CRIMINAL JUSTICE COMMITTEE MEETS AT STATE CAPITOL

AUSTIN - Members of the Senate Interim Committee on Criminal Justice met at the state capitol on Tuesday, March 31, to discuss one of the many charges specified by Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock. The committee is responsible for looking into the issue of medical and mental health treatments of Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) inmates.

Chairing the committee is Senator John Whitmire of Houston and members include Senators Jane Nelson of Flower Mound, Bill Ratliff of Mount Pleasant, Florence Shapiro of Plano, and Royce West of Dallas.

Testifying in front of the committee at Tuesday's hearing included the deputy executive director and the interim division director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as well as the director and chief financial officer of TDCJ's Correctional Managed Health Care. Certain medical providers and representatives from the Texas Council on Offenders with Mental Impairments also testified. Public testimony followed.

The committee will gather its findings and make any necessary recommendations to the 76th Legislature which convenes in January of next year.

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