A look at changes in the criminal justice system considered by the 88th Texas Legislature.
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Two important bills that can make an impact on the court system are making their way before the legislature in Austin this session.
The first bill is Senate Bill 402, the sponsors' goals are to prioritize murder and capital murder court cases.
The other is House Bill 130, it's the push for more courts to alleviate the backlog in Harris County.
This week, Harris County commissioners approved support for HB130 which would add six criminal courts in Harris County.
Here's why it's important.
"We haven't added but one court since 1984," county Commissioner Adrian Garcia said.
Since then, he says the population of Harris County has roughly doubled.
"So this is critical when you think about the growth and exposure of our population that we have to have a system that is sustainable from the standpoint of the need that comes our way," Garcia added.
State Rep. Ann Johnson, D-Houston, a sponsor of the bill, said in a statement that the citizens of Harris County need help restoring their faith in the justice system. According to lawmakers, in Harris County, there are more than 1,800 murder or capital murder cases still awaiting trial. Supporters of the bill hope it won't only reduce the backlog at the courthouse but the overcrowding at the jail. Meanwhile, critics are worried about the cost.
"From a budgetary, having a well-run courthouse has an impact on the sheriff's jail operations...it can keep us from having to outsource inmates that cost us over 11 million dollars a year," Garcia said.
A separate bill was passed by the Senate, SB402, this week that would prioritize murder and capital murder cases over other criminal trials. That bill has to pass the house before it can become law. Two important pieces of legislation we're watching closely.
Also:
- Proposal to add more criminal courts to help ease backlog in Harris County.
Should Harris County add six extra district courts?
Harris County commissioners are exploring the proposal as a way to reduce the county's huge criminal case backlog.
As of Tuesday, there are 10,016 inmates at the Harris County Jail. 13 investigates reported jail overcrowding for more than a year.
So far, in 2023, four inmates have died. On Friday, Eyewitness News reported the jail is, once again, on the state inspector's non-compliance list.
According to district court statistics, there are more than 39,000 active cases pending. About 32% of them are more than a year old.
Adding courts isn't a new idea. Harris County brought in multiple visiting judges in January 2021 for the same purpose.
Since two Harris County commissioners court members boycotted multiple meetings in 2022, commissioners were unable to pass a new budget last year, and there are funding questions this year.
This proposal would mean asking the state legislature to allocate more money to put in the extra courts.
On Tuesday, every single commissioner expressed support for the plan. But a decision was delayed for another three weeks, while commissioners gathered more information.
"We've seen a 24% reduction in the backlog, but the jail is more overcrowded than ever. So does going through these things faster actually reduce overcrowded in the jail? Why is it that the jail population keeps growing? That's an open question that I'm going to ask our departments to go look into," County Judge Lina Hidalgo said.
The county budget office said the plan would cost an estimated $30 million in start-up costs and about $16 million in operating fees every year.
