TCJE in the News

Press Contact: For all media inquiries, please contact Madison Kaigh, Communications Manager, at mkaigh@TexasCJE.orgor (512) 441-8123, ext. 108.

 

Image via DMN of woman staring into distance

For the 78,000 people released from prisons in Texas every year, finding a job isn’t easy

LaTosha Williams blocks a tear from slipping down her cheek as she walks toward a Cedar Crest apartment she rented nearly three decades ago. The two- story complex off Bonnie View Road in Dallas takes her back to when she was a young wife with four kids, selling drugs out of an upstairs unit. Williams, then 21, balanced two rents, leasing another home just minutes away on Humphrey Drive, where she and her family lived.

Read the rest of this story from the Dallas Morning News.

Illustration of prison cell via Baylor Lariat

Focus on drug harm reduction, not punishment

The U.S. is fighting a losing battle with the War on Drugs — arrests for drug-related offenses continue to soar and deaths from drug overdoses are only increasing. The U.S. continues to disregard how drugs impact the lives of so many in the name of justice, and a change needs to be made. Instead of contributing to the over-criminalization of drugs, lawmakers should make a more significant effort with harm reduction. Lives are at stake.

Read the rest of this editorial from the Baylor Lariat.

State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, who represents part of Tarrant County and much of the area south of the Metroplex, proposed the bill in March. Image via KERA

Texas Senate passes bill to walk back Sandra Bland Act and investigate fewer jail deaths

The Texas Senate passed a bill Tuesday that would eliminate a requirement to investigate all deaths in county jails, making deaths from presumed natural causes exempt. Advocates say if it becomes law, jails could escape accountability for medical neglect. The state has required an outside law enforcement agency to investigate all jail deaths since 2017, with the passage of the Sandra Bland Act.

Read the rest of this story from KERA.

Giddings State School, a Texas Juvenile Justice Department correctional facility, in Lee County on July 20, 2022. ( Credit: Jolie McCullough/The Texas Tribune

“A way to throw kids away”: Texas’ troubled juvenile justice department is sending more children to adult prisons

Desperate to restore order within the walls of the five youth prisons it operates, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department has been asking judges to push more of its most troubled kids into the adult prison system.

Read the rest of this article from the Texas Tribune.

Video screengrab of two students smiling at each other

Proposed truancy law would nearly double fines on parents

Big changes could be coming to how unexcused absences are handled at your child's school. Some lawmakers want to increase the penalties for truancy. Not everyone is on board with this plan. Instead, wanting to address the root causes of the absences.

Read the rest of this story from FOX San Antonio.

The Texas legislature meets for only 140 days every two years.(CrackerClips Stock Media; Bryan Mullennix / Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Texas lawmakers could make it easier to kick students out of class

Texas teachers and school administrators could more easily kick misbehaving students out of class under a wide-ranging bill debated this week. In the weeks after the Uvalde massacre, a Lubbock Republican drew attention when he told his fellow lawmakers: “Not all kids belong in the classroom anymore.” Sen. Charles Perry pledged to tackle school discipline this session.

Read the rest of this story from the Dallas Morning News.

Screengrab from KDFM news video of reporter speaking in front of Beaumont Police logo

Beaumont police partners with Southeast Texas organization to tackle juvenile crime

The Beaumont Police Department began its partnership with Inspire, Encourage, Achieve five years ago in order to make a difference in the life of juveniles that are currently in the Minnie Rogers Juvenile Justice Center. There are 15 mentors that meet weekly with the juveniles to show them a positive outlook on life and help them believe in themselves.

Read the rest of this story from KDFM News.

Graphic via Texas Signal with Capitol, WTF TXLEGE, Move Texas and Signal logos

Change Can't Wait, Texas Is Overdue for Real Public Safety Solutions

In the Lone Star State, a person’s path through the justice system is rarely guided by justice. It’s guided by politics. A young person of color fears when a police car follows them, knowing some police scour the streets looking for an excuse to turn on their red and blues. A person short on cash can’t make bail, calling the jail their temporary home – a rich person cuts a check and walks immediately.

Read the rest of this story from the Texas Signal.

District 7 candidates Sandragrace Martinez, from left, Jacob Chapa, Dan Rossiter and Marina Alderete Gavito present their campaigns during a forum at Forest Hills Library on April 3. Credit: Bria Woods / San Antonio Report

Open District 7 seat draws field eager to bring fresh voices to City Council

The race to replace Ana Sandoval in San Antonio’s District 7 — a starting point for two recent mayors and a county commissioner — has drawn interest from a field of up-and-coming potential city leaders. While just one of them will join City Council in June, the race is unlikely to be the last for any of the District 7 hopefuls polishing their skills in recent candidate forums.

Read the rest of this article from the San Antonio Report.

The dome of the rotunda inside the Texas State Capitol | Image by Rudy Mareel/Shutterstock

Bill to Remove ‘Rogue’ DAs Passes Senate

A bill that would allow for the removal of district attorneys who institute non-prosecution policies has passed the Texas Senate with bipartisan support. Senate Bill 20, authored by Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston), passed the Senate earlier this month. The proposal passed by a vote of 20 to 11, with Sen. Juan Hinojosa (D-McAllen) voting alongside Republicans.

Read the rest of this story from Dallas Express.