Brighter prospects for justice reform
IN lining out House Republicans’ priorities for the legislative session, House Speaker Charles McCall said last week, “Criminal justice bills will move forward.” It’s already happening — welcome news indeed following a highly frustrating 2017.
Last year saw a governor’s task force propose a dozen bills intended to change some of the ways Oklahoma approaches criminal justice. The task force noted that without reform, the state could add about 7,200 inmates during the next decade, requiring an additional $1.9 billion in capital expenditures (including new prisons) and operating costs.
Most of the bills were approved in their chamber of origin, but when Senate bills were sent to the House for consideration, many were assigned to the judiciary committee where its chairman at the time, Rep. Scott Biggs, saw that they were sent to a conference committee.
As the session wound down, Gov. Mary Fallin and others urged Biggs to give the bills a vote. That never happened, as he eventually recessed the conference committee without taking up the bills.
Biggs, a former prosecutor, said the state was moving too hastily and was putting the public at risk. This was in line with his rhetoric throughout his time in the House — he regularly opposed most criminal justice reform efforts.
Biggs’ resignation from the Legislature late last year, to take a job with the federal government, enhanced the likelihood of reform bills getting to Fallin’s desk.
One of the bills carried over received approval in the House on Tuesday. It makes theft of items valued at less than $1,000 a misdemeanor rather than a felony, which will help reduce the number of people incarcerated for low-value property crimes.
Another bill would give judges and prosecutors more options in diverting people from prison to treatment and supervision programs. The bill also seeks to decrease financial barriers for those seeking to reenter society from prison.
One bill would limit the sentence for a repeat nonviolent offender to 1.25 times the maximum sentence that could be given to a first offender for the same crime. Another, sweeping bill would do several things, including develop an administrative parole process, make nonviolent offenders eligible for parole after serving one-fourth (instead of one-third) of their sentence, establish a geriatric parole process, and prohibit inmates from being excluded from an electronic monitoring program because of inability to pay.
Fallin’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2019 includes giving an additional $31.2 million, combined, to the state’s mental health agency, the pardon and parole board and the Department of Corrections to pay for justice reform initiatives.
In her State of the State remarks, Fallin told lawmakers to pass the bills proposed by her task force. “Too few Oklahomans are getting the treatment they need for substance abuse and mental health issues, and are instead winding up in our criminal justice system,” Fallin said.
“We need to stop warehousing moms and dads and sons and daughters in prison, when many just need some substance abuse treatment,” she said.
That line produced the longest ovation of her speech, an indication lawmakers understand change is needed. Now they need to continue to follow through.