Criminal Justice
Clogged Toilets, Snow Inside: How the Winter Storm Exacerbated Problems in Texas Lock-Ups
After the near-total collapse of the state’s electric grid, many jails and prisons lacked heat and running water.
Why Didn’t San Antonio Police Immediately Apply First Aid To Darrell Zemault Sr. After Shooting Him?
Bystander videos show that officers waited a full minute before administering care.
From Jail to the Streets: One Texan’s Story During COVID-19
The homeless are 11 times more likely to be incarcerated than the rest of the population.
In a Pandemic, Poor Defendants Could Pay With Their Lives
COVID-19 lays bare the fundamental inequalities that a cash bond system creates, and highlights the unsafe conditions our jails and prisons have designed.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott Opens His Mind to Marijuana Decriminalization… Kinda
Activists say Abbott’s moderated stance is “huge,” but his call for reform still lags behind Texas Republicans and the general public.
In Rare Legal Move, the City of Amarillo Takes Landowner to Court Over Homeless Camp
Experts say the city’s lawsuit, filed this month against a man who allowed a homeless camp to be developed on his property, is virtually unprecedented.
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San Antonio, Dallas Primaries Could Usher in Prosecutors Who Promise a More Equal Criminal Justice System
Reformers have targeted Texas primary races where candidates promise bail reform and jail diversion.
Lawsuit Questions How Port Arthur Police, Hospital Staff Respond to Mentally Ill Patients
Family claims police and hospital guards cornered a schizophrenic man then smothered him to death when he refused to remove his underwear.
Problems Hide in Plain Sight at Texas’ Youth Lockups
Critics say Texas’ five remaining juvenile prisons not only fail to rehabilitate young people but “actually make them worse.”