Press Room

Laura Lucas

Deputy Director of Communications and Outreach
Harris County Justice Administration Department
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HARRIS COUNTY MISDEMEANOR BAIL REFORM IS HELPING TO REDUCE CRIME

09/08/2022

HARRIS COUNTY– (September 8, 2022) – Harris County continues to see positive results from the misdemeanor bail reforms implemented over two years ago through the ODonnellConsent Decree. The independent monitors overseeing Harris County’s historic misdemeanor reform filed their fifth report on September 3, 2022.

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THE OFFICE OF JUSTICE AND SAFETY (OJS) SEEKING PROPOSALS FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT GRANTS

09/05/2022

HARRIS COUNTY (September 4, 2022) – The Office of Justice and Safety (OJS) is seeking proposals from qualifying organizations for Community Engagement grants. The grants will provide funding for direct services that are preventative interventions to incarceration and provide: crime prevention and decreasing recidivism by providing support to those that are justice-involved.

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THE HARRIS COUNTY JUSTICE ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT (JAD) ANNOUNCES INTERMEDIARY FOR THE YOUTH JUSTICE COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT FUND

05/05/2022

HARRIS COUNTY– (May 5, 2022) – How do you reduce the incarceration and detention of youth and in particular, young people of color in Harris County? Engaging in a pilot program, the Youth Justice Community Reinvestment Fund, that aims to shift the focus from locking up young people who may be at risk of getting into trouble with the law to investing in community solutions to prevent crime.

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HARRIS COUNTY MISDEMEANOR BAIL REFORM IS HAVING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE COUNTY

03/16/2022

HARRIS COUNTY– (March 16, 2022) – Harris County is seeing positive results from the misdemeanor bail reforms implemented two years ago through the ODonnell Consent Decree. The independent monitors (led by Professor Brandon Garrett from Duke University) overseeing Harris County's historic misdemeanor bail reform recently presented their findings from their regular report to the ODonnell court to Commissioners Court.

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Harris County awarded additional $500,000 by MacArthur Foundation Safety and Justice Challenge to rethink local justice system

04/28/2021

HARRIS COUNTY (April 28, 2021) – Harris County is the recipient of a $500,000 grant by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to continue building on efforts in collaboration with local leaders and the community to rethink the local criminal justice system, safely reduce Harris County’s jail population, and eliminate racial inequities.

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Learn About the County Request for Proposal (RFP) Process with the Harris County Justice Administration Department and Redefining Youth Justice Coalition

04/12/2021

The Justice Administration Department (JAD), Redefining Youth Justice Coalition, and Harris County Juvenile Probation Department invite community members to engage in free Coach Up sessions. The Coach Ups are meant to assist interested community members in navigating the Request for Proposal (RFP) process.

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COMMUNITY STAKEHOLDERS ANNOUNCE A NEW STRATEGY TO REFORM THE JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM IN HARRIS COUNTY

03/09/2021

The Harris County Judge’s Office, Harris County Juvenile Probation, The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD, the Harris County Justice Administration Department, and other community stakeholders have recently completed a Critical Intervention Mapping of the Harris County juvenile justice system. The Critical Intervention Map serves as a framework for juvenile justice and mental health systems to use when developing strategies to improve mental health services for youth involved in the juvenile justice system.

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MEMO RELEASE STATES THAT MISDEAMONOR BAIL REFORM IS NOT CONTRIBUTING TO AN INCREASE IN VIOLENT CRIME IN HARRIS COUNTY

03/03/2021

Harris County, Texas’ most populous county, changed its bail practices for misdemeanor defendants between 2017 and 2019 following a lawsuit challenging cash bail. This memo provides an overview of the implementation of the ODonnell Consent Decree, general trends in violent crime across the country, in the city of Houston, and Harris County. The report also describes the Justice Administration Department’s approach to addressing violence and supporting crime survivors.

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Kenneth's Interview - VIDEO

10/16/2020

The Harris County Commissioners Court voted unanimously this week to name, Kenneth Hardin as director for the county’s first-ever Managed Assigned Counsel (MAC) program. Isiah Carey welcomed Hardin on his FOX 26 HOUSTON program, The Isiah Factor to discuss his new role, MAC, criminal justice reform.

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