Abbott’s Bail Crackdown Meets Mixed Fate in Texas House
The lower chamber approves key pieces—but only pieces—of the governor's pretrial incarceration agenda.
bail
Greg Abbott’s Power Grab on Bail Reform
Abbott’s executive order blocking jail releases during a pandemic highlights conservative opposition to the growing movement to end wealth-based detention in Texas.
Alec Karakatsanis on the ‘Usual Cruelty’ of the Criminal Justice System
In his book, Karakatsanis argues that lawyers and judges have become numb to the cruelties of the criminal justice system—and ultimately stand in the way of changing it.
‘A Watershed Moment’ for Bail Reform in Harris County
Advocates for criminal justice reform say this week’s settlement in Harris County’s bail lawsuit could reverberate far beyond Texas.
Texas Legislature Considers Bills to Break the Cycle of Debtor’s Prison
“It turns out that when you give someone reasonable financial demands, they actually try to meet the commitment instead of ignoring it as unpayable.”
The Midterms Trigger a Seismic Shift in Harris County’s Courts
Among the Democrats who won all 59 judicial seats at play in the midterms: a socialist and 19 black women running on criminal justice reform.
Civil Rights Groups are Changing Bail Practices in Texas, One City at a Time
On Thursday, a federal judge ruled against Dallas County’s strict reliance on cash bail, saying it discriminates against poor people and violates their equal protection rights.
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Videos of Dallas Bail Hearings Show Assembly-Line Justice in Action
Footage obtained by the Observer shows cursory bail hearings that routinely last fewer than 15 seconds.
Ahead of Mother’s Day, Activists Bail Out Young Black Moms Across Texas
Organizers who raised money to bail out black mothers across the state are part of a movement seeking to end what civil rights groups call “wealth-based detention.”
Galveston Lawsuit Is Writing on the Wall for Other Counties that Haven’t Ended ‘Wealth-Based Detention’
The lawsuit is now one of several across Texas seeking to end the practice of keeping people in jail just because they’re poor.