The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails, and private correctional facilities, funding and certain oversight of community supervision, and supervision of offenders released from prison on parole or mandatory supervision. The TDCJ operates the largest prison system in the United States."Huntsville Prison Blues". National Public Radio. All Things Considered. September 10, 2001. Retrieved on December 2, 2009.

The department has its headquarters in the Brad Livingston Administrative Headquarters in Huntsville and offices at the Price Daniel Sr. Building in downtown Austin."Web Directory - Texas Department of Criminal Justice." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Accessed September 13, 2008."Contact Information ". Third Court of Appeals of Texas. Accessed September 13, 2008.

History

1800s In 1848, the Texas Legislature passed "An Act to Establish a State Penitentiary", which created an oversight board to manage the treatment of convicts and administration of the penitentiaries. Land was acquired in Huntsville and Rusk for later facilities.

The prison system began as a single institution, located in Huntsville. A second prison facility, Rusk Penitentiary, began receiving convicts in January 1883. Before the Ruiz v. Estelle court case, the Texas Department of Corrections had 18 units, including 16 for males and two for females.Renaud, Jorge Antonio. "Living Quarters." Behind the Walls: A Guide for Families and Friends of Texas Prison Inmates. University of North Texas Press, 2002. 7. Retrieved from Google Books on May 23, 2010. , .

Various administrative changes where the organization of the managing board of the department occurred over the next 100 years.

1900s In 1921, George W. Dixon of The Prison Journal published a report on the Texas Prison System facilities. His article stated that the prisons were among the most "brutal" in the world. Dixon said that the prisons featured corporal punishment such as whipping, beatings, and isolation."The Texas Prison Camps" The Prison Journal. April 1921 vol. 1 no. 2 12-14

In July and August 1974, a major riot at the Huntsville Walls prison resulted in the murder of two hostages. This was not a riot, but an escape attempt in which the whole Huntsville Unit was shut down. Inmates were Fred Gomez Carrasco, Rudolpho Domingez and Ignacio Cueves.

In 1979, Ruiz v. Estelle found that the conditions of imprisonment within the TDC prison system constituted cruel and unusual punishment in violation of the United States Constitution. The decision led to federal oversight of the system, with a prison construction boom and "sweeping reforms ... that fundamentally changed how Texas prisons operated."

In 1989, the TDCJ and the Board of Criminal Justice were created. The board is composed of nine members appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate to six-year, overlapping terms. This new agency absorbed functions of three state agencies - the Texas Department of Corrections, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and the Texas Adult Probation Commission.

In the 1980s, the government of Texas began building more prisons. During that decade, impoverished rural communities viewed the prisons as a boon, as they provided jobs.Renaud, Jorge Antonio. "A Short History of Texas Prisons." Behind the Walls: A Guide for Families and Friends of Texas Prison Inmates. University of North Texas Press, 2002. xxii. Retrieved from Google Books on May 23, 2010. , .

In 1987, the Texas State Board of Corrections voted to build two new 2,250-inmate maximum-security prisons in Gatesville and Amarillo and several 1,000-inmate medium-security prisons in Liberty County, Marlin, Snyder, and Woodville. The TDC units in Amarillo and Snyder were the first ones located outside of Central Texas and East Texas."Major Prisons Slated At Gatesville, Amarillo." Associated Press at The Victoria Advocate. Tuesday November 10, 1987. Retrieved from Google News (13/16) on November 19, 2010.

James Anthum "Andy" Collins, the executive director of the TDCJ from April 10, 1994, to around December 1995, became a consultant for VitaPro, a company selling a meat substitute that was used in Texas prisons.Draper, Robert. "The Great Texas Prison Mess" (). Texas Monthly. May 1996. Retrieved on January 19, 2016. Shirley Southerland, a prisoner at the Hobby Unit, stated that her fellow prisoners discovered that the VitaPro product was intended for consumption by canines. Collins arranged for VitaPro to be used while he was still the head of the TDCJ.Talvi, Silja. Women Behind Bars: The Crisis of Women in the U.S. Prison System. Seal Press, November 2, 2007. , 9780786750795. p. 111. Collins had awarded a $33.7 million contract to the company. Robert Draper of the Texas Monthly accused various TDCJ board members and state officials in the early to mid-1990s of capitalizing on the rapid expansion of Texas prisons – from 1994 to 1996 the number of prisoners almost doubled and the number of the prison units increased from 65 to 108 – and trying to establish favorable business contracts and get prisons named after them. Draper reasoned, "If [Allan B. Polunsky] and other board members didn't care about ethics, why should Andy Collins?"

