request of the Council. The report provides observations, trends, and data points from July 2020-July to 2022 on the jail population, including data on pretrial detainees, post-adjudication, and other critical categories. OJS is working on enhancing and updating the report monthly to disseminate the information to members regularly.
Dr. Ana Yáñez Correa, Interim Director of the Office of Justice and Safety, asked the Council to review a list of questions related to data points to help address the rising criminal case backlog and jail populations as a region. She emphasized to members that this data could help inform future discussions and reports. Commissioner Ellis thanked Council members for working towards keeping the community safe and healthy and the criminal legal system fair and efficient.
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Commissioner Rodney Ellis and the members of the CJCC recognized Stephanie Armand, Program & Special Projects Administrator for the Office of Justice and Safety, for her dedication and hard work on the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council.
Stephanie left her position with OJS to take on the Criminal Division Operations Manager role with the District Courts. She will be missed by all from OJS and the CJCC.
The CJCC presentation can be found here, along with the documents from the meeting.
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SEPTEMBER
HARRIS COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH (HCPH) AND PARTNERS HOSTED THE INAUGURAL, VIOLENCE PREVENTION CONFERENCE: A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO PUBLIC SAFETY & A LOOK INTO HOW BAIL WORKS
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SEPTEMBER - In the September newsletter, OJS writes about being a part of the inaugural Violence Prevention Conference: A Holistic Approach to Public Safety at NRG Center on August 30th and 31st. The hybrid-style conference addressed local and national crime epidemics and introduced public health approaches to violence prevention. Plus, our policy team created a one-sheet guide to break down the bail system in Harris County. Read the articles from our SEPTEMBER newsletter below.
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Charles Blow, Author and Advocate |
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U.S. Representative, Lucy McBath |
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The Office of Justice and Safety was thrilled to be one of the partners of Harris County Public Health (HCPH), which hosted its first inaugural Violence Prevention Conference: A Holistic Approach to Public Safety at NRG Center on August 30th and 31st. The hybrid-style conference addressed local and national crime epidemics and introduced public health approaches to violence prevention. Approximately 300 attended the event in person, while more than 200 participated virtually. Many conference attendees appreciated the hybrid structure, particularly during a time when COVID and other infectious diseases are still prevalent.
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Dr. Arelia Johnson, Racial and Ethnic Disparities Administrator with the Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) stated, “Hybrid conferences are not easy to accomplish. However, the Violence Prevention Conference was seamless, well organized, and thought out.”
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The conference brought together a diverse group of presenters, professionals, practitioners, and community members with public policy, law enforcement, academia, social justice, and public health backgrounds. Both days were packed with engaging sessions, networking opportunities, and cultural entertainment. Speakers offered varied perspectives and valuable takeaways for attendees to consider and implement within their communities. |
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Iris Lewis of the Harris County Juvenile Probation Department cited, “bringing current and relevant issues to the conference, and discussing how people can affect change in systems [was critical]. The experiences shared by the presenters encouraged me to want to do more."
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Mayor Sylvester Turner commenced the conference, discussing Houston’s current crime statistics while ensuring the audience that public safety is still a top priority.
Commissioner Rodney Ellis followed, echoing the mayor’s eagerness to identify effective violence prevention strategies.
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Author and Advocate Charles Blow served as the keynote speaker on day one. Blow set the tone for the conference by sharing his personal story and experiences with violence and emphasized a need for change from the usual focus on punishment to more solutions that help communities. Additional main session speakers included Mr. Benneth Lee, CEO & Founder of the National Alliance for the Empowerment of the Formerly Incarcerated, and Dr. Jeff Temple, Director of the Center for Violence Prevention at the University of Texas Medical Branch
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Breakout sessions were offered throughout the day to provide participants with opportunities to delve deeper and facilitate discussions on violence-related topics.
Harris County departments led two sessions to educate participants on recently implemented programs aimed at addressing local crime.
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Harris County Sheriff’s Office Community Problem-Oriented Policing Unit presented on law enforcement’s approach to violence, and HCPH’s Community Health and Violence Prevention Services division discussed their new violence interruption programs. Other sessions addressed youth and school safety, domestic and sexual violence prevention, and the epidemiology and effects of pediatric firearm injuries.
Day two focused on root causes and solutions for violence with evidence-based policy and public health approaches offered to participants.
