Harris County’s Justice Administration Department analyzes data to identify and develop recommendations to solve issues in the county’s criminal justice system. SOURCES: RESTORING JUSTICE, HARRIS COUNTY JUSTICE ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
SCRUTINIZING THE SYSTEM
KEY
Dashboard
Recent improvements
TRAFFIC STOP DEMOGRAPHICS
Challenges in the system JAD Special Projects Administra- tor Stephanie Armand said a series of disasters in recent years—from Hur- ricane Harvey to the pandemic—has put the county at a disadvantage. Ine ciencies, such as judges shar- ing courtroom spaces and courts shifting to Zoom operations for sev- eral months, meant case backlogs grew signi cantly, Armand said. Rec- ommendations from the JAD to help chip away at that backlog included providing additional spaces for jury trials and bringing in resources to assist with logging evidence at the sheri ’s o ce. Armand said the case backlog declined from 95,000 in June to 89,000 in November, crediting the Commissioners Court’s investments in jury operations as the most signif- icant factor. “In a di erent world, [the JAD] would be an agency that can proac- tively look at reports and do a lot of things that address issues that people are curious about, but in this world SOLUTIONS The JAD created a dashboard to better track who is getting court- appointed attorneys by judge. Commissioners Court approved the JAD’s advisory model U visa policy, which helps noncitizen survivors of crime come forward without fear of deportation. PROBLEM Public defenders are only appointed in 11.93% of cases. ATTORNEY APPOINTMENTS
JAIL OVERCROWDING
CASE BACKLOG
PROBLEM As of Feb. 15, the Harris County Jail had 9,280 of its 9,369 beds lled, raising
PROBLEM Courts have been operating at 25% in-person capacity
PROBLEM Men were twice as likely as women to be pulled over. More citations were issued in lieu of verbal warnings to Hispanic drivers . Force that results in bodily injury was used against Black drivers more frequently than other groups. created a dashboard with tra c stop data from law enforcement agencies statewide. Some local law enforcement agencies disseminate a card at tra c stops which drivers can use to relay complaints. JAD recommended agencies add a racial pro ling complaint form on their websites in English and Spanish. The JAD is creating a use-of-force policy tool kit for county law enforcement agencies. SOLUTIONS The JAD
concerns about overcrowding.
99% of beds
when Harris County is in coronavirus threat level red, making it more di cult to hold jury trials and causing case backlogs. SOLUTIONS Commissioners Court investments in jury operations helped reduce case backlog from 95,000 in June Attorney’s O ce added resources to the sheri ’s o ce to assist with the discovery process. Commissioners Court approved the expansion of emergency response dockets that make use of visiting judges. Drew Wiley, CEO and founder of Restoring Justice, another Hous- ton-area nonpro t, said when he started the organization in 2016, 97% of indigent cases were appointed to private attorneys whowere juggling up to 10 times the state-researched maxi- mum caseload. Six years later, that number has decreased as the county public defender’s o ce takes on more indigent cases. But Wiley said there is still much work to be done. “The hardest thing is that the people in the jail are not feeling the e ects of anything that’s been done by system actors,” he said. “It’s always Commis- sioners Court, in response to George Floyd protests—they want to issue these studies and these narratives. And that’s ne, [but] showme one person in jail that has been positively impacted by the action you want to do.” to 89,000 in November. The Harris County District
right now, it’s been about damage control, about supporting Commis- sioners Court, helping as many play- ers as possible to get through some of these challenges,” Correa said. Still, data from the JAD has high- lighted challenges, including racial pro ling in law enforcement agencies across the county. A June report found Hispanic drivers were more likely to receive citations and Black drivers were more likely to experience bodily injury because of the use of force than other racial and ethnic groups. “I think it’s been proven over and over again through research and data that there is a racial injustice problem in Harris County,” Wiley said. “I think things like that is what JAD is pulling together to hopefully convince more people ... to start acting to change things for individuals.” Addressing public safety In addition to investing in jury operations, Commissioners Court has taken steps to help reduce crime and alleviate system challenges. In 2021, the court approved a $50 million neighborhood cleanup initiative in high-crime areas and SOLUTIONS The JAD’s website houses a dashboard created to understand the jail population, including inmate demographics and o enses.
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This data and collaboration with other criminal justice agencies help JAD o cials develop recommenda- tions for potential improvements. “Our clients falling through the cracks happens so much because we’re working with this system that is constantly inundated and stretched. People get lost in the system, and if we’re able to look at those trends and identify where those gaps are and address them, I think we would be much better o ,” said Stephanie Truong, program director of Beacon Law, a program of Houston-based nonpro t The Beacon, which serves individuals facing homelessness.
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