Sheriff candidates oppose State Question 805
Both candidates for Oklahoma County sheriff announce data news conference Friday their joint opposition against State Question 805 ahead of t he Tuesday's election.
State Question 805 would prohibit judges and prosecutors from employing sentence enhancements to length en the time that repeat, nonviolent offenders spend in prison beyond the maximum times listed in state law.
Republican Tommie Johnson III and Democrat Wayland Cubit both said they did not support the state question because of how it defines which crimes are considered nonviolent and would therefore no longer be eligible for sentence enhancements.
They also noted that they were not happy it would be a constitutional change, which is difficult to undo.
The main crimes people have expressed concerns over
are domestic violence charges, which were classified as nonviolent in state law until late spring this year. If State Question 805 is approved, domestic violence charges, as well as animal cruelty, trafficking and other crimes couldn't be prosecuted with sentence enhancements.
Supporters say the change
would lower the state's incarceration rate, save taxpayer dollars and keep families in the state together.
Cubit said he believes the intent behind State Question 805 is“headed in the right direction ,” but he still has concerns.
“I have some concerns that put me on the `no' side of 805,”
Cubit said. “I want to ask the voters to do the research.”
Johnson agreed that criminal justice reform is needed, but he said “progressive discipline” should continue to be an option, and the state question was not specific enough with its definition of nonviolent crimes.
“I am the first person that will fight for criminal justice reform,” Johnson said. “But I don't want to do it if it puts in jeopardy public safety.”
Whether the sheriff candidates support State Question 805 has come up several times in recent weeks as campaign appearances have increased closer to the election.
And both say they support criminal justice reform generally, though they haven't given specific details on what broad reforms they would like to see in place of State Question 805.
Kim Garrett, CEO of Palomar, Oklahoma City's family justice center serving victims of domestic violence, introduced Cubit and Johnson.
“The reality is you have to work hard to get into prison,”
Garrett said, adding that less than 3% of domestic abusers go to prison when compared to the number of calls to 911 in Oklahoma City.
“They have a lot of chances and leniency, so the people who are in prison for those crimes have done really terrible and egregious things.”
Co-founder of Palo mar, Tricia Ever est, leads the main opposition group, Oklahomans United Against 805.
Kris Steele, a leader with Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform and a main spokesperson for the Yes on 805 campaign, said those opposing the state question were working off of “misinformation,” and added that safeguards would remain in place for offenders if the question is approved.
“Oklahoma has an incarceration crisis ,” Steele said. “State Question 805 takes us a step toward safely reducing our prison population, making better use of our state' s resources and strengthening families.”