Harris County Jail listed as 'non-compliance' after comprehensive state inspection

HOUSTON - The Harris County Jail underwent a weeklong inspection and has been listed as in ‘non-compliance’ amid multiple deaths being reported from the jail.

According to officials, The Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS) completed a week-long comprehensive inspection of the jail on Friday. The inspection reportedly covered 24 areas of review, including the admission and release process, health services, supervision, discipline, exercise, education, commissary, and visitation.

Inspectors say the jail which houses about 10,000 people, will remain on a list of 13 Texas jails that are in non-compliance.

According to reports, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office will now have to draft a corrective action plan that will be due in 30 days.

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The TCJS inspectors say the jail needs more staff members to properly serve the people ordered into custody by local judges. Apparently, the Sheriff's Office has around 250 open positions with 150 vacant for detentions officers and around 100 vacant for deputies assigned to the jail.

Reports say Harris Health, which has been overseeing the delivery of medical care in the jail since last March, has also struggled to hire enough nurses and other providers to meet demand. Harris Health employs reportedly contracts labor to offset the current staffing needs. Mental health services in the jail are provided by the Harris Center for Mental Health.

The staffing issue is unfortunately at the same time the jail population is at its highest point in over a decade because of a massive backlog of criminal cases pending in Harris County courts.

Officials say the average person spends more than 200 days in the Harris County Jail compared to the national jail average of 30 days. Nearly 1,000 defendants have reportedly been outsourced to jails in North Texas and in Louisiana in an effort to reduce crowding.

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According to TCJS, Harris County Jail did not meet the compliance standard which requires jail staff to consistently perform visual checks on people in the jail within the required time. The inspectors say they also noted people who are being booked into the jail are often waiting too long before they are assigned to a cell.

The team also reports deficiencies in health care services provided to triaging non-emergent sick call request and noted two cases where prescribed medications were not delivered on time.

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"We take the results of the inspection very seriously and appreciate the guidance. We are actively working in all areas of our detentions system to put corrective plans in place and with proper staffing to handle the overcrowded jail population, we can promptly address the deficiencies," said Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.

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Inspectors did identify several areas of improvement since their last visit, reports say.

Specifically, they reported significant improvement in overall cleanliness, and that people in the jail seemed to have a more positive disposition than they had observed in the past.

A full inspection report will be published by the Commission in the coming days, officials say.