Tag Archives: jails

How about that other coronavirus hot spot?

Posted on May 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You know, prisons? For more than fifty years, Palestine, Texas, has been known as a prison town. Most of the time, that hasn’t been a problem. True, it was a bit controversial in the 1960s when the Texas corrections department … Continue reading →

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Judges have to do their part

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Some could be doing better. Harris County’s largest association of criminal defense attorneys on Monday called on local judges to halt in-person court appearances to help prevent the spread of coronavirus. As the virus has swept across the nation, it … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s stay-in-jail order blocked and then unblocked

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This was Friday. A state district judge in Travis County has temporarily blocked enforcement of Gov. Greg Abbott’s order to limit jail releases during the new coronavirus pandemic. She cited unconstitutional provisions and overreach of executive power in the gubernatorial … Continue reading →

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We still have no idea how many people have been infected

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There’s just a real lack of testing being done. Six times in three weeks, Marci Rosenberg and her ailing husband and teenage children tried to get tested for the new coronavirus — only to be turned away each time, either … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus and crime

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It’s down around the country. Turns out having everyone stay inside has a salutary effect, for the most part. Crime rates plunged in cities and counties across the U.S. over the second half of March as the coronavirus pandemic drove … Continue reading →

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Stockman seeks a pardon

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, my God, this may be the most 2020 story ever. Former U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman, who is serving a 10-year federal prison stint for a complex campaign corruption scheme, is seeking a presidential pardon amid the growing coronavirus pandemic. … Continue reading →

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Another lawsuit filed over Abbott’s stay-in-jail order

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

There’s no slowdown in the litigation business, that’s for sure. Gov. Greg Abbott’s order restricting the release of some jail inmates during the new coronavirus pandemic is facing a second court challenge arguing his order violates the constitutional separation of … Continue reading →

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Another obstacle to releasing inmates

Posted on April 5, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

One step forward, one step back. As fear and COVID-19 crept though the Harris County Jail, felony judges halted the release of low-risk inmates on Friday, blocking the county chief executive’s order to free them to await trial. Sheriff Ed … Continue reading →

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The state of inmate releases

Posted on April 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County judges are going to follow the federal bail lawsuit settlement agreement and not Greg Abbott. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has moved to restrict the release of people in jail during the coronavirus pandemic — but Harris County’s misdemeanor … Continue reading →

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More on Abbott’s stay-in-jail order

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s that more detailed Chron story I referenced yesterday. I’m just going to quote the newer information about Greg Abbott’s executive order that attempts to basically stop most releases of inmates from the jail regardless of the coronavirus situation. The … Continue reading →

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The rest of the H-GAC region

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

As long as we’ve been talking about Waller County and Montgomery County, I thought I’d check in on the other members of the Houston-Galveston Area Council region. Harris County and six of its seven neighbors – Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, … Continue reading →

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Still trying to do something about the coronavirus risk in the jail

Posted on March 30, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Time is extremely limited for this. A federal judge Friday asked lawyers to hammer out a plan for releasing about 1,000 indigent inmates detained on bonds of $10,000 or less amid fear of a COVID-19 outbreak at the third largest … Continue reading →

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Another review of Judge Hidalgo’s first year

Posted on March 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Though, oddly enough in a story about Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo’s first year in office, most of the text is about outgoing Commissioner Steve Radack and the two-year-long temper tantrum he’s been throwing. For many years, the Harris County … Continue reading →

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Reducing the coronavirus risk in jail

Posted on March 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is an obvious step to take. More than 8,500 people are housed inside the Harris County jail, and thousands more move through the building and return to their communities each day to keep the criminal justice juggernaut running. Sheriff … Continue reading →

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Emergency orders extended

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

In Houston. City council on Tuesday extended Houston’s emergency health declaration, reflecting a warning by Mayor Sylvester Turner that the public health crisis fueled by the spread of COVID-19 will not go away anytime soon. “This is a crisis. I … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus and the courts

Posted on March 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

More things that will be shut down for the time being. Courts in the Houston region are announcing measures to reduce or suspend some operations in response to the new coronavirus outbreak and local declarations of emergency. Harris County’s court … Continue reading →

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Meet your bail reform overseers

Posted on March 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

They’re where the buck will stop. A federal judge Tuesday approved the choice of a Duke University law professor to oversee Harris County’s historic bail reform agreement that governs what happens to thousands of people arrested on low-level offenses. Chief … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For Menefee

