A first-of-its-kind study of the Williamson County Transformative Justice Program shows a reduction in arrest rates and jail time, according to a county news release.
Researchers with the Texas A&M University’s Public Policy Research Institute presented the study and findings at a Feb. 3 Commissioners Court meeting, and commissioners authorized the district courts to apply for grant funding for the program for fiscal year 2026-27.
About the program
Launched in 2020, the Transformative Justice Program is a felony-diversion program for youth and emerging adults.
“It dives into their lives as soon as they’re at the lowest point of their life,” District Attorney Shawn Dick said at the meeting. “For some of these kids, it’s the first time in a while someone has taken an interest in them.”
The program is geared toward 17-to-24-year-olds who have committed a felony, an age group that is overrepresented in the criminal justice system. While this age group makes up 11% of the state population, they account for 33% of all arrests, according to county documents.
Based on personalized support plans through a case management team and facilitating supportive relationships, the program seeks to address the risk factors that cause emerging adults to commit and recommit felonies, according to the news release.
“The relationships built between the participants and everybody involved in the program seemed to be one of the key features,” said Emily Naiser, an associate research scientist with the Texas A&M Public Policy Research Institute.
The impact
The study is the first randomized control study of the criminal justice system, the news release states. It compared outcomes for those who chose to participate in the program and those who did not, according to the news release.
Emerging adults who graduated from the program were:
- 48% less likely to get arrested
- 61% less likely to be arrested for a felony
They also spent about 36 fewer days in jail on average, and 80% of graduates had fewer misdemeanors and felonies than nongraduates.
Those who participated in the program were 35% less likely to get arrested. Sixty percent of those who participated in the program graduated, and those who stayed through the first 200 days were more likely to graduate.
Before this program, 75% of emerging adults were rearrested within three years of their first arrest, Dick said.
“We knew if we just did things because that’s what we’ve always done, we were failing this population and we were failing our community,” Dick said.
What else?
The program also helps reduce costs to the county from fewer days spent in jail, attorneys’ fees, court time and supervision.
Estimated net savings per participant are around $1,000-$2,200 annually, according to county documents.
