While the state’s prison population continues to fall, some counties are still disproportionately filling state lockups.
Consider that Lubbock County (population: 264,418) has 2,478 of its residents in prisons and state jails, while Hidalgo County (population: 726,604) accounts for 2,986 inmates. Thus, taxpayers in Hidalgo County are subsidizing other counties like Lubbock that incarcerate nearly three times as many of their residents per capita.
Gross disparities exist in revocations to prison from probation. For example, in Hunt County, according to state data, last year 95 percent of their adult probation department’s revocations were for rules violations rather than a new offense. That far exceeds the statewide average of 49 percent. From 2004-05 to 2008-09, probation revocations from Hunt County grew 24.9 percent, going from 244 to 309 even as its number of probationers declined. The county only has about 600 felony probationers, but it revokes them for rules violations at a much higher rate than most other counties.
Hunt County is not alone. Many other counties, particularly rural counties in East Texas, have revocation rates for rules violations far above the state average. In contrast, Hidalgo County is the lowest in the state – only 31.8 percent of their probation revocations were for rules violations. Most other counties in the Valley are also below the state average.
Imbalanced scales of justice weigh heavily on Texas taxpayers and lock in disparities, as the same person who would be sentenced or revoked to prison in one county receives probation or remains on probation in another county.
Decisions on revoking probationers must always put public safety first. However, lawmakers should require all probation departments and judges to use a progressive sanctions and incentives model. Instead of doing nothing when a probationer violates the rules and then revoking them for many years after enough violations pile up, graduated responses such as a curfew – and even a few nights in county jail if necessary – are used to promote compliance. Conversely, incentives such as less frequent reporting are used to recognize exemplary performance. Victims also benefit when probationers succeed, as probationers pay more than $45 million per year in restitution while inmates pay about half a million in restitution, fees, and court costs combined.
All counties must be held accountable for implementing best practices that result in more offenders successfully completing probation and reserve prison space for those who pose a danger to public safety.
– Marc Levin