Tens of thousands of Texas citizens are arrested every year for minor fine-only offenses, mostly traffic violations, and it’s costing the state, according to one study.
The practice reached national attention in December when a Keller police officer arrested a 22-year-old man over a traffic violation, WFAA reported.
Racial profiling reports submitted by Texas law enforcement state that 9.7 million traffic stops were made in 2019 and that arrests were made at 3.2% of those stops. Data from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement notes that 21% of arrests at traffic stops were for Class C misdemeanors such as moving violations. Those found guilty of a Class C misdemeanor should not be fined more than $500 or face jail time, Texas statutes state.
One 2016 study by the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition found that in Harris County 10% of all arrests over a four-month period were for these kinds of misdemeanors.
"Black drivers made up nearly half of all drivers arrested on a single non-jailable transportation offense, as well as 41.1% of all people jailed for other non-jailable offenses," according to the coalition study. "While approximately 70% of Harris County’s population is white, white drivers made up only 22.9% and 24% of the arrests for traffic and other non-jailable offenses, respectively."
Of the 23,578 people arrested during the period, 2,567, or 11%, were arrested for Class C misdemeanors, 763 on a single one, the coalition said.
The coalition added: "If this data is representative of the rest of the state, then tens of thousands of drivers are likely arrested for traffic infractions each year."
In Travis County, KUT reports there is a high rate of incarceration for fine-only offenses as well. A Texas Appleseed study found that one in six jail bookings in 2017 were for Class C misdemeanors. Texas Appleseed’s Mary Mergler told KUT that the bookings are a strain on the state’s criminal justice system.
"Most misdemeanors are nonviolent offenses – and we know that," she said. "You know even a short stay in jail can have a really lasting impact on someone's life. We need to be using jail in a very different way than we're using right now. This data shows that."
Two Texas lawmakers want to bar arrests for offenses that would draw only fines if prosecuted, prompted in part by evidence of racial profiling and their use as a tool to carry out searches of vehicles.
State Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D-Houston) and Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) filed the George Floyd Act in August, which, along with criminal justice reforms, will bar arrests for most fine-only offenses.
The offenses include speeding, insurance and registration problems, seatbelt violations and failure to signal, along with noise, littering and child-support violations.
It was noted by Texas Criminal Justice Coalition that many of the arrests happen at traffic stops. If the driver does not agree to a search of the vehicle, the officer can arrest the individual and then do the search himself.
"If no contraband is found, the person can simply be booked on that original charge," the coalition said. "We all pay for extra officer booking, and jail time when roadside fishing expeditions turn up nothing."
Texas law bars officers from arresting a person for speeding, yet this was the most common single offense among the ones found by the coalition. An officer can be cited for misconduct for arresting a motorist for speeding.
These arrests result in expensive jail costs. Texas Appleseed reported in 2019 that counties spend millions to jail those charged with misdemeanors, and in 10 counties, Class C misdemeanors resulted in 6,825 jail bed days. The 2016 report by the Texas Association of Counties’ “The Cost of County Government,” states that a conservative average cost to hold an individual in jail is $60 per day.
Lawmakers attempted to resolve the issue with Senate Bill 730 in 2001, which was vetoed by then-Gov. Rick Perry. The bill would have limited the authority of police to make arrests on ticketing offenses.
The measure was a response to a 1997 seatbelt violation case in the city of Lago Vista and U.S. Supreme Court case Atwater v. City of Lago Vista. Justices ruled that state legislatures should determine whether officers could make arrests on Class C misdemeanors.
