Justice
Systems
PREVENTION "SYSTEM"
Describing public safety-related prevention programs
in Travis County in detail is not a simple task. In 1996, Travis County
Justice and Public Safety attempted to survey all public safety-related
programs in Travis County (Posey, February 1997). Because there are hundreds
of programs in Travis County, compiling this list required significant
resources and was very time-consuming. In addition, because new programs
are implemented often and others end, the information included in Justice
and Public Safety's report was quickly outdated. Because of the difficulty
associated with this undertaking, this assessment does not attempt to map
the Travis County public safety prevention "system". The assessment does,
however, attempt to provide a general picture of the prevention "system" in
Travis County and to address barriers associated with preventing crime.
In addition to the study conducted by Justice and
Public Safety, we were able to gain information on prevention programs
in Austin/Travis County through United Way. This organization is maintaining
a database (First Call for Help) that includes information on many of the
programs available in Travis County (available on the Internet at www.uway-austin.org).
This database is the most comprehensive resource currently available for
defining the prevention system in Austin/Travis County.
When comparing the programs that Travis County has
with best practice literature, it appears that Travis County has most of
the types of programs, if not capacity, that are necessary to address risk
factors for crime. Prevention programs in Travis County include those targeting
early education and child development, education and workforce development,
mental health and mental retardation, substance abuse, and housing and
basic needs issues.
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JUSTICE
SYSTEMS
Law Enforcement
There are a number of law enforcement agencies in
Travis County. Austin, Pflugerville, Westlake Hills, Lakeway, Lago Vista,
Manor, Rollingwood, Mustang Ridge, and Sunset Valley have police departments
that are responsible for law enforcement in their respective cities while
the Travis County Sheriff's Office is responsible for law enforcement in
the unincorporated areas of the county. The Constables have countywide
jurisdiction and execute adult misdemeanor traffic and hot check arrest
warrants, all juvenile court warrants, and warrants for failure to pay
child support. They also administer a truancy reduction program in concert
with the Austin, Del Valle, and Pflugerville Independent School Districts.
The State also has a law enforcement presence in Travis County, which includes
the University of Texas Police Department and the Texas Department of Public
Safety.
In addition to traditional patrolling and response
duties, most of these agencies manage victim services divisions, and many
are becoming more involved in community justice initiatives, such as community
policing. Some of the programs that these agencies are involved with are
listed in the Current Efforts table in Appendix
A.
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Juvenile
Justice System
Most juveniles, ages of 10 to 16, who are arrested
in Travis County are referred to the Travis County Juvenile Probation Department.
As Figure 23 shows, referrals to Juvenile Probation
can also originate from entities other than law enforcement, such as schools,
parents, social services agencies, and municipal or justice of the peace
courts.
In contrast to the adult criminal justice system where
probation officers do not get involved with offenders until after court
disposition, juvenile probation officers interact with juveniles immediately
upon referral.
Figure 23.
Juvenile Justice System in Travis County
Source: Travis County Juvenile Probation
Juvenile Probation's Intake Unit determines whether
there is probable cause to believe that a child was involved in an alleged
offense. Once probable cause is determined, Intake determines whether the
juvenile should be detained (i.e., housed and supervised while awaiting
trial). A juvenile may be detained if (s)he:
- is likely to flee or be removed from the Court's jurisdiction,
- has no parent, guardian, or other individual suitable to provide supervision,
care, or protection and to return him/her to the Court when required,
- may be dangerous to him/herself or others if released, or
- has been found to be delinquent previously and is likely to commit an offense
if released (Texas Juvenile Probation Commission).
Intake also determines whether informal or formal
court proceedings are necessary. Informal proceedings include:
- Supervisory Caution: a disposition in which the Probation Department
provides counseling with the juvenile for the delinquent conduct and refers
the child and family to social services, if needed and available, or
- Deferred Prosecution: informal processing for juveniles with misdemeanor
offenses where mediation and community service restitution are used to hold
the juvenile accountable for his or her offense.