Posted on February 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We have our first major endorsement against an incumbent as the Chron recommends Christian Menefee for County Attorney over Vince Ryan. Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan’s decision to spend millions of dollars and waste precious legal resources to prolong the … Continue reading →

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The Observer overviews the DA primary

Posted on February 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You’ve had a chance to listen to my interviews with DA candidates, now read this story for more on this important primary. When Kim Ogg first ran for Harris County district attorney, she had a simple pitch for criminal justice … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Ed again

Posted on February 10, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is an easy call. [Sheriff Ed] Gonzalez, 50, a soft-spoken Houston native, former councilman and 18-year veteran of the Houston Police Department, ran as a reformer and he hasn’t disappointed in his first term. From taking a bold stance … Continue reading →

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Cite and release

Posted on February 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This has been a long time coming. Harris County law enforcement officials on Tuesday will begin a “cite and release” program that treats some misdemeanor charges like court citations for speeding tickets, just days after the district attorney’s office said … Continue reading →

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Judge officially approves final Harris County bail settlement

Posted on November 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s officially finally final and official. A federal judge has signed off on a historic bail reform agreement for Harris County, setting in place new protections for people accused of minor offenses in the country’s third largest criminal justice system. … Continue reading →

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Last bail lawsuit hearing

Posted on October 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

At least I assume it’s the last one. I’ve been thinking this was all over but for the formality for months now, so what do I know? Dianna Williams has witnessed the “collateral damage” of jailing on the fabric of … Continue reading →

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Ogg continues to have problems with the bail settlement

Posted on October 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t like this. District Attorney Kim Ogg is rallying police officers across Harris County to show up in federal court en masse to oppose to a landmark bail reform agreement at a final hearing set for this month. She … Continue reading →

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Galveston ordered to provide counsel at bail hearings

Posted on September 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Sure seems like the proper thing to do. Add Galveston to the list of Texas counties that have been court ordered to change their bail practices. A federal district judge on Wednesday issued a temporary injunction in a 2018 lawsuit … Continue reading →

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One more step towards the bail lawsuit settlement

Posted on September 7, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

We’re almost there. I know it feels like we’ve been there for awhile and are just waiting for it all to become official, but there were still a few checkpoints to get through first, and this is one of them. … Continue reading →

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More ways to improve access to voting

Posted on September 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

In Harris County: Inmates of the Harris County Jail may soon be able to vote. Harris County leaders have approved a study on setting up a polling location at the jail as early as this November. The County Clerk’s and … Continue reading →

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The felony judges who abused the bail system

Posted on September 1, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Shame on them all. Three sitting judges and eight former district judges in Harris County were publicly admonished by the State Commission on Judicial Conduct in response to complaints that for years they violated state law and judicial cannons by … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court approves bail lawsuit settlement

Posted on July 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Excellent. Harris County Commissioners Court approved a historic settlement Tuesday fixing a bail system a federal judge found unconstitutional and ushering in a new era for criminal justice in one of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas. The deal resulted from … Continue reading →

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Final bail settlement reached

Posted on July 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

We are coming to the end of a very long road. A long-awaited settlement in Harris County’s historic bail lawsuit won tentative approval Friday from all parties, setting up a possible end to a contentious system that kept poor people … Continue reading →

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The Sandra Bland cellphone video

Posted on May 13, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. New cellphone footage from the now infamous traffic stop of Sandra Bland shows her perspective when a Texas state trooper points a Taser and yells, “I will light you up!” Bland, 28, was found dead three days later in … Continue reading →

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House passes a bail reform bill

Posted on May 10, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

For what it’s worth. The Texas House gave an initial stamp of approval Thursday to a bill that addresses bail practices, which courts recently deemed unconstitutional in the state’s two most populous counties for discriminating against poor criminal defendants who … Continue reading →

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We need more than just bail reform

Posted on April 17, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Bail reform is based on the radical idea that locking up non-violent, low-risk people who have been arrested on minor charges is a very bad and very expensive thing to do. But let’s take a step back from that and … Continue reading →

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Bail lawsuit settlement outline taking shape

Posted on April 15, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

We should have a final version in a couple of weeks. A proposed settlement in the landmark Harris County bail lawsuit would significantly change how the county treats poor defendants in misdemeanor cases by providing free social and transportation services … Continue reading →

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