Commutation votes are signs of progress

BY recommending commutations for 22 Oklahoma prison inmates, members of the state Pardon and Parole Board indicated that they grasp the need to look wisely for ways to reduce the state’s prison population.

The cases brought to the board last week were the product of work by Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, which reviewed hundreds of cases. Most involved inmates sentenced for crimes that no longer carry such lengthy prison terms. They included sentences for drug possession, which was made a misdemeanor through voter approval of State Question 780 in 2016, and long stints for possession with intent to distribute, which was affected by reforms passed during the most recent legislative session.

Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform gave the parole board the names of 46 inmates the group considered strong candidates for commutation. The 23 considered last week had cleared an initial vetting by the board and were back for stage two.

The board voted to send all but one of the 23 to the governor with a recommendation for commutation. The outlier was an inmate who had been cited a few times for misconduct. (The board had previously rejected 14 of the other 23 commutation candidates. It will consider the remaining eight— one has already been released— next month.)

Commutation simply changes a sentence to one that's less severe, and isn't meant to be a trigger for early release. Ultimately, whether an inmate's sentence is commuted falls to the governor.

And, commutations are rare in Oklahoma. During the 2017-18 fiscal year, the parole board considered 477 commutation requests; only 10 wound up on the governor’s desk.

Board members have worried about releasing candidates with drug or alcohol addictions if they don’t have access to adequate support on the outside. Members of Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform have worked to help in that area.

OCJR board member Danielle Ezell said the group will ask the 2019 Legislature to consider making retroactive the changes that were instituted in SQ 780. Ezell noted that more than 1,000 inmates sentenced for simple drug possession before 780 took effect wouldn’t be locked up for that crime today.

The Oklahoman’s Darla Slipke highlighted one of the cases heard by the parole board last week, that of Katara Wheeler, who is imprisoned for drug possession. Since going to prison, her mother is “like a totally different person now,” her daughter said.

“This will not only be a life-changing experience for her, but my family also.”

The parole board’s recent vote was the equivalent of tossing a pebble into the ocean, involving 22 inmates from a population of more than 26,000. Yet this small step is encouraging nonetheless.