HOUSTON, Tex. — A new report by Grassroots Leadership and Texas Advocates for Justice was released in a press conference today outside Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg’s office. The report, Care Not Cages, revealed significant racial disparities in policing and jailing in Harris County.

The reasons for these disparities are varied and complex. Still, two of the most significant factors are biased policing that feeds Black people into the criminal legal system. 

Well-chronicled wealth-based bail practices that keep poor and predominantly Black people in jail pretrial, coercing guilty pleas resulting in more extended confinement and creating or adding to criminal records subsequently used to justify the following arrest, pretrial detention, and conviction. 

Based on the findings of the report, community leaders and activists call on Houston and Harris County elected officials to act on the following immediately:

1. Houston Police Department eliminates racial profiling and unnecessary searches.

2. Harris County Commissioners Court immediately prioritizes funding pre-arrest alternatives to incarceration for drug possession.

3. Harris County, Criminal Court Judges implement a policy to grant automatic personal recognizance bonds to all defendants charged.

4. Harris County District Attorney stopped prosecuting cases.

5. Harris County Sheriff’s Office increases data transparency, accuracy, and community accessibility.

According to the report, Black people comprised 19.7% of the Harris County population in 2017, yet from March 1, 2015, through March 1, 2018, they made up 45.4% of bookings into the Harris County jail and served 51% of the nights in jail — over 3.9 million combined nights.

“Harris County must stop wasting tax dollars arresting, incarcerating, and funneling people through the criminal court system,” said Monique Joseph, Texas Advocates for Justice field organizer. “We demand investment in community-based response to substance use and recovery rather than punishment. Our communities deserve better than this.”

The report also revealed that the lead charge driving the most nights spent in the Harris County jail over the studied timeframe was possessing less than one gram of a controlled substance in penalty group one (POCS PG1 <1g). Community activists feel the prevalence of this charge reflects how discriminatory police and bail practices combine to drive racially disparate jailing. 

Darren Joseph, a native Houstonian, shared his experience as a Texas Southern University student. He was sent to jail for three days after his traffic ticket led to a warrant for his arrest. “When I got pulled over, the police officer told me that the car would be impounded—I asked if someone could take it, and they told me no. After the three days, I was in jail, the cost to get my car out was around $600. The warrant and traffic ticket in combination was close to another $400,” he shared. “I could not afford all that, along with my rent, my car note, paying for school out of pocket, and then sitting in jail for three days. It felt like a violation. I felt like no one cared, especially those that have the power. It felt like they didn’t care about my life at all, and this happening more than once throughout my life has been a burden. I think something needs to change.”

“Being stopped, detained, arrested, and put into a cage for days at a time; feeling hopeless from fear of losing your car, job, family—I know the agony. I have lived through generations of family members being put into the criminal justice system for low-level offenses,” said Dianna Williams, Texas Advocates for Justice field organizer. “We didn’t have money, so cash bail was never an option. Those arrests would have been best handled as public health and safety issues. It would have stopped the recidivism in my family. Social services and sustainable diversion programs should always be the alternative to incarceration. If there is more care instead of cages, not only will it help end mass incarceration, but our communities will be safer and healthier.” 

Two of the top charges involved in arrests and bookings into the Harris County Jail are associated with driving without proper documentation. Combined, Failure to Maintain Financial Responsibility (No Insurance) and No Driver’s License charges were the most common charges among Harris County bookings over the studied period. 

“We’re fighting for a Texas that recognizes the role of institutional racism in our justice system and puts an immediate stop to pretextual stops of Black and brown communities,” said Annette Price, acting executive co-director for Grassroots Leadership. “The failed ‘War on Drugs’ skyrocketed the mass incarceration crisis on our hands. This has damaged our communities and families irrevocably—it’s time for our communities to heal.”

Houston is the third-largest city and one of the most diverse cities in the country. Nine thousand people per night are incarcerated at Harris County jail is larger than the prison systems in 19 states and is the most extensive jail system in the most incarcerated state in the most incarcerated nation on earth.