Formal processing occurs in the Court Unit. Formal
disposition options include:
- Orders Affecting Persons Other Than the Juvenile: Juvenile Probation
may order parents to pay child support or probation supervision fees and
costs of court, social or psychological counseling for families, etc.
- Driver's License Suspension: Juvenile Probation is mandated to suspend
or prevent issuance of a driver's license to individuals involved in certain
alcohol and drug offenses, and may suspend or prevent issuance in other cases.
- Restitution or Community Service: The court may order a parent or
child to pay restitution or perform community service. These orders may be
as conditions of probation or independently of probation.
- Probation: A juvenile may be placed on probation for any term not
to exceed the child's 18th birthday. Probation may be served in
the child's home, in a foster home, or in a public or private institution
or agency, other than TYC.
- Residential Placement: In Travis County, male juvenile repeat offenders
may be court-ordered to be under residential care through the Leadership
Academy. The Academy includes three components: a secure facility, a halfway
house, and aftercare supervision. Currently, the Travis County Juvenile Probation
Department has 30 beds available for residential treatment, and all of the
beds are for males. In October 2000, construction of the Intermediate Sanctions
Center (ISC) will be completed, and the number of beds will be expanding
to 108, with 30 beds for females (Travis County Juvenile Probation).
- TYC Commitment: A juvenile may be committed to the Texas
Youth Commission (TYC) if (s)he is adjudicated for a felony offense
or for a third misdemeanor adjudication. May include aftercare supervision
(Texas Juvenile Probation Commission).
- Certification as an Adult: In lieu of being handled by Juvenile
Probation, youth ages 14 to 16, who commit a capital or first-degree felony,
and juveniles age 15 or 16, who commit a felony, may be certified as adults.
Certification determinations are based upon the seriousness of the offense,
the sophistication of the child, the child's history, the protection of the
public, and the likelihood of rehabilitation in the juvenile system. Once
a juvenile has been certified to stand trial as an adult and is convicted
in the adult system, (s)he is considered an adult by the justice system from
that point forward. A sentence received by a certified juvenile is served
out in the adult system (Texas Criminal Justice Policy Council).
Figure 24 shows the
number of juveniles referred to Travis County Juvenile Probation
who received deferred prosecution, probation, TYC, or certification
dispositions10.
In addition to the sanctions juveniles
receive, juveniles may receive a variety of programming through
Juvenile Probation. Many of the programs available to juveniles
are listed in the Current Efforts table in Appendix
A. The success of these programs is detailed in the Juvenile
Probation's report entitled Program evaluation FY 1999:
A study of juvenile offender programs.
Figure 24.
Number of Juveniles Referred to Travis County Juvenile Probation that Received
Deferred Prosecution, Probation, TYC, or Certification Dispositions,
1999
Source: Travis County Juvenile Probation
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Adult
Criminal Justice System
Central Booking
Central Booking, currently located on East 7th Street11,
is the adult intake facility for all of Travis County. The most common
offenses for those arrested and released from Central Booking include public
intoxication, warrants for traffic violations, DWIs, and assault with bodily
injury (Travis County Justice & Public Safety). The average daily population
at the Central Booking facility is approximately 140 inmates, and the facility
manages over 55,000 arrests each year. Of the individuals arrested, approximately
two-thirds are processed and released from custody, while one-third remain
in the jail system and are transferred to permanent inmate housing (Travis
County Sheriff's Office).
Courts
If an individual is charged with an offense, (s)he
is assigned to a court. Class C misdemeanors that are committed in the
city limits, including traffic violations and public nuisance offenses,
are handled by municipal (city) courts. In addition, offenders who commit
public nuisance crimes in downtown Austin may be handled by the Downtown
Austin Community Court (DACC). The DACC, which opened on October 1,
1999, focuses on downtown Austin, because 44% of public nuisance offenses
committed in Austin occur in this area.
Figure 25.
Downtown Austin Community Court Cases
by Offense, October to December 1999
Source: Downtown Austin Community Court
The DACC provides treatment and community restitution
options for public nuisance offenders who would normally spend time in
the county jail and/or be fined. All DACC offenders are screened early
in the court process to determine what social service needs they have.
