Sometimes I get asked what meaningful criminal justice reform should look like in Oklahoma. Our state, after all, has the highest incarceration rate in the world for both men and women.
These are people that have become almost permanently removed from their families and from the workforce. This brings dire social consequences. Not only are families broken apart, but taxpayers are forced to foot the bill for housing, feeding and taking care of the medical and basic human needs of these individuals.
But, here’s the dilemma: Many would say we must do everything we can to keep the public safe from those who commit crimes. On the surface, that sounds right. But, at some point, we have got to become much more adept at differentiating between those truly intent on harming others and those who are mentally ill or those who have made bad choices and are battling addictions. Often, after paying their dues in prison for a crime committed, the latter get caught in our criminal justice system and can’t find a way out, whether because of fines and fees or the lack of ability to jump through the hoops of the system, or other factors.
Criminals should pay for their crimes, and punishment is proper in most cases. The problem is we have the system so rigid and complex, there seems to be no end to the sentence and so many technical details and fines and fees, it’s nearly impossible to get free even after a person gets out of prison.
We know that mental health care services and addiction treatment cost less than incarceration. But, it takes a lot of resources to determine those truly in need and those who represent a true threat to the public. It also takes time to turn a massive ocean liner, and over the last 50 years that is what this problem has become like.
Still, the Oklahoma Legislature has taken many steps over the past few years to help alleviate our growing prison population while keeping a watchful eye on ensuring public safety. Here are some of the reforms passed the last few years that are making a difference.
In 2017, the Legislature put State Questions 780 and 781 on a statewide ballot, and voters approved the measures. SQ780 made certain nonviolent drug and property crimes misdemeanors instead of felonies, and SQ781 directs funds saved to community rehabilitation programs, including mental health and substance abuse services.
This year, the Legislature passed and the governor signed into law House Bill 1269 that makes SQ780 retroactive as it relates to those categories of crimes. The legislation goes into effect Nov. 1. The new law directs the Pardon and Parole Board to establish an accelerated, single-stage commutation docket for people convicted of crimes that have been reclassified, and empowers the board to recommend these people to the governor for reconsideration of their sentences. The Department of Corrections is to provide a certified list of potentially eligible inmates to the Pardon and Parole Board within 30 days of the act’s effective date.
Early projections indicate an estimated 623 inmates who have only simple possession sentences will be able to be released as soon as their sentences are commuted. Another 338 people who are serving time for simple drug possession and for another crime will be able to have their total sentence length reduced.
In the meantime, OMES estimated last fall that the state had saved $63.5 million in Fiscal Year 2018 in cost aversion as the result of SQ780 by reducing the number of offenders sentenced to prison. This in turn lowered the state’s incarceration costs. The estimated savings over five years are $137.8 million.
For the Fiscal Year 2020 budget, the Legislature dedicated $1.5 million to Women in Recovery and an additional $1.7 million for mental health services. This is in addition to Senate Bill 86, which directs the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to use $10 million of the department’s appropriation for the Smart on Crime initiative and $500,000 to establish a pilot program to provide offenders incarcerated in county jails access to Federal Drug Administration-approved, evidence-based medication-assisted treatment for opioid and alcohol dependence.
These are just a few of multiple measures passed. We still need change for those who have paid their dues to society and done their time and are coming out of the justice system. Those who meet the criteria to receive a valid driver’s license should be helped so they can get a job and begin integrating back into society. In the meantime, lawmakers continue to study other criminal justice reform initiatives. Many will be the focus of interim studies this fall. I will keep you posted on our progress.
As always, I serve you – my constituents of District 55 - first. Next in line is our great state. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to represent you at the Capitol. God bless you and God bless Oklahoma!
Todd Russ represents Oklahoma House District 55 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.