Some Texas lawmakers are wanting to make a change to how cash bail is set with a spotlight on Harris County.
State Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, has authored legislation that would give elected judges the ability to make more bail decisions instead of magistrates. Senate Bill 9 would no longer allow magistrates to set the cash bail for people charged with a variety of violent offenses.
Sen. Huffman's bill has the backing of many families who have been victims of serious crimes. Her legislation also targets many of Harris County's current judges.
Conservative attorney and political analyst Michele Maples said there are hundreds of cases of repeat violent offenders walking the streets of Harris County today because of magistrates offering a low-cash bond or no bond at all.
"This is a direct backlash of that," Maples said of SB9. "This is why Joan Huffman has brought this legislation because these magistrate judges are just frankly off the rails."
Magistrates, or “criminal law hearing officers," are not elected, therefore, Maples believes, much like many Texas lawmakers, that they should not have a say in how much someone must pay in order to get out of jail.
"They shouldn't play a part in this, but who is elected are your county judges and your district judges, and they have to answer to the constituents," said Maples.
As part of SB9, Sen. Huffman said the locally elected judge who will ultimately preside over the person’s criminal court case should be responsible for the cash bail that is set.
Critics of the bill say it could overwhelm the courts, but there are already a large number of arrests made in the largest county in Texas.
"There are hundreds of arrests made in Harris County every week," Maples added. "Because of the sheer number of those arrests, we've got to get those people processed and into jail."
Holding magistrate judges accountable would go a long way to keeping Texans and their communities safe.
"People want a safe neighborhood for their children to grow up in and they want safe and good schools," said Maples.