TCJC Press Releases

Press Contact: For all media inquiries, please contact Madison Kaigh, Communications Manager, at mkaigh@TexasCJC.org or (512) 441-8123, ext. 108.

 

NEW REPORT: Texas Criminal Justice Coalition Releases Youth Justice Report

October 8, 2019

Today, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition (TCJC) released its newest report, which shares the stories of youth, families, and justice practitioners impacted by Texas’ failure to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 17 to 18. “Seventeen in the Adult Justice System,” which is available online here, comes after the fourth state legislative session in which TCJC and its allies have worked to “raise the age” to align with best practices in the 46 states where 17-year-olds are no longer automatically charged as adults.

Read the rest of this press release here.

EVENT: Texas Criminal Justice Coalition Hosts Speakers on Youth Justice

October 3, 2019

Next week, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition (TCJC) will host an event highlighting the youth, families, and justice practitioners impacted by Texas’ failure to raise the age of criminal responsibility from 17 to 18. Texas is one of four states left in the United States to “raise the age.” The event, hosted during Youth Justice Action Month, will feature people in TCJC’s newest report through a photo gallery and on-site speakers.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Texas Criminal Justice Coalition Releases Bill Analysis Guide

September 4, 2019

Last week, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition (TCJC) released a guide to positive youth and adult justice legislation that became law in Texas in 2019. The guide, which is organized by bill area, is free and available online at the TCJC website.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Texas Criminal Justice Coalition's Dallas County Data Dashboard

Texas Criminal Justice Coalition Launches Dallas County Data Dashboard

April 29, 2019

Following the launch of a first-of-its-kind criminal justice data dashboard in Harris County late last year, the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition is proud to announce that its Dallas County dashboard is now live.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Shares Lessons Learned from Youth Justice Visioning Sessions Across Texas

March 21, 2019

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition held a series of community visioning sessions across Texas, from July through October 2018, to answer this question: What do young people need to avoid justice system involvement and lead successful lives?

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Explains the Link Between Homelessness and Justice System Involvement

February 21, 2019

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition released the final report in its "One Size Fails All" report series.  The report, Return to Nowhwere: The Revolving Door Between Incarceration and Homelessness, examines the undeniable link between homelessness and criminal justice system involvement, and the factors that contribute to both. It offers recommendations to end the chronic pattern that wastes lives and squanders resources that could be better used to address the factors leading to homelessness.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Community Advocacy Group Opposes Harris County District Attorney’s Budget Request for 102 Additional Prosecutors

February 5, 2019

TCJC joins with others to oppose Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg’s budget request to fund 102 new prosecutors. TCJC urges county officials to further examine the request for more funding.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Finds LGBTQ People are Often Unseen but Frequently Incarcerated

October 31, 2018

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition released the third report in its “One Size FAILS All” report series. The report, Out of Sight: LGBTQ Youth and Adults in Texas Justice Systems, explores how the Lone Star State often fails to adequately address the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) Texans, and instead frequently moves them into the youth and adult justice systems at higher rates than people in the non-LGBTQ community.

Read the rest of this press release here.

A Failure in the Fourth Degree: Reforming the State Jail Felony System in Texas

October 16, 2018

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition released the second report in its “One Size FAILS All” report series. The report, A Failure in the Fourth Degree: Reforming the State Jail Felony System in Texas, demonstrates through data and personal interviews with 140 incarcerated individuals the defective nature of Texas’ state jail system, and it puts forth actionable policy recommendations for consideration by the 2019 Texas Legislature.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Health and Advocacy Organizations Urge the Texas Legislature to Implement Effective Strategies to Address Substance Use Disorder

August 7, 2018

A coalition of health and advocacy groups have jointly developed recommendations to address substance use disorder in Texas.

Read the rest of this press release here.

One Size FAILS All: Why Probation Doesn’t Work for Young Adults in Texas

August 2, 2018

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition released its newest report today, which examines how Texas’ probation system continuously fails young adults. The report, Young Adults and Community Supervision: The Need for a Developmentally Appropriate Approach to Probation, reveals that traditional probation practices are ineffective with 17- to 25-year-olds on adult felony probation.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Highlights Issues Facing Women in Texas' Criminal Justice System

April 24, 2018

Today, TCJC released part two of a two-part report series on women in Texas prisons and jails. An Unsupported Population: The Treatment of Women in Texas’ Criminal Justice System explores the unique issues facing women impacted by the criminal justice system and makes recommendations for programs and policies that treat women with dignity and increase the likelihood that they can successfully rejoin their families and communities.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Shows Growing Number of Women in Texas Prisons and Jails

March 8, 2018

Today, TCJC released part one of a two-part report series on women in Texas prisons and jails. A Growing Population: The Surge of Women into Texas’ Criminal Justice System examines the staggering rise in the number of women in Texas’ justice system and makes recommendations for programs and policies that can reverse this trend and effectively redirect women away from incarceration.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Juvenile Justice Coalition Calls for Sweeping Reforms To Texas Juvenile Justice System

November 30, 2017

A group of juvenile justice reform advocates sent a letter today to Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and House Speaker Joe Straus calling for moving youth in state juvenile facilities to local juvenile probation, community programs, and small rehabilitative facilities closer to youth’s families, and urged legislators to develop a plan to close down all state secure juvenile facilities.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Texas Advocates and Legislators Show Support for Juvenile Justice

October 20, 2017

A group of juvenile justice reform advocates hosted a press conference at the Texas Capitol today as part of Youth Justice Action Month calling for a new commitment to juvenile justice reform in Texas.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Report Finds Important Policing Reforms Recommended by Citizen Review Panel, Largely Ignored by APD and City Manager

October 10, 2017

Austin’s Citizen Review Panel (CRP) has special access to certain internal investigations of police officer-involved shootings and other incidents. The Panel reviews the incident and may issue a letter of recommendation calling for policy or procedural changes at the Austin Police Department (APD), even if the officer is found to have violated no rules.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Overall Crime Rates Down in Texas According to 2016 National Crime Report Released Today

September 25, 2017

The FBI released its 2016 Crime in the United States report today and, although there are pockets of increased crime, the data indicates that Texas crime rates have dropped statewide.

Read the rest of this press release here.

Organizations Call for Driver Responsibility Program Amnesty for Hurricane Harvey Victims

September 11, 2017

Today, six statewide organizations, along with individuals and organizations directly engaged in Hurricane Harvey relief efforts, filed a formal petition asking the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to issue a one-time Driver Responsibility Program (DRP) fee amnesty in Texas’ disaster area counties.

Read the rest of this press release here.

TCJC Wants Drug Policy Reforms Added to Texas Special Session Call

August 2, 2017

The Texas Criminal Justice Coalition (TCJC) calls on Governor Greg Abbott to expand the call of the Special Legislative Session to fix the state’s dangerously outdated drug policies.

Read the rest of this press release here.

New Analysis of Texas Crime Data Suggests 17-Year-Olds Should Be Treated As Juveniles, Not Adults

April 11, 2017

Seventeen-year-olds are automatically prosecuted as adults in the Texas criminal justice system. A new data analysis from a broad coalition of groups working to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Texas from 17 to 18 finds that 17-year-olds are arrested at a rate and for non-violent, low-level offenses that closely resemble those of 16-year-olds rather than older youth or adults.

Read the rest of this press release at RaiseTheAgeTX.org.

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