While many Texas prisons are understaffed, some dangerously so, the emptied-out Briscoe Unit in Dilley is in “maintenance mode” as officials scramble to implement the governor’s plan to increase the state’s role in border enforcement.
Texas Department Of Criminal Justice
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas executes John Hummel for murdering his family in 2009
A civil liberties group had tried to delay Hummel’s death after reporters were excluded from the state’s last execution.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Dozens who died in Texas prisons during the pandemic had been granted parole, new report shows
At any given time, thousands of Texas prisoners have been approved for parole but not yet released. At least 42 of those people died in the 12 months after the coronavirus first swept the state.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
For the first time in more than 40 years, media were not allowed to witness a Texas execution
On Wednesday, the state executed Quintin Jones, 41, for the Tarrant County murder of his great-aunt in 1999.
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Texas Legislature 2021
After sweltering temperatures killed Texas prisoners, lawmakers vote to install air conditioning
The bill approved by the House aims to cool all of Texas’ prisons before 2029. But even if it is signed into law, the lockups will only be air conditioned if lawmakers provide funds for installation.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas prisons reverse course, will allow religious advisers in execution chamber
The U.S. Supreme Court has twice stopped Texas executions over claims that previous prison policies were discriminatory and violated religious freedoms.
Posted in
A Year of COVID-19
Texas prisons stopped in-person visits and limited mail. Drugs got in anyway.
Agency data shows officers are finding just as many drugs — and writing up even more prisoners for having them — despite the restrictions. Contraband is most often brought in by staff, according to prisoners and employees.
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
Hundreds of Texas prisoners are getting vaccinated — months after many became eligible
Almost 2,000 vaccine doses have gone to qualifying prisoners as of Thursday, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas prisons have doled out thousands of COVID-19 vaccine doses — but none have gone to prisoners, who get the virus at high rates
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has been allocated nearly 9,000 doses. The agency vaccinated prison health care workers, then correctional staff in infected areas.
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Criminal Justice
Texas Republican asks state to rename several of the state’s prisons honoring slave owners
There are 99 state prisons and jails in the state, and several of which are named after people with racist and sometimes violent histories, according to The Marshall Project.
