Calling the Harris County Jail, ‘a ticking time-bomb,’ Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo announced Tuesday she plans to sign an order that could release 1000 or more inmates from the Harris County Jail.
In a Tuesday afternoon news conference Hidalgo said they are non-violent inmates awaiting trial on felony charges, without prior convictions on violent crimes.
“Public health experts have made clear it is a dangerous situation,” Hidalgo said casting the decision as a public health one, “the cramped conditions there make it impossible to enforce social distancing.”
Trying to stay ahead of critics, Hidalgo said there is ‘no room for politics’ in this matter.
While the order is not yet signed, the judge and county officials are on a tight time frame saying they aim to complete the releases within 96 hours (4 days).
There is not yet a list of offenders who would be considered for release as the order is still not finalized. The judge and her attorneys say anyone under domestic violence protective orders, felony DWI suspects and accused home and business burglars would not be eligible for release.
The proposed order steers clear of an executive order signed by Governor Greg Abbott. That banned the release of any violent criminals. The proposed Harris County plan doesn’t include them.
Once a list of inmates is created, the District Attorney, District Court Judges, and pre-trial services will have eight hours to review the list and raise objections. The county says once that is complete, it aims to release up to 250 inmates per day.
Judge Hidalgo did say she had consulted elected leaders and police chiefs. Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo was apparently not one of them.
Acevedo said in a statement, “As the largest user of the Harris County Jail, I have not discussed the plan with the judge, nor have I been given any specifics.” Noting an 18.9% increase in burglaries in the last two weeks, Acevedo tweeted, ” hope people who burglarize vehicles, residences and buildings aren’t released in large numbers.”
Adding to the complexity of a plan, a group of lawyers representing thousands of inmates at the jail has filed court documents asking a federal judge to release even more inmates to avoid a ‘public health catastrophe.’
In a phone hearing Tuesday, US District Court Judge Lea Rosenthal said she would give the county until Friday to show progress towards releasing inmates before taking any further action.