Offenders are then referred to services to address substance abuse, workforce
development, homelessness, or other needs, as appropriate. Offenders who
complete restitution and programs ordered by the judge do not have the
offense on their records, while offenders who do not complete the orders
are processed through Municipal Court.
Between October 1 and December 31, 1999, the DACC
served nearly 1,500 offenders, most of which were arrested for public intoxication.
(See Figure 25.) During that three month period, DACC
offenders completed 4,502 hours of community service restitution and had
another 10,659 hours assigned or pending (DACC).
In addition to municipal courts, Travis County operates
five Justice
of the Peace courts, which dispose of Class C misdemeanor complaints.
Other duties of the Justice of the Peace Courts include presiding over
peace bond hearings, reviewing applications for mental health/chemically
dependent commitments, and conducting compulsory school attendance trials
(Travis County).
In addition, Travis County operates five
criminal county courts and five
criminal district courts that process higher level cases in the County.
County court judges hear the most serious misdemeanor cases (classes
A and B), district court judges hear felony cases. The number of new
cases added each year to the Travis County criminal county courts has
increased by 37% from FY 1996 to FY 1999, while the number of new cases
added to Travis County criminal district courts has remained relatively
stable. (See Figure 26.)
Figure 26.
Annual Workload Trends for Travis County Criminal Courts, by Type of Court,
FY 1995 to FY 1999
Source: Travis County Office of Court Administration (from
Texas Judicial Council reports)
Four of the criminal county courts and all of the
criminal district courts are considered traditional criminal courts. In
addition to these, Travis County operates a Family Violence Court (the
fifth county court) and a Drug Court (felony diversion court).
The Travis County Family Violence Court, which handles
mostly class A misdemeanor family violence assault cases, began operations
in January 1999. The goal of the Court is to:
- stop family violence,
- protect victims and their children,
- hold convicted batterers accountable,
- provide intervention and counseling to prevent future battering, and
- process family violence cases more quickly than they were processed in
the past, so that victims do not have to choose between living in a shelter
or on the street or returning to their batterer.
From January 1999 to October 1999, 923 family
violence assault cases were filed in the Family Violence Court. During
that time period, for the first time, there were no cases of individuals
being murdered by their spouses or partners (Family Violence Court).
The Travis County Drug Court, or SHORT (the System
of Healthy Options for Release and Transition) Court, is a diversion
program for offenders arrested for felony-level possession of a controlled
substance, who do not have prior convictions for violent offenses and
do not have other charges pending. The Drug Court is designed to provide
an early opportunity for rehabilitation and a cost-effective alternative
to traditional criminal case processing. The 52-week program includes
a higher level of supervision, frequent urinalysis, substance abuse
treatment, and an array of support services for offenders.
Since opening in August 1993, the Drug Court has
enrolled 940 offenders. Of the 940, 489 were successfully diverted
from the traditional criminal courts, 227 are currently participating,
219 were unsuccessfully discharged, and 5 died during the program (Travis
County Drug Court).
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Sanctions
Once in court, judges may order numerous sanctions
for individuals found guilty or pleading "nolo contendere" in Travis County.
An offender may receive a combination of the following sanctions:
- Fine (misdemeanor or felony)
- Probation (Class A or B misdemeanor or felony)
- County jail time (Class A or B misdemeanor or felony)
- State jail time (felony only)
- Time in another state-run facility, such as a prison (felony only)
- Execution (capital felony only)
Probation
In August of 1998, there were approximately 4,700
misdemeanants and 6,900 felons on probation supervision in Travis County.
Nearly one-half of the misdemeanor probationers were under supervision
for driving under the influence, while the majority of felons on probation
were under supervision for property or controlled substance offenses (Travis
County Community Supervision and Corrections Department). (See
Figure 27.)
Offenders placed on probation may be supervised on
a variety of caseloads. These include regular, intensive supervision, electronic
monitoring, and specialized caseloads for populations with special needs.
Specialized caseloads for Travis County probationers include substance
abuse, sex offender, mentally ill, mentally retarded, family violence,
multiple offense/high risk, youthful offender, and culturally specific
caseloads.
