A federal judge has granted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton a key win by allowing him to intervene in a lawsuit that produced the 2019 Harris County misdemeanor bail reform consent decree.

“The justice system must be dedicated to punishing the evildoer and protecting the innocent. But far too often, leftist judicial activists and other liberal anti-prison organizations have worked to make Texas less safe by throwing open the prison doors and unleashing criminals back onto the streets. I will do everything in my power to reverse this disastrous policy and uphold the law.”

The O’Donnell Consent Decree came from a 2016 class-action lawsuit arguing that Harris County’s prior bail practices were unconstitutional. The lawsuit claimed the county detained people charged with misdemeanors simply for being unable to afford cash bail.

A judge approved the decree in 2019.

The decree eliminated most cash bail for misdemeanor offenses and required release on unsecured bonds. It also created an independent monitor to oversee compliance with the new rules.

The new ruling opens the door for Paxton’s office to seek termination of the decree. His office argues that it violates Texas law and endangers public safety.

Paxton’s office said the decree enabled radical judges to more easily release criminals into Harris County communities. They claim liberal activists have tried to expand its reach despite state laws imposing stricter bail standards.

“General Paxton seeks to vacate the decree and ensure that the rights of Harris County citizens are represented in court.”

The case represents a major battleground in the national debate over criminal justice reform. Progressives argue that cash bail systems unfairly punish poor people who cannot afford to pay their way out of jail while waiting for trial. Conservatives counter that eliminating bail requirements puts dangerous criminals back on the streets where they can commit more crimes.

Harris County includes Houston and is one of the largest counties in America with millions of residents. What happens there often influences policy debates across Texas and the rest of the country.

The 2019 consent decree fundamentally changed how the county handles people arrested for misdemeanors. Before the decree, judges could set cash bail amounts that defendants had to pay to get out of jail while awaiting trial. People who could not afford bail stayed locked up even though they had not been convicted of any crime.

Reform advocates argued this was unfair because wealthy defendants could buy their freedom while poor defendants stayed in jail for the same charges. They said the system punished poverty rather than criminal behavior.

But critics of the reform say the pendulum swung too far in the other direction. They point to cases of people released on unsecured bonds who then committed new crimes while awaiting trial on the original charges.

Paxton and other conservatives argue that eliminating cash bail removes an important tool judges need to protect public safety. They say some defendants pose a clear danger to the community and should not be automatically released just because they cannot afford bail.

The attorney general’s office has been working to challenge the consent decree since it was implemented. Getting permission to intervene in the original lawsuit gives Paxton a much stronger position to argue for ending the policy.

Texas has passed new laws in recent years that impose stricter bail standards and give judges more authority to deny release for certain offenses. Paxton argues the consent decree conflicts with these state laws and should be thrown out.

The fight over the Harris County bail system shows how local court decisions can have massive impacts on public safety and criminal justice policy. One consent decree in one county has shaped how thousands of people accused of crimes are treated.

Liberal activists who support the decree say it has helped reduce the jail population and prevented people from losing their jobs or housing just because they were too poor to make bail. They argue the system is fairer and more humane than what existed before.

Conservative critics say the decree has made Harris County less safe by releasing people who go on to commit additional crimes. They want judges to have more discretion to keep potentially dangerous defendants locked up.

The outcome of Paxton’s legal challenge could determine whether the 2019 reforms stay in place or get rolled back to give judges more authority over bail decisions.