2000s, 2010s and 2020s According to a December 2007 survey of prisoners from the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, five TDCJ units, Allred Unit, Clemens Unit, Coffield Unit, Estelle Unit, and Mountain View Unit, were among those in the United States with the highest numbers of reported prison rape cases in 2006. In 2007, the TDCJ reported a total of 234 reported sexual assaults in its prisons. Michelle Lyons, the TDCJ spokesperson, said, "The actual reports we have are not consistent with the results in the survey, but because it's anonymous, there's no way for us to verify that additional number."Ward, Mike. "Texas leads U.S. in rates of prison rape, survey finds." Austin American-Statesman. Friday March 28, 2008. Retrieved on January 19, 2010.

In 2008, the TDCJ planned to install cell phone-jamming devices at its units, but encountered resistance from cell phone companies.Connally, Richard. "TDCJ Comes Up Against The Cell Phone Companies." Houston Press. Tuesday December 16, 2008. Retrieved on May 14, 2010.

In 2014, the Human Rights Clinic of the University of Texas School of Law released a report stating that the temperatures in many TDCJ units are too high over the summer and that at least 14 inmates had been killed by the heat since 2007. In 2013, the TDCJ had signed a deal for a climate-controlled housing system for pig breeding; this was worth $750,000.Dart, Tom. "Texas prisons violate international human rights standards, report says." The Guardian. Wednesday April 23, 2014. Retrieved on April 24, 2014. In response, John Whitmire of the Texas State Senate stated, "the people of Texas don't want air-conditioned prisons, and there's a lot of other things on my list above the heat. It's hot in Texas, and a lot of Texans who are not in prison don't have air conditioning."Ward, Mike. "Lawmakers, prison agency defend lack of AC in Texas prisons." Houston Chronicle. April 22, 2014. Retrieved on April 24, 2014. That year, a federal judge declared that the TDCJ is making it impossible for Muslim inmates to practice their religion.Schiller, Dane. "Federal ruling: Texas prisons violating rights of Muslims." Houston Chronicle. May 1, 2014. Retrieved on May 2, 2014.

In 2017, the use of solitary confinement as punishment was ended.

An October 2024 report by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission documented severe staffing shortages throughout the prison system that put inmates and staff at risk. The report predicted that Texas prisons could soon run out of room. Some facilities were operating with only 30% of their guard positions filled, while the annual turnover rate for all Texas Department of Criminal Justice staff was 26%.

In 2026, U.S. District Judge Robert L. Pitman ordered the TDCJ to install air conditioning in all prisons by the end of 2029. TDCJ stated that it would appeal the ruling.

Governance

The Texas Board of Criminal Justice oversees the TDCJ. The board selects the executive director, who manages the TDCJ."Organizational Charts." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. August 21, 2009. Retrieved on May 16, 2010. The members of the board are appointed by the Governor of Texas."Texas Board of Criminal Justice." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 16, 2010.

Current board members

Bobby Lumpkin (executive director) Eric Nichols (chairman) Faith Johnson (vice chairman) Pastor Nathanael Sprinkle (member) Tommy Fordice (member) Molly Francis (member) Sydney Zuiker (member) Sichan Siv (member) William Welch (member) Rodney Burrow, M.D. (secretary)

Major divisions The department encompasses these major divisions: Correctional Institutions Division Parole Division Community Justice Assistance Division

Correctional Institutions Division

The Correctional Institutions Division, which operates secure correctional facilities for adults, has its headquarters in the Brad Livingston Administrative Headquarters in Huntsville."." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on July 28, 2010. "TDCJ Correctional Institutions Division 861-B IH 45 North Huntsville, Texas 77320" TDCJ-CID, formed in 2003, was a merger of the Institutions Division, the Operations Division, the Private Facilities Division, and the State Jail Division."Correctional Institutions Division." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 9, 2006.

The division operates prisons, which are facilities for people convicted of capital offenses and people convicted of first-, second-, and third-degree felony offenses, and state jails, facilities for people convicted of state jail felony offenses. Before the 2003 formation of the Correctional Institutions Division, the Institutional Division operated prisons and the State Jail Division (TDCJ-SJD"." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. October 2000.) operated state jails."." Criminal Justice Policy Council. Retrieved on May 9, 2010. As of 2010, of the counties in Texas, the five with the highest numbers of state prisons and jails were Walker, Brazoria and Coryell (tie), and Anderson and Liberty (tie)."Unit Directory." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 10, 2010.Horswell, Cindy. "For hard-hit economy of Liberty County, crime officially pays." Houston Chronicle. Thursday June 29, 1995. A30. Retrieved on July 23, 2010.

As of 2001, prisons may be named after people who are dead or who are still alive, and namesakes have included Governors of Texas, TDCJ employees, members of the Texas House of Representatives, mayors, police officers, and judges. In previous eras, prisons were only named after deceased TDCJ employees and state governors. By the 2000s, so many new prisons were being built that the TDCJ had to change its naming policy.Hallinan, Joseph T. "Chapter One" (). Going Up the River: Travels in a Prison Nation. 2001. Retrieved on September 27, 2015.