Justice Beyond the Cities: The State of Rural Public Defense in Texas. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) contracted with the Public Policy Research Institute (PPRI) to review the needs of public defense across rural counties in Texas. The report was requested by TIDC to carry out research [...]

TEXAS OFFICE OF COURT ADMINISTRATION COURT PERSONNEL WORKLOAD ANALYSIS 2024 MAKE A DIFFERENCE “The Hidden Backbone of Justice: Insights into Staffing Levels and Salaries of Court Support Personnel," was commissioned by the Texas Office of Court Administration (OCA) in [...]

Texas Indigent Defense Commission Online Data Collection System 2002-PRESENT MAKE A DIFFERENCE In 2001, the Texas Legislature passed the Fair Defense Act. Under this new law, counties became accountable for submitting statistics indicating the amount and type of indigent defense services provided as well as an annual plan describing [...]

BEXAR COUNTY INDIGENT DEFENSE SYSTEM EVALUATION 2018-2020 MAKE A DIFFERENCE The main objective of the report is to evaluate representation for indigent defendants by examining process and procedures associated with Bexar County’s Court Appointed Counsel system. Quantitative and qualitative analysis were conducted to analyze measurable metrics to determine [...]

REPRESENTING THE MENTALLY ILL OFFENDER 2010 MAKE A DIFFERENCE Nearly one in three Texas prison and state jail inmates have a history with the state mental health system. These individuals commonly experience repeated contact with the justice system. Specialized Mental Health Public Defender (MHPD) programs are a cutting-edge [...]

WICHITA COUNTY PUBLIC DEFENDER OFFICE 2012 MAKE A DIFFERENCE Though the number of public defender offices in Texas has nearly tripled in the past decade, very little evidence is available regarding their advantages compared to traditional assigned counsel systems. The Public Policy Research Institute (PPRI), under the sponsorship [...]

LIBERTY AND JUSTICE: PRETRIAL PRACTICES IN TEXAS 2017 MAKE A DIFFERENCE Validated risk assessment decides pretrial release for people accused of crimes in six Texas counties. The remaining 248 jurisdictions release individuals based on their ability to pay financial bail. A study by the Public Policy Research Institute [...]

JUDGMENT AND JUSTICE 2013 MAKE A DIFFERENCE This research report details the important benefits available to Texas counties participating in the Regional Public Defender Office for Capital Cases (RPDO). The report, titled Judgment and Justice: An Evaluation of the Texas Regional Public Defender for Capital Cases, was commissioned [...]

ODONNELL CONSENT DECREE 2020-PRESENT MAKE A DIFFERENCE PPRI is a member of the court appointed monitor team overseeing a federal consent decree in Harris County, Texas. In March of 2020, Harris County settled a federal class-action lawsuit (ODonnell et al v. Harris County, No. 16-cv-01414, S.D. Tex. Nov. [...]

COUNSEL AT FIRST APPEARANCE 2019-PRESENT MAKE A DIFFERENCE This project studies the effect of having defense counsel at first appearance (magistration). After being booked in jail, defendants face a magistrate judge who decides on the bond type and amount that defendants will have to pay to get out [...]