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Sheriff Ed Gonzalez and Commissioner Adrian Garcia kicked off the second day while main session speakers included Congresswoman Lucy McBath of Georgia, juvenile justice expert and head of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Elizabeth Ryan, Civil Rights leader Benjamin Todd Jealous, and Trauma Medical Director Dr. Shiree Berry. Elizabeth Ryan spoke about supporting families and youth to prevent crime. Jealous delivered a riveting speech emphasizing the importance of coalition building to ensure the adoption of public health approaches to end racial disparities. Breakout sessions addressed topics on credible messengers, the impact of violence outreach, community policing with a focus on youth, and methodologies for preventing crime. Dr. Chico Tillmon, Executive Director of READI at Heartland Alliance, closed out the conference by addressing the gun violence epidemic, highlighting the importance of violence interruption programs as solutions.
Dr. Ana Yáñez Correa, Interim Director at OJS, and Dr. Natosha Willis, Justice Policy Research Analyst who assisted, shared that “participants” are still raving about the dynamic and informative two-day event, speakers shared what an amazing job the Public Health team did making the conference a reality”.
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Youth Justice Policy Analyst Kelly Venci Gonzalez stated, “I thought the conference was one of the best I have attended. I thought the speakers were knowledgeable, interesting, and engaging.”
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Dr. Veronyka James, Survivor of Crime Specialist at OJS, who attended the conference in person, shared that she felt “Attendees left with a renewed passion for working toward preventing violence and eliminating the systems that have caused inequities in society which contribute to violence.”
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HCPH plans to hold the conference annually, aiming to host the next event in June 2023. Each year, HCPH hopes to continually engage local leaders and share evidence-based best practices for combatting crime and violence in Harris County and Texas communities and communities across the nation. As stated at the conference’s closing, “violence prevention is everyone’s responsibility… it shouldn’t have to affect you for you to care about it."
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A LOOK INTO HOW BAIL WORKS
The right to bail is a fundamental manifestation of the presumption of innocence and a key component of the justice system. OJS has created an infographic to help you understand the basics of bail in Harris County.
This infographic includes information on an individual’s right to bail, a court’s ability to deny an individual bail, the types of bail bonds used in Harris County, and a brief description of changes to local misdemeanor bail practices over time.
In case you’ve missed it, you can also look at our public-facing dashboard to improve transparency in Harris County’s bail practices. And our user guide provides more details about bail, the existing limitations, and our current practices.
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OCTOBER
OJS CREATES A SURVIVORS OF CRIME RESOURCE GUIDE & DATA & ANALYTICS HIGH SCHOOL INTERNS FIND DIRECT CORRELATION BETWEEN POVERTY AND CRIMES
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OCTOBER - In the October newsletter, OJS releases a Survivors of Crime Resource Guide. This guide was developed following a discussion with a crime survivor who had been unaware of the resources available to them. Plus, OJS interns create a dashboard that shows a direct correlation between poverty and crime. Read the articles from our OCTOBER newsletter below.
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OJS CREATES A SURVIVORS OF CRIME RESOURCE GUIDE
Following a discussion with a crime survivor who had not been aware of the resources available to them within Harris County, the Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) decided to create a Resource Guide for crime survivors.
This guide provides information on a variety of different service providers, from victim advocates with law enforcement to non-profit providers, for various types of victimization.
The guide is especially useful for those who have experienced victimization but do not necessarily want to report the crime to law enforcement. Most crime survivors learn of services following reporting to law enforcement, but research shows that only 30-50 percent of survivors choose to report. Those who do not may lack the necessary information on resources they can benefit from within Harris County or the City of Houston.
The Guide breaks down services by victimization type, so a survivor can quickly locate the service(s) that would be the most helpful to them, and by Harris County Commissioner Precinct.
The Guide will be helpful to anyone who has experienced victimization to find the resources that will be most helpful to them in their particular circumstance. It will also be helpful for service providers to connect with other providers and share resources.
You can find the Survivor of Crime Resource Guide on the OJS website here.
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DATA & ANALYTICS HIGH SCHOOL INTERNS FIND DIRECT CORRELATION BETWEEN POVERTY AND CRIMES
Last month, the OJS Data and Analytics team highlighted the pilot of their high school summer intern program and its inaugural interns, Shay Thotangare and Anisha Dasgupta. Both interns exemplified great aptitude and learned some advanced technical skills critical to completing data analysis during their internship. They can use these newly acquired skills in their future education and career goals.