Figure 27.
Travis County Probationers by Offense and Offense Level, August 31, 1998
Source: Travis County Community Supervision and Corrections
Department
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County
Jail
In August of 1999, there were nearly 2,600 inmates
in the Travis County Jail, a population increase of 47% since 1995 (Texas
Commission on Jail Standards). County jails house inmates sentenced
to the jail, as well as those awaiting trial, those awaiting transfer to
another facility, etc.
The most common offenses for which convicted inmates
are in jail include theft, burglary, possession of a controlled substance,
and probation or parole violations (Travis
County Sheriff's Office).
State
Jail
Felons convicted of a state jail offense, such as
lower level property offenses, drug offenses, assaultive offenses, family
offenses, etc., may be sentenced to a state jail facility. Texas created
the state jail system to divert low level felony offenders from prison.
By housing offenders at a cheaper cost than prisons, state jails save the
State of Texas $70 million in incarceration costs every year (Munson & Ygnacio,
March 2000).
The 1,033 bed Travis County Community Justice Center
(CJC) is Travis County's state jail facility. The Community Justice Center
was operated by the Wackenhut Corrections Corporation, a private prison
contractor, until August 1999, when the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
(TDCJ) assumed control of the facility (Wilkinson, et. al., January 2000).
At this time, TDCJ transferred the female CJC confinees to the Woodman
State Jail (Wilkinson, et. al., January 2000) and the CJC became a male
facility.
Currently, about one-half of the inmates at the CJC
are not state jail felons, but rather inmates awaiting transfer to the
Texas Department of Criminal Justice's (TDCJ) Institutional Division (i.e.,
prison). TDCJ is using the beds at the state jail facility until this facility
needs the space for state jail inmates.
From 1998 to 1999, the majority (59%) of the state
jail felons sentenced to the CJC were given direct sentences to state jail.
Most (34%) of the others were in the CJC due to a probation revocation.
The remainder were sent to the facility as a condition of probation (Wilkinson,
et. al., January 2000). Consequently, most of the inmates released from
the CJC are not under any type of community supervision.
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Other
State Facilities
As was mentioned previously, first through third degree
felons may be sentenced to a number of State (i.e., Texas
Department of Criminal Justice) - run facilities. These facilities
include the Institutional Division (i.e., prison), boot camps, Substance
Abuse Felony Punishment Facilities (SAFPF), etc. Because State facilities
house offenders from multiple Texas counties, it is difficult to determine
how many Travis County residents are in these facilities.
When an offender is released from the Institutional
Division, (s)he may be released to mandatory supervision or parole supervision.
As of February 1, 2000, there were about 2,900 releasees on parole or mandatory
supervision in Travis County. Sixty-four (64%) of these releasees were
under maximum level supervision (others were medium, minimum, or quarterly
report). In addition to supervision levels, releasees can be assigned to
various types of caseloads. While most releasees (1,716) were on standard
caseloads, some were on specialized caseloads, including mentally impaired
(125), mentally retarded (27), sex offender (130), super ISP (97), ISP
(182), electronic monitoring (42), and terminally ill/handicapped (23)
caseloads (Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Parole Division).
Table 10.
Travis County Parolees by Zip Code of Residence,
February 1, 2000
|
Zip
Code |
Number
of Parolees |
Percentage
of Total |
|
78723 |
259 |
10% |
|
78617 |
255 |
10% |
|
78702 |
223 |
9% |
|
78753 |
164 |
6% |
|
78741 |
156 |
6% |
|
Others |
1,551 |
59% |
|
Total |
2,608 |
100% |
Source: Texas Department of Criminal Justice
- Parole
Thirty-six percent (36%) of Travis County parolees
were convicted of drug offenses, and 18% were convicted of burglary. Over
one in three parolees live in the 78723, 78617, 78702, and 78753 zip codes.
(See Table 10.)
Programming
In addition to the sanctions described above, offenders
may voluntarily participate in programs. Many of the programs available
to offenders in Travis County are listed in the Current Efforts table in
Appendix A.
