Allison Mathis

What training, experience, and characteristics qualify you for this position?

I have been a criminal lawyer for over a decade. In that time I have worked at every level of the criminal legal system: trials, appeals, writs and parole. I have seen a huge amount of injustice toward both people accused of crimes and people victimized by crime, and that injustice I cannot abide. That has shaped the trajectory of my career and lead me here. I am dedicated, smart, and creative, and I am a force with which to be reckoned if I think something is not right.

What, if any, alternatives to incarceration do you support? Please discuss program options, as well as when and how such alternatives can be used.

Many. Incarceration is expensive and often ineffective and it needs to be used more judiciously. Diversion programs, drug courts, mental health courts, and pretrial intervention programs are all great alternatives, but we need more robust programs that are increasingly connected to the community. Probation and community supervision should also contain fewer financial requirements that disproportionately discourage people with fewer resources from accepting probationary sentences.

In setting bail amounts, how will you balance Texas’s constitutionally mandated bail requirements with other conditions of release including minimizing any public safety threat the defendant may present to community? Please discuss both first time and repeat offenders.

There are so many ways bail can be done better! I plan to spend more time reviewing the allegations in individual cases and tailoring appropriate conditions to each defendant. I also think there are ways to decrease the involvement of bail bonding companies by setting lower “cash only” bond options, enabling families to post the full amount in cash and then recover the money at the end of the case, rather than losing it to frequently unscrupulous bond companies.