What We're Reading
News that caught our attention or cited the Texas Justice Initiative from across the Lone Star State and beyond.
Texas prisons, jails worst COVID-19 hotspots of any in US
Published on November 10, 2020The Associated Press' Terry Wallace wrote about a new report by the LBJ School of Public Affairs that uses TJI's data to determine that – even when adjusted for size – "Texas still has the second-highest rate of COVID infections and is tied for the third-highest proportion of its prison population that has died from COVID, among the ten largest prison systems."
Sunset Advisory Commission Reviews TCJS
Published on November 6, 2020In Texas, state agencies generally expire every 12 years unless the Texas Legislature renews them in legislation. Before their expiration date (called "Sunset"), agencies are put under the microscope by the Sunset Advisory Commission, which reports to legislators. In November, the Commission published its evaluation (report, executive summary) of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, which oversees jails in Texas.
Why 4,998 died in U.S. jails without getting their day in court
Published on October 16, 2020Part 1 of Reuters' Dying Inside series examines 7,571 deaths of individuals held in 500 U.S. jails from 2008 to 2019, finding that death rates have risen over time. The journalists write: "At least two-thirds of the dead inmates identified by Reuters, 4,998 people, were never convicted of the charges on which they were being held."
How a 63-year-old inmate was the first to die from COVID-19 in the Dallas County jail
Published on October 16, 2020Reporters for The Dallas Morning News describe how Channel Lee Greer, 63, died of COVID-19 in June, three months after he was arrested on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a controlled substance. Dallas County officials announced Greer's death in August and filed a custodial death report in October.
A Carceral Crisis
Published on October 15, 2020A new report from the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security urges officials to take "urgent and swift action" to combat the spread of the novel coronavirus in jails and prisons. "The lack of preparation—the lack of a public health system—that exists in these facilities is really concerning," Crystal Watson, who co-authored the report, said.