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The Harris County Commissioners Court approved $7.5 million to fund prosecutor positions in the Harris County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday (April 5), Houston CBS affiliate KHOU reported.
The money, which is derived from federal COVID-19 dollars, will go toward filling 50 current positions in divisions such as Domestic Abuse and Sex Crimes, Harris County DA Kim Ogg said, according to the station.
“We made some headway,” Ogg, a Democrat said, KHOU reported. “I think the most important thing to understand is that the District Attorney’s Office is critical to the justice system, and as underfunded and understaffed as we have become, we’re in sort of a vicious cycle.”
KHOU reported that the vote was unanimous, but Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo abstained from the item.
The funds also increase the salary for entry-level prosecutors to $87,000.
“The word ‘defunding’ is being thrown around in a theatrical fashion when we know for a fact – you can see the bar graph – the funding has only gone up,” Hidalgo said, according to the station. “So, out of just intellectual honesty and knowing this issue is being addressed and we’re gonna have another round of theatrics at the next court, I just have to abstain.”
The approval of the funding comes just as Harris County grapples with a congested criminal backlog.
According to KHOU, the backlog dates back to August 2017 when Hurricane Harvey inflicted severe damage to the county courthouse.
Houston ABC affiliate KTRK reported that more than 40,000 have been backlogged.
"The last five years have been devastating," Ogg said, according to KTRK.
According to the DA, there's been a brain drain among the county's prosecutors during the last half-decade. She said the effect of the money remains to be seen.
"We'll see how it works," Ogg said, KTRK reported. "If it doesn't work, if it doesn't give our prosecutors some relief, I'll be back here in two weeks, and I'll be back at every Commissioner's Court until we get the needed relief."