Thank you, United Republicans, for all you do!

We at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office are proud to serve and safeguard the people of Harris County, Texas.

The district attorney’s office represents the state of Texas in all criminal cases.  It is our duty to see that justice is done and to protect the lives, property and rights of our more than 4 million citizens.  We are ever mindful that the rule of law is the basis of a decent, robust civil society and that our office is the foremost guardian of justice and order.

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office is the leading law enforcement agency in the county.  We are both sword and shield in protecting and defending the public. The office is staffed by extraordinary people and each is vital to accomplishing our mission.

Our responsibilities are varied and complex.  We represent the state in all criminal matters and are statutorily and morally charged with the solemn duty to see that justice is done. We must ensure that the rights of both defendants and victims are protected, while vigorously prosecuting the guilty.  To serve and protect the citizenry, the office launches initiatives and works collaboratively with all levels of government and the private sector to prevent, reduce and suppress crime.  Always, we endeavor to improve the administration of justice. 

Our office has implemented innovative programs and projects to disrupt gangs, prevent crime, protect victims, vigorously prosecute dangerous criminals and improve the criminal justice system.  Process changes have been engineered and new technology employed to make the office more effective and efficient.

Below I have included a link to the office’s 2010 Year in Review and an announcement on our recent accolade for cleaning up area gang activity.  I am pleased to share with you news of the great things we are accomplishing at the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.

Patricia R. Lykos

Harris County District Attorney

Click here to view the Harris County District Attorney’s Office 2010 Year in Review

DA’s Office Honored for Cleaning Up Gang Activity in Aldine Complex

Harris County District Attorney Patricia Lykos was honored recently by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Office of the Inspector General (HUD-OIG) with a performance award for leading the effort to free the Haverstock Hills apartment complex from entrenched criminal street gang violence.

“From our first meeting we knew she was serious about stopping the cycle of violence at Haverstock Hills and letting the gangs know they could not rule the complex,” said Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Robert Jones.  “Her leadership was instrumental in pulling together a committed team comprised of the Sheriff’s Department, Houston Police Department, HUD-OIG and ATF to get rid of the criminal element.”

Last year Lykos filed Harris County’s first-ever civil injunction action against the gangs operating at Haverstock Hills.  Statistics showed that in one year law enforcement agencies responded to more than 3,000 calls from Haverstock residents for help.  Gangs had peddled narcotics, ran dice games on playgrounds, and engaged in gunfire, drug-dealing, assaults, prostitution, and intimidation at the complex for decades. 

The injunction barred any gang-related conduct in a newly created 57-acre “safety zone” that included the apartment complex, a nearby elementary school campus and 11 area businesses.  It also banned more than 50 known gang defendants from ever returning to Haverstock.  The temporary order was made permanent in February.  Armed with the court orders, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office and other agencies continue to make sweeps of the area.

“I am very proud of the work we’ve done at Haverstock,” said Lykos.  “The residents deserve to live in a place free from crime and violence.  We cannot permit gangs to ‘own the night’ as they like to brag.  We must let the gangs know that neighborhoods in Harris County do not belong to ‘hoods.’”

District Attorney Lykos began coordinating the anti-gang action nearly a year before the filing of the injunction.  She set up a coalition of agencies, community organizations, schools, and faith-based groups along with Haverstock management to assist residents and offer real alternatives to the gang existence.