Has the new year brought with it new realities to the Harris County Jail (HCJ)? According to some state officials and criminal justice reform advocates, no; 2024 has thus far offered more of the same.
And that can’t be good. Because since 2022, Harris County Jail has made national news with its myriad of issues, including a record number of in-custody deaths. And even though 2023 saw millions of dollars directed to the jail, issues of beatings, “band-aid” fixes, a lack of public transparency, and a rising death toll, remain.
Here are eight things to know about HCJ’s recent history, current reality, and future direction.
#1: Deaths and Beatings
If the past is prologue, then the New Year’s Day 2023 death of Jacoby Pillow, who was jailed for trespassing, and scheduled to be released on a $100 personal bond just two days later, should not have been a surprise. As of Dec. 19, 2023, at least 19 people died while in custody, following the mind-numbing record number of 27 in-custody deaths in 2022.
Last year, the FBI opened an investigation into Pillow’s death, along with Jaquaree Simmons’ 2021 death, that potentially came from a beating at the hands of multiple detention officers. By the way, one those officers was charged with manslaughter.
The Defender reported on several lawsuits spotlighting the beatings and deaths in HCJ, including a federal suit filed in August headed by Attorney Ben Crump by family members of individuals jail and some who were formerly incarcerated, but all offering similar reports of violent mistreatment and a lack of timely medical care, with some outright reporting being denied access to crucial medications.
#2: Violation City
The year 2022 saw HCJ accused of continuously violating statewide safety standards. The violations focused on breaking the law via keeping people in holding cells for longer than the legal limit, the aforementioned lack of timely medical care, and gross staffing shortages.
#3: Under-staffed
Several entities have sounded the alarm about HCJ understaffing. Houston Public Media reported that during the Texas Commission on Jail Standards’ quarterly meeting in November 2023, the commission threatened to reduce the jail’s capacity if staffing levels weren’t stabilized.
Commissioners Court invested more money last September into the sheriff’s office, hoping a 12% salary increase for detention officers would produce improved recruiting and retention numbers. Though nearly three months have passed since the pay raise, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office says it’s too early to know if that strategy is a winner. What is known is roughly 150 detention officer vacancies still remain in HCJ.
#4: Capacity Issues
While local and state officials blame insufficient staffing levels for HCJ issues, criminal justice reform advocates place the blame on the incarceration profit motive which invites overcrowding, and an unsafe number of people being jailed, considered innocent, yet waiting on average 200 days in jail before appearing before a judge. And just for context, that 200 days blows away the national average 30 days, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
A 2020 Justice Management Institute report called for the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to make “uncomfortable, but necessary changes” by dismissing “all non-violent felony cases older than nine months.” The goal: alleviating the growing number of pending cases.
Krishnaveni Gundu, the executive director of the Texas Jail Project, cited that report when calling for the same thing: for county officials to lower the jail population by dismissing nonviolent low-level charges.
Deeming that suggestion as “unrealistic,” District Attorney Kim Ogg advocated for more prosecutors and courts to expedite the county’s 100K-plus lingering criminal and civil court cases.
More money was also directed to the sheriff’s office to hire five Jail Population Specialists. Their mission: to identify stagnant cases to speed up cases and lower detainee numbers.
#5: Outsourcing Band-Aid
As of mid-December 2023), HCJ listed 9,024 people in custody. However, nearly 15% of that number (1,330) were outsourced to private facilities in Louisiana, Northwest Texas and Beaumont, according to the county’s jail dashboard. Hundreds more have been or will soon be jailed in the Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility in Mississippi, a privately owned medium-security prison located 500 miles from Houston – a reality considered cruel and unusual to family members of those “outsourced souls.
According to County Judge Lina Hidalgo, whose Commissioner’s Court approved in November 2023 another outsourcing contract – even though commissioners say outsourcing isn’t a solution, the tactic is used in order to complying with state safety standards. Activist Gundu agrees with commissioners that outsourcing isn’t the answer, but went a step further, comparing the strategy to putting “a Band-Aid on cancer.”
#6: Lack of Transparency
One of the big criticisms of HCJ and the Harris County Sheriff’s Office has been regarding the lack of transparency, especially as it relates to the slow release of police body cam footage of controversial cases, or the fact that some footage has never been released.
With that being the criticism from family members reporting loved ones potentially killed and/or abused by HCJ employees, one of the solutions offered seems almost nonsensical – more money for more body cameras, a move approved by county officials.
According to Spencer, the sheriff’s office is hopeful that the cameras “will promote public trust through greater transparency.” But Gundu says they shouldn’t hold their breath waiting for more public trust.
“What is the point of these other body cameras that you’re going to start using? We can’t trust you to release what you already have,” added Gundu.
#7: Drug Smuggling
Last November, a Houston attorney and a detention officer were both arrested for allegedly smuggling drugs into the jail. HCJ officials have responded to an investigation pointing to this drug smuggling as a growing problem, by implementing stricter HCJ visitor screening protocols and upping the number of drug dogs. The hope is, that these measures will reverse the current trend of an increased influx of drugs.
#8: Additional Efforts
Houston Public Media reported that Harris County’s engineering department will continue conducting a study analyzing the jail’s infrastructure, a move slated to generate recommendations for HCJ upgrades to address the institution’s issues. The study is scheduled to be nearing completion before February.
More reporting is also being advanced as a tactic to bring about HCJ improvements. Late last year, Harris County’s Office of the County Administration began providing Commissioners Court meetings with updates about the jail and the county’s retention efforts.