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Victim
Services
Most of the juvenile and adult justice entities in
Austin/Travis County include victim services divisions. In 1999, the Austin
Police Department's Victim Services Division served 14,545 victims, a 23%
increase from 1998 (Austin Police Department).
A wide-range of services can be provided to victims
of crime. These include:
- emergency services (medical care, shelter, food, money, and transportation)
- counseling (crisis intervention, follow-up counseling, and mediation)
- personal advocacy and support services (employer/landlord intervention,
property return, intimidation protection, victim impact statements, legal/paralegal
counsel, referrals, follow-up)
- assistance in filing for victim compensation and restitution (documenting
victims' losses and expenses, help with understanding and navigating the
process)
- court-related services (familiarizing victims with the criminal/juvenile
justice system)
- post-sentencing services (orientation to system, notification of parole
hearings and early release of offender, restitution, reconciliation programs)
- system-wide services (public education, legislative advocacy groups, work
towards policy changes among legal system, training for police, prosecutors,
and human service providers)
Table 11.
Partial List of Organizations in Travis
County that Provide Services to Victims
|
Entity |
Services |
|
Austin Children's Shelter |
Provides emergency care, medical services, & assessment
for neglected/abused children. |
|
Austin/Travis County Family Violence Protection Team
(Sheriff's Office, County Attorney's Office, Austin Police Department, Austin
Child Guidance Center, Women's Advocacy Project, Legal Aid of
Central Texas, & SafePlace) |
Offers a range of services to victims of family violence
in just one visit, including investigations, counseling, & lawyers' consultations. |
|
Children's
Advocacy Center |
Provides forensic medical exams, counseling and intervention
during the investigation, and prosecution of child abuse cases. |
|
Court-Appointed
Special Advocates (CASA) |
Provides volunteers who advocate for children involved
in civil cases. These cases include hearings that determine whether
a child should be returned to parents, as well as divorce and custody
hearings. |
|
LifeWorks |
Provides shelter and counseling to youth and teenagers
who are victims of abuse and/or neglect. |
|
SafePlace |
Provides hot lines, a counseling center for non-sheltered
clients, an 85-bed shelter, a 26-unit transitional housing apartment
complex, and school programs for victims of domestic violence. |
|
Texas Department
of Protective and Regulatory Services (TDPRS) |
Provides services to abused and neglected children,
elderly people, and people with disabilities. Services include protecting
victims, preserving families, investigating cases, and regulating
child care. |
Source: Copelin, January 1, 1999; Copelin, June
25, 1999; Osborn, February 5, 1996
In addition to services provided by victim services
divisions in the justice system, services for victims are provided by other
entities. Table 11 presents a partial list of these
services.
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Compensation
and Restitution
The Crime
Victims' Compensation Division of the State of Texas tracks the amount
of money that each county collected and paid into the compensation fund
from court costs assessed on crimes committed in that county. The Division
also tracks the amount of compensation paid on behalf of people who were
victimized in that county. In 1999, Travis County victims applied for
victim compensation funds 944 times, and 644 of those applications were
approved (68% approval rate). Of the $2,991,076 that Travis County contributed
to the fund in 1999, $1,654,645 was paid to victims (55% of funds contributed)
during that year (Crime Victims' Compensation Division, 1999).
Travis County Juvenile Probation has one victim/witness
counselor. In 1999, this counselor identified 3,000 victims of juvenile
offenders to offer assistance in obtaining compensation for their losses.
Other
Services
In 1998, an automated tracking system that allows
victims to know the whereabouts of their attackers while the convicted
criminals are in prison or on parole was implemented by the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice. The service is available toll-free by telephone for
the 40,000 victims who are registered with the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice (Holmes, April 21, 1998).
Assessment Home
10.Data were not available on the
number of juveniles who received supervisory cautions or were dismissed.
11. September 2000, the new Criminal
Justice Center will open adjacent to the Travis County Jail at 10th Street
and San Antonio. It will contain a direct supervision booking facility
and will expand operating capabilities.
