Tag Archives: Harris County Sheriff

Perry says Texas will not comply with the federal Prison Rape Elimination Act

Posted on April 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Amazing the number of laws Rick Perry refuses to obey, isn’t it? More than a decade after the Prison Rape Elimination Act unanimously passed Congress, federal standards for implementation of the law have been finalized. Now, Gov. Rick Perry and … Continue reading →

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We still need to reduce inmate headcount

Posted on February 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Harris County jail’s population is down from historic highs, but with the usual summer uptick coming, Sheriff Adrian Garcia has asked for a waiver to make some more beds available. State officials have rejected a request from Sheriff Adrian … Continue reading →

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Followup on that report about sexual assault in the Harris County jail

Posted on February 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Last month, I blogged about a report by the Justice Department that alleged a high rate of sexual assault in one of the Harris County jail buildings. Sheriff Adrian Garcia, who testified about the report in Congress to a panel … Continue reading →

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Sexual assault in the Harris County jail

Posted on January 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds very bad, but there are some questions about how the numbers were determined. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia, defending his staff against a federal study that found startling levels of sexual abuse at one of his jails, testified … Continue reading →

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Murder by numbers 2013

Posted on January 4, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The beginning of the new year means a look back at the homicide count for the previous year. Homicides are up in unincorporated Harris County, where the Sheriff’s Office is reporting a nearly 20 percent uptick in 2013, preliminary year-end … Continue reading →

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County to tighten regulations on game rooms

Posted on December 20, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s sort of a crackdown, but within limits. And something that’s regulated is something that’s legal, so there’s that. The regulations, made possible by a state law passed earlier this year by the Legislature, requires an establishment housing six or … Continue reading →

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More on the jail’s new non-discrimination policy

Posted on November 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story on the new non-discrimination policy that was implemented at the Harris County Jail. Crafted in the last 16 months with input from local and national LGBT community leaders and groups, it strictly prohibits “discrimination or harassment … Continue reading →

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The jail’s new non-discrimination policy

Posted on November 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure why I haven’t seen this story in the Chronicle. The sheriff of Houston’s Harris County has adopted a sweeping policy designed to protect and guarantee equal treatment of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender inmates, including allowing transgender individuals … Continue reading →

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It always comes down to the IT guys

Posted on November 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The joint processing center that’s on the Harris County ballot this year will need a new computer system to fully realize its gains. The so-called “jail management system,” which the Sheriff’s Office hopes will be up and running at least … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For the joint processing center

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

An easy call. [V]oters should consider themselves fortunate that they can easily cut $25 million in unnecessary spending from the city’s annual budget by voting for the Joint Processing Center on Election Day. The overlapping criminal justice duties of Houston … Continue reading →

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One more ballot item

Posted on August 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to the Astrodome and (maybe) Early To Rise referenda, Harris County voters will also get to decide on a jail bond referendum. From the preview story on Tuesday: Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday also is expected to … Continue reading →

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DUI and blood testing

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure what I think about this. A decision by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to demand blood tests for every drunken-driving suspect who refuses breath tests has drawn an unusual opponent: Houston police officers. “We’re just very concerned … Continue reading →

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Harris County wants to be like the city in regulating eight-liners

Posted on April 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

One of the main differences between Houston and Harris County is that the city can generally do what it wants to do while the county had to get a law passed to do the same thing. When the city of … Continue reading →

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Report recommends against privatizing the Harris County jail

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Very good news. Privatizing the Harris County jail would be risky and may not result in savings, according to an internal county memo recommending that Commissioners Court keep the state’s largest lockup in Sheriff Adrian Garcia’s hands. The confidential Feb. … Continue reading →

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Murder by numbers continued

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There are two ways to look at this. Houston averaged slightly more than four murders a week during 2012, unofficial figures indicate, inching up from 2011 when the total dropped to the lowest point since 1966. In unincorporated Harris County, … Continue reading →

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Jail privatization update

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Grits, from about two weeks ago: In a conference call last week with investors (see the transcript), Corrections Corporation of America said it expects to find out by next spring whether they will receive a contract to operate the Harris … Continue reading →

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2012 election results

Posted on November 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As I type this there are still a number of unsettled races in Texas, so things may change between now and tomorrow morning after we’ve all had an insufficient night’s sleep. But here’s how they stand at this time, and … Continue reading →

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What I’ll be looking for tonight

