Long Overdue: Texas Should Prioritize Safer Schools Through Restorative Justice, Not Zero Tolerance

TCJC’s Jay Jenkins was recently quoted in an article by NBC News about Dennis Rivera Sarmiento, a high school student who was arrested in Houston and later placed in immigration detention. Allegedly, a female classmate called him a racial slur and threw a sports drink at him, resulting in an altercation between the two students. Dennis tried to report the incident to a Houston ISD police officer but, instead of receiving help, he was arrested.

Must Read: Bail System Promotes Profit, Not Justice

This is a MUST READ op-ed if you want to understand why bail reform is so important: Cash bail system promotes profit, not justice.

Formerly Incarcerated Woman Speaks on Behalf of More Than 12,000 Incarcerated Women at the Austin Women’s March

Over the weekend, thousands of people took to the streets of Austin for the 2018 Women’s March. One of those marching was Lauren Johnson. Lauren is many things. Among them, she is a mother, an advocate, and a formerly incarcerated woman.

On very short notice, Lauren agreed to speak at the Austin Women’s March on behalf of the more than 12,000 women currently incarcerated in Texas. Because those women could not be there to march or speak for themselves, Lauren spoke for them.

Here is an excerpt from Lauren’s speech:

Abuse & Neglect of Kids Reported in a Texas Youth Facility: We Need Urgent Reform

Earlier this month, thanks to coverage from The Dallas Morning News and the Houston Chronicle, information came to light about the Gainesville State School, one of Texas’ five remaining state secure detention facilities for youth: Incarcerated kids had attempted suicide, and staff had been engaging in sexu

Texans are Battling Addiction – Let’s Help Them Win the Fight

Texas was recently awarded $27.4 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to combat opioid use disorders. The funding is absolutely critical to expanding treatment capacity in Texas. For low-income people in need of detox or treatment in Texas, they are likely to wait nearly five weeks for opioid therapy services – a period of time when they are at grave risk of overdose. The new funding will create new capacity to serve those at risk, and will also help to alleviate the waiting list for treatment for those suffering from addiction to other drugs.

Texas Gets National Attention—For Failing on Pretrial

In June of this year, the Vera Institute of Justice published “Out of Sight: The Growth of Jails in Rural America,” listing the counties and parishes across the country with the highest rates of pretrial incarceration. Of the top 10 counties with the highest rates of pretrial incarceration, four are Texas counties—more than any other state. They include the following counties: Limestone (7), Dimmit (5), Garza (4), and Kent (3).