1. History of Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ)
“We’ll Even Leave the Light On”

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3. Texas State Penitentiary (Huntsville)
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4. Agency Titles 1848-1866 1866-1957 1957-1989 1989-Present
Texas State Penitentiary
Texas Prison System
Texas Department of Corrections
1989-Present
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
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5. Era Characterizations
The Formative Years
The Civil War Era
The Convict Lease Era
The Farm System
The Decline
The Reform Era
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6. The Formative Years (1836-1861)
Prior to 1848
Inmates housed in local/county jails
May 1, 1848
2nd Legislature passed creation of Huntsville Penitentiary with 225 cells
October 1, 1849
1st inmate received, William Sansom (cattle theft)
1855 – 75 inmates
1860 – 182 inmates
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7. Civil War Era ( )
Civil War Union POWs and court-marshaled soldiers held
Prison industries aided South by production of cloth from cotton and wool mills
1865 – only one prison left standing in the Confederate states (Huntsville)
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8. Convict Lease Era (1871-1912) Increased number of inmates
2nd legislature
Leased inmate labor and use of facilities
Outside camps established
Inmates hired by railroad and plantation owners
– second prison built in Rusk
Opened January, 1883
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9. Farm System Era ( )
Legislative changes to inmate accounts
Industries slowed, farming expanded
Less education and other reform efforts
Leases were cancelled
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10. Farm System Era (1910-1936) Chain Gangs and Building Tenders
Chain Gang: inmates leased to a private owner, and “chained” together during work to prevent their escape
Building Tenders: inmates used to “control” other inmates and open/close cells
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11. Farm System Era ( )
Large agricultural ranching operations became hallmarks of the prison system
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12. The Decline (1937-1947) Troubled times for prisons
Turned purchased plantations into farms
Corrupt and mismanaged administration
Fraud, and poor treatment of inmates
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13. “Backsliding” Darrington Farm Large influx of inmates Brutality
333 inmates housed in a unit designed for 250
Shower every three weeks
NO laundry services
Retrieve Farm
475 inmates housed in a unit designed for 350
3 1 sleep on brick floor
Large influx of inmates
Brutality
Self-mutilation
Sexual Perversion
Incompetence
Petty Theft
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14. The Reform Years ( )
Emphasis on reform, teaching, and recreation
New Classification system
1931 – Prison rodeo established
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15. The Reform Years (1947-1973) 1947 – Penal reforms
Modernized agricultural production
Initiated industrial products
Improvements in facilities
1948 – “Construction Division”
Used inmate labor
Prison-made bricks
Prison-made concrete for new buildings
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16. Prison Industries: License Plate Factory
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17. Ellis Administration “Ellis Plan” implemented by O.B. Ellis
Texas Prison System renamed to Texas Department of Corrections
Education and industry expanded
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18. Beto Administration Dr. George Beto director, of TDCJ
Implemented the Windham School District
National recognition for clean, orderly, and secure institutions
1964 – Cooper v. Pate
1971 – Guajardo v. Estelle
1972 – Lamar v. Coffield
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19. Supreme Court Decisions
Cooper v. Pate – Prisoners have the right to challenge administrative practices.
Guajardo v. Estelle – TDCJ could not deny inmates the right to correspond with inmates on the same or different units regarding legal matters .
Lamar v. Coffield – TDCJ prohibited from segregating offender housing or jobs based on race.
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20. Windham School District
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21. Windham School District Largest School District in Texas
Established 1969
Offered GED and High School Diploma to inmates
Junior- and Senior-level college courses
Rehabilitation programs
Vocational training
Furlough and community service
Helped secure work and transition after release
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22. Prison-Made Goods Act
1963 – Produced materials for internal use and sale to other state agencies
“Occupational training” for inmates
Education, recreation, religion, physiological, and psychological health care added
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23. Inmate Goods
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24. Conflict and Consolidation (1973-1998)
Estelle administration:
Ruiz v. Estelle
The Carrasco Incident
Weapons smuggled into the unit
Hostages were killed
Lasted eleven days
The Pack/Moore Homicides
An offender was acquitted for the homicides of the warden and top prison official. This caused much outrage amongst the prison staff and concerns for safety
Death of Minnie Houston
One of the first female correctional officers was murdered by an offender in the officer’s dining hall. This raised additional concerns for the suitability of female correctional officers in male facilities (female officers were allowed in male facilities as a result of K.K. Coble v. TDCJ)
TDCJ established 1989
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25. Ruiz v. Estelle
1978 class action lawsuit challenged conditions of confinement
Longest running lawsuit
Federal courts maintained control of TDCJ until 2002
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26. Ruiz v. Estelle Violations alleged Due process
Cruel and unusual punishment
Crowding, poor living/health, and work conditions
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27. Texas Department of Criminal Justice (1972-Present)
1986 – Prison rodeo stopped due to cost of repair and operation
1989 – TDCJ & Board of Criminal Justice were created
Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Institutional Division
Department of Corrections
Board of Pardons and Parole
Texas Adult Probation Commission
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28. Recent History (1998-Present)
June 17, 2002 – Federal oversight under Ruiz was dismissed
Connally Seven “Texas 7”
Amended count procedures
Revised security procedures
Modified the offender classification plan to include reassignment of offenders to more appropriate security levels
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29. Copyright © Texas Education Agency 2011. All rights reserved.
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30. Recent History (1998-Present)
Homicides of Daniel Nagle, Stanley Wiley, and Rhonda Osborne
Murdered by inmates
Officer safety reviewed
Initiatives to include body alarms, carry-on-person chemical agents, defensive tactics training, thrust vests (stab resistant vests), and BOSS chairs (x-ray chairs that check body orifices for weapons
Hurricane Rita – 9,400 inmates were moved via airplane and vehicles prior to the hurricane hitting land
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31. Recent History (1998-Present)
CID reorganized to create better communication, coordination, consistency, and improve access to resources; revised into 6 regions.
American Correctional Association (ACA) accreditation
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32. Prison Population 1990s – the number of prison beds tripled
Community supervision implemented
State Jails created
Transfer facilities established
1998 – 124,000 in TDCJ, and 6,168 in private facilities
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33. Current Statistics
5 SAFPFs (Substance Abuse Felony Punishment Facilities)
21 State Jail Facilities
82 Prisons
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34. Resources
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
Photos taken with permission at the Texas Prison Museum
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