Posted on November 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder that I’ll be on KPFT tonight starting at 7 PM to talk about the elections. Here’s a preview of the things I’ll be looking for: 1. SD10 – Sen. Wendy Davis vs Mark Shelton: Easily the most … Continue reading →

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Strip club cash in the Sheriff’s race

Posted on November 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The waning days of a campaign always have the greatest potential for hijinx. A $25,000 political contribution from the owner of a strip club being sued by Harris County lawyers found its way, via the Harris County Deputies Organization, into … Continue reading →

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All the interviews for 2012

Posted on October 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As we begin early voting for the November election, here are all the interviews I conducted for candidates who are on the ballot as well as for the referenda. These include interviews that were done for the primary as well … Continue reading →

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30 Day finance reports, Harris County candidates

Posted on October 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a look at the 30 day campaign finance reports for Harris County candidates. All reports can be found by going to the Harris County Clerk campaign finance reports page. Candidate Office Raised Spent Loans Cash ========================================================== Garcia Sheriff 192,670 … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: The other easy call

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron makes a ringing endorsement of Sheriff Adrian Garcia for re-election. In the 2008 elections, Adrian Garcia received more votes than any other candidate in Harris County. His record in office merits a similar outcome in 2012. With Garcia … Continue reading →

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The Sheriff’s Crisis Intervention team

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a really good idea. Crisis intervention teams, tagged to respond to calls involving mentally disturbed subjects, reflect a new wave of law enforcement thinking pioneered by the Memphis, Tenn., Police Department in the 1980s. Such efforts have received renewed … Continue reading →

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Fall interview season begins tomorrow

Posted on August 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I know that we just finished the primary runoffs, but we’re also now more than halfway through August, so it’s time to start doing interviews with candidates for the fall. I’ll be up candid, I don’t know exactly how many … Continue reading →

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2012 Republican primary runoffs

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

All the results are here. In the end, Ted Cruz won a pretty solid victory. I’ll note that in the last two publicly released polls, PPP had Cruz up by 10, whereas Baselice & Associates claimed Dewhurst was up by … Continue reading →

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July campaign finance reports for Harris County candidates

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You know the drill by now. Office Candidate Raised Spent Cash Loans ============================================================ Sheriff A Garcia 47,025 41,900 357,818 0 Sheriff L Guthrie 70,176 75,646 33,075 157,000 Sheriff C Pittman 11,309 11,566 5,217 24,000 DA M Anderson 73,888 60,980 33,371 … Continue reading →

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Democratic results, Harris County

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The good: – Lane Lewis won a full term as HCDP Chair by a 55-45 margin. If you heard a whizzing noise this evening, it was the bullet we all dodged in this race. – Sheriff Adrian Garcia easily won … Continue reading →

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Recap of all my interviews so far this cycle

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

To say the least, there was a lot of uncertainty at the beginning of the year when I was planning out my interview schedule for the primary election. There were no maps for the State House, State Senate, and Congress. … Continue reading →

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30 day financial reports, Harris County offices

Posted on May 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Candidates for county offices who are in contested primaries are also required to submit 30 day campaign finance reports. I’ve been going through the County Clerk’s campaign finance reports page to collect what’s there; ones for Democratic races are on … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Sheriffs

Posted on May 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses Sheriff Adrian Garcia for renomination. When the incumbent took over four years ago, he faced a particularly daunting job. The sheriff’s office had been plagued by a series of controversies ranging from federal investigation of prisoner deaths … Continue reading →

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The Sheriff’s office is hiring

Posted on March 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia says by balancing his department’s $392 million budget, he’ll be able to transfer 100 deputies from jail duties to crime-fighting jobs in the next year while hiring hundreds of new civilian jailers. During a … Continue reading →

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Interview with Sheriff Adrian Garcia

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia was elected in 2008 with the highest vote total of any candidate on the ballot. He inherited an office that was tainted by the scandals of his long-term predecessor, a jail system that was overcrowded, … Continue reading →

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More on disciplining deputies

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s another long Chron story about disciplinary statistics for Harris County Sheriff’s deputies. Reading through it, I felt like there was some context missing. A Houston Chronicle review of disciplinary records indicates that from 2008 through 2010, more than 200 … Continue reading →

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January finance reports: Harris County

Posted on January 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

January is a very busy month for campaign finance reports, since they are due for all levels of government. I’ve been busy updating the 2012 Primary Election pages for Harris County and elsewhere in Texas with reports as I can … Continue reading →

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