Breaking the Bond: A look at bail reform in Harris County, Texas

It’s been nearly five years since cash bail was removed for people charged with most kinds of misdemeanor crimes in Harris County, Texas, home to Houston.

Here & Now's Peter O'Dowd headed to Harris County to see how the end of cash bail plays out there.

Episode 1: ‘Everybody deserves a second chance:’ How bail reform changed Houston’s criminal justice system

According to independent federal data, tens of thousands of people charged with nonviolent offenses have avoided pretrial incarceration since Harris County ended cash bail. This has saved the county millions of dollars and upheld the presumption of innocence for many who could not afford to post bail.

O’Dowd talks with residents who were arrested — some who didn’t have to post bail and some who did — to explore the impact cash bail and bail reform has had on people’s lives. We also hear from critics, who see cashless bail as a slippery slope that impinges on public safety.

Episode 2: ‘Political backlash’ follows effort to reform cash bail in Texas

This cashless bail system was implemented after the settlement of a class action lawsuit filed in 2016. The lawsuit claimed that setting cash bail for misdemeanor arrestees in Harris County violated their constitutional rights. The resulting court order, the ODonnell Consent Decree, is the first of its kind to mandate federally supervised bail reform in the country.

Not everyone is happy about it. Victims’ rights advocates say ODonnell makes it easier for people who pose a threat to public safety to run free ahead of trial. And the bail bond industry in Harris County is losing millions of dollars.

We speak with advocates, bill authors and a victim who feels cashless bail — whether for misdemeanor or felony charges — is a threat to public safety.

Episode 3: ‘The guards wouldn’t do anything:’ Houston families outraged over death of loved ones in jail

The cashless bail policy that came with the ODonnell v. Harris County settlement in 2019 has kept thousands of people out of the Harris County Jail. So why then does the jail continue to experience dangerous levels of overcrowding?

New county data shows a 13% rise in the jail population between 2020 and 2024. This is due to a complex slate of factors, including Hurricane Harvey, the COVID-19 pandemic and short-staffing.

For nearly two years, the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, a state regulated agency, has held Harris County Jail in violation of upholding minimum safety standards, including an unacceptable staff-to-prisoner ratio, patchy access to medical care and failures to oversee detainees. At least 19 people died in Harris County custody in 2023. We speak with victims of this ongoing crisis within the Harris County Jail.

Episode 4: What bail reform looks like across the U.S.

We've been diving into the aftermath of a federal lawsuit in Harris County, Texas, that ended the use of cash bail in one of the country's largest cities. Across the country, state legislatures have considered similar changes.

Here & Now's Peter O'Dowd speaks with Marc Levin, chief policy counsel for the Council on Criminal Justice. He's been tracking efforts at bail reform in other places.

Reporters' notebook: Covering criminal justice in Houston

Here & Now's Peter O'Dowd wraps up our series about criminal justice reform in Harris County, Texas. He speaks with Houston Public Media's Lucio Vasquez about covering the troubled jail complex in Houston — one of the country's biggest cities.

This reporting was supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Wilder Fleming and Lucio Vasquez contributed to this reporting.

Radio stories edited by Ciku Theuri.

Web stories edited by Grace Griffin, Allison Hagan and Michael Scotto.