They wanted to understand the historical and current violent crime rates in their community and the impacts of crime on residents in the community. By gathering unorganized data from multiple sources, the interns applied statistical techniques to organize the data, such as Index Crimes and U.S. Census Data. Once compiled, they analyzed the crime rates to the population census in six highly populated counties in Texas.
What they learned from this analysis was a direct correlation between poverty and violent crimes. They observed that the higher the crime rate of reported communities, the higher their poverty rate. The outcome of the exercise to gather, organize and analyze the data on their community is supported by similar studies in other communities in other states, such as Illinois.
Once they found this correlation, they wanted to share their newly gained knowledge to bring awareness to the community. They furthered their technical skills by developing a product that provided insight and transparency to their study, visually showing the direct correlation. They believed that greater awareness could help their community fix the underlying issues and reduce violent crime.
An example of their visualizations is below:
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OJS found this pilot summer intern program extremely rewarding by teaching youth wanting to learn advanced technical skills and who expressed a desire to make a difference by helping others. OJS is excited to offer this same program next year! |
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Anisha Dasgupta, Intern,
Office of Justice and Safety,
Data and Analytics
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Shray Thotangare, Intern,
Office of Justice and Safety,
Data and Analytics
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NOVEMBER
OJS COLLABORATES ON YOUTH ADVISORY BOARD
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NOVEMBER - In the November newsletter, OJS writes about our collaboration with the Youth Advisory Board to help build trust and understanding required for systems change of impacted youth and families. Read the articles from our NOVEMBER newsletter below.
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OJS COLLABORATES ON YOUTH ADVISORY BOARD
Earlier this year, The Office of Justice and Safety collaborated with Collective Action for Youth, or CA4Y, to form the OJS Youth Advisory Board with a generous grant from Annie E. Casey Foundation. CA4Y is an organization committed to developing a foundation of understanding, learning, and trust-building required for systems change of impacted youth and families. This Advisory Board is a group of systems-impacted young persons who provide input on juvenile justice matters. To date, the group has met six times and discussed everything from youth firearm violence to incarceration and reentry. Workgroups help youth understand the current workings of the criminal and juvenile justice system while developing leadership skills to foster change in the community. At one recent meeting, a panel of formerly incarcerated young people discussed how incarceration impacted them. Most panelists recounted that they believe things might have turned out differently had they had more supervision and structure during their formative years. One panelist mentioned that he had always been a part of a “system” and really did not know what life was like without one. Growing up in foster care bouncing from one home to another, as his mother was incarcerated and his father unknown, he ended up in the juvenile justice system for fighting at school and then in the criminal justice system. Another panelist lamented that he was exposed to the criminal element after his father was released from prison. Most youth participants agreed that structure, strong positive parental involvement, curfews, and activities to keep youth involved were very important to avoid criminal justice contact, but it was sometimes hard to do, especially when it was so easy to hang out with the wrong crowd.
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On November 10, 2022, Harris County also had the opportunity to attend and participate in Table Talk, sponsored by Collective Action for Youth (CA4Y) at Hester House. Table Talk provided an opportunity for stakeholders of the community and families to participate in conversations about the importance of community during a seated family-style meal. Stakeholders, youth, and family members participated in a guided conversation about the impact of justice involvement on the community where they reside. This session of Table Talk created a safe space for open and transparent conversations about systems transformation and the community. The families that participated felt a deeper connection with agencies, such as Change Happens, Harris County Juvenile Probation Department, Office of Justice and Safety, and the U.S. Department of Justice. Last month, Casey Foundation announced they will fund the advisory board for an additional year.
As Harris County works to increase the availability of community-based support for at-risk youth, the Youth Justice Reinvestment Fund is an important step in providing young persons with opportunities to remain engaged in pro-social activities during the inherently turbulent teenage years. The reinvestment fund will finance grassroots organizations to provide community-based programming to keep kids out of the juvenile justice system or community-based intervention if a youth is justice-involved. The application period for non-profit organizations to apply for funding closed in early October with a robust response from community-based organizations. Harris County looks forward to announcing sub-grantee awards in December of this year. The fund is administered in partnership with Juvenile Probation Department, Office of Justice and Safety, and Change Happens. Information can be found at: https://www.changehappenstx.org/ or contact Kelly Venci Gonzalez at [email protected]
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You can view all our videos on our channel
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The blog is up and running
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