By Adrian Garcia
A person is guilty until proven innocent or wealthy. This is how our old, outdated justice system has been working in Harris County for far too long. There have been incidents keeping people in jail for months. Most are jailed not because they are violent criminals or guilty but because they cannot afford to pay a bond.
This system is far from just and fair because it penalizes the poor. This may be a single mother who was arrested for failing to pay atraffic ticket, loses her job, misses payments for her mortgage and as a result loses her home. Or it could be a young man who was wrongfully accused but spent six months in jail before someone took a closer look at his case.
We have to fix this. We must do better. With a settlement Harris County Commissioners Court approved this week — fixing a bail system a federal judge found unconstitutional — we are on the right track.
The settlement announced this week is the first step Harris County is taking aimed at fixing this broken system. The decree applies only to individuals charged with misdemeanors except for cases of family violence, bond violations and repeat DWIs. These are crimes where a person is more likely to re-offend and will receive amagistrate hearing within 48 hours to determine what kind of bond under which they may be released.
Other than those exceptions, people charged with misdemeanors will be released on a personal recognizance bond, which means the person commits to making their court dates. Under the consent decree, they will be ensured the opportunity to be represented by counsel at these proceedings.
My career in law enforcement has shown me where government fails. Not everyone who goes to jail is guilty. Not everyone who is arrested is a criminal. I have seen the wasted human capital sitting behind bars that could otherwise be contributing to our economy.
Instead, they are in jail awaiting trial, being supported by our tax dollars. Some families are being torn apart, with parents losing custody of their children. The poorer you are, the more likely you are to miss a court date: You cannot afford child care, you cannot afford to miss work, and you cannot afford a car to get to the courthouse. If we are going to prevent this, we need a criminal justice system that works for everyone.
The old, outdated system of holding people in jail until they can pay bail — or keeping them until trial if they cannot — does not make the public safer; in fact, studies have shown it increases crime. A 2013 study by the Laura and John Arnold Foundation found that people who were detained after arrest were more likely to commit more crimes.
As the former sheriff of Harris County, I witnessed how this unconstitutional cash bail system helped to create the most overcrowded jail in our recent history. It depended on lucrative contracts with private jails to house inmates, while still requiring taxpayers to pay millions in overtime to keep the jail compliant with state standards.
I had no problem holding onto the most violent offenders, but the great majority had made mistakes that posed no direct threat to anyone but themselves. When our criminal justice system can deal with people proportionate to their mistakes, then we not only become fair and just but safer because the first-time/nonviolent offenders will have fewer opportunities to learn from the worst in jails.
The impact goes far beyond the incarcerated person. Children with an incarcerated parent are more likely to experience higher rates of poverty, food insecurity, homelessness and physical health problems. They are also twice as likely as their peers without a parent in prison to develop behavioral or mental health problems, including increased aggression, depression, anxiety and migration toward gang involvement. They are also more likely to associate with delinquent peers, get into fights, skip school, have trouble concentrating and perform poorly in school. This system is far from just, makes us less safe and negatively impacts our children. We have to do better.
Freedom should never be for sale, and it is time we take our seat as a national leader in civil rights reform.
Garcia is Harris County Precinct 2 commissioner.