Overdose deaths in Texas prisons jumped 2,480% over the past seven years, a state prison official told lawmakers this week as they consider ways to curb contraband in Texas correctional facilities.
There were 129 recorded overdose deaths among people in Texas Department of Criminal Justice custody last year, said Bobby Lumpkin, TDCJ's executive director. That’s up from five such deaths in 2018.
The data was presented to senators Monday but has not been made publicly available online. It represents a relatively small portion of the 142,000 people Lumpkin said are currently in TDCJ custody.
"The root cause is a dependency and an addiction to that type of illicit substances," he told lawmakers during a Senate Committee on Criminal Justice hearing. “It unfortunately is an extension of the criminal element that even though they've been through the judicial system, been sentenced, they still depend back on that type of activity."
Lumpkin attributed the deaths to an influx of more potent drugs like fentanyl and other contraband into TDCJ facilities coming in through visitors, staff, books, mail, items thrown over perimeter fences and drones.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick tasked the Senate committee with finding ways to eliminate contraband in state prisons as part of his interim charges for the Senate between legislative sessions. Contraband includes items that are illegal to introduce to or possess inside a prison facility, such as alcohol, cigarettes, controlled substances, deadly weapons, cell phones and money.
TDCJ officials called cell phones the “most dangerous” form of contraband as they enable the coordination of trafficking operations, contact with crime victims and arranging smuggling activities. More than 2,000 cell phones were recovered inside the agency last year, Lumpkin said.
Cell phones have posed an issue for state prisons for more than a decade, and prison officials are still turning to cell phone signal jamming technology and managed access systems solve the issue.
TDCJ is also tightening restrictions on books. As of last month, the department no longer allows inmates to receive hardcover or used books, citing instances of meth or synthetic cannabinoids hidden in hardcovers or soaked into pages.
It's the department's latest effort to reduce contraband via written materials — TDCJ implemented a digital mail system in 2023. Criminal justice advocates, like Kirsten Budwine with the Texas Civil Rights Project, have criticized those efforts for cutting off inmates' connections to loved ones.
"We respectfully urge the committee to explore evidence-based, non-punitive strategies to address contraband," Budwine told senators Monday.
Also posing a challenge are drones dropping off cell phones and narcotics, Lumpkin said, with drone pilots sometimes getting paid tens of thousands of dollars for sending the devices into prisons.
Lumpkin and other TDCJ officials told the committee they suspect cartels and other organized crime systems are helping meet the demand for contraband in state prisons.
"There is a huge amount of money to be made here," said Lance Coleman, TDCJ's inspector general. "It's all about the money."
But inmates and prison employees have said it's the staff that has frequently supplied drugs found in correctional facilities — even as the state puts restrictions on what comes in and out of prisons to curb contraband.
The Legislature passed a law in 2025 raising the criminal penalties for introducing contraband into correctional facilities. The offense is a second degree felony if the actor is an employee.
Prison officials provided no updates on the impact of the law, which took effect Sept. 1. But Lumpkin said TDCJ asks for full prosecution of employees responsible for contraband.
"We are not short of putting out on social media when an employee has been arrested, indicted and sentenced for bringing in dangerous contraband," he said.
The officials told senators they've implemented strategies like substance abuse treatment programs, equipping staff with Narcan and enhanced K9 detection programs for phone batteries. But they also signaled they'll be requesting funding during the next legislative session — mostly for upgraded technology and tools, like autonomous drone surveillance that employs AI.
The lawmakers appear poised to tackle that next year.
"Let us know what you need from us to address this situation so we can work together to take care of this contraband and get that 129 number down, way down," committee chair Sen. Pete Flores said.
Toluwani Osibamowo is KERA’s law and justice reporter. Got a tip? Email Toluwani at tosibamowo@kera.org.
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