News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Lawmakers Eye Tougher Sentencing Laws

Published

1 month ago

March 28, 2025

Staff Editor

oklahomawatch.org – Keaton Ross – 2025-03-28 06:00:00

by Keaton Ross, Oklahoma Watch
March 28, 2025

Lock them up and throw away the key.

That’s the idea behind Title 21, Section 13.1 of the Oklahoma Statutes. Criminal defendants convicted of one of the 22 offenses outlined in the statute, including murder, first-degree rape and human trafficking, must serve at 85% of their sentence behind bars before becoming parole eligible.

Oklahoma lawmakers are considering several additions to the 85% list, with backers arguing a tougher approach is needed to crack down on violent crime and domestic abuse. The Domestic Violence Fatality Review Board reported a record-breaking 122 domestic violence homicides in 2023.

Bills increasing prison time for certain domestic violence crimes, including domestic abuse by strangulation and abuse of a pregnant woman, have advanced with bipartisan support during the first half of the legislative session.

Meanwhile, several Democrats have opposed Senate Bill 631, which adds discharging a firearm into a building to the 85% list. Sen. Michael Brooks, D-Oklahoma City, argued on the Senate floor that it could lead to lengthy sentences for property damage.

The bill, authored by Senate Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton, advanced along party lines and is eligible to be considered in the House. Paxton has maintained that law enforcement and district attorneys will retain discretion to decide if a shooting was accidental.

“If someone is going to shoot into my house, I’m scared of them and don’t want them on the street,” Paxton said on the Senate floor.

Additions to the 85% crime list would significantly increase prison stays, according to estimates from the Department of Corrections. For instance, domestic abuse by strangulation has an average sentence length of 10.99 years, but prisoners serve an average of just 1.68 years in state custody. That would increase to at least 9.34 years as an 85% crime.

Another bill to increase prison sentences, Senate Bill 599 by Warren Hamilton, R-McCurtain, remains alive. The measure, which advanced to the House on a party-line Republican vote, would establish a mandatory life without parole sentence for anyone convicted of sexually abusing a child under 14.

The bill also allows prosecutors to pursue the death penalty, though current U.S. Supreme Court precedent outlaws capital punishment for non-homicide offenses. Florida and Tennessee have passed similar legislation in an attempt to get the high court to reconsider the issue.

“We don’t want to infringe on the accused’s rights, but children have rights too,” Hamilton said. “The message we’re trying to send is that we’re not going to put up with people who commit heinous crimes against children.”

Where Reform Bills Stand

While proposals to pause the death penalty and scrutinize civil asset forfeiture stalled, several other criminal justice reform measures have momentum at the Legislature’s unofficial halfway point.

House Bill 1460 by Tammy West, R-Oklahoma City, passed without objection off the House floor on Thursday. The bill eliminates several fines and fees, including a $40 per month supervision fee assessed to defendants on district attorney’s probation and a $300 per month fee charged to inmates enrolled in the Department of Corrections’ GPS monitoring program. The bill would cost the state about $10 million per year in revenue if enacted.

The lower chamber also approved House Bill 1968 by Rep. Danny Williams, R-Seminole, which would establish a full-time Pardon and Parole Board with salaries of $85,000 per year. Criminal justice reform advocates have long pushed for the change, arguing that Oklahoma’s parole board don’t have enough to adequately review cases during a 10-hour work week. Several neighboring states, including Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas, employ a full-time parole board.

“I want the Pardon and Parole Board to give people a chance to go out and prove they’ve truly redeemed their life,” Williams said during an Oct. 29 interim study on sentencing reform.

Lawmakers will shift focus back to committee work in the coming weeks. The deadline for bills to pass out of committee in the opposing chamber is April 10.

Other bills to watch:

House Bill 2235 by Cyndi Munson, D-Oklahoma City: Updates compensation for wrongful convictions to $50,000 per year. Current law caps payments at $175,000 regardless of time served.
Senate Bill 595 by Darrell Weaver, R-Moore: Creates a list of minimum standards that county and city jails must abide by.
Senate Bill 251 by Todd Gollihare, R-Kellyville: Increases funding to rural counties to establish mental health and diversion programs.

House Bill 2422 by Scott Fetgatter, R-Okmulgee: Requires sex offenders whose victim was 13 or younger to be chemically castrated to become parole-eligible.

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

The post Lawmakers Eye Tougher Sentencing Laws appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.

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News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Storms bring record-setting rain, flooding across parts of Oklahoma

Published

4 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Staff Editor

www.youtube.com – KOCO 5 News – 2025-04-30 22:08:07

SUMMARY: Storms caused record-setting rain and flooding in parts of Oklahoma, leading to dangerous conditions and fatalities. In Pottawatomie County, one person died after driving around flood barriers and being swept off the road near State Highways 102 and 59. Lincoln County saw another fatality when a vehicle was swept away by floodwaters near a creek northwest of Prague. In Cleveland County, homes in Lexington were underwater, prompting rescue efforts by local firefighters using boats. Logan County experienced significant flooding as well, with officials urging residents to report any damage. Additional rain could worsen flooding in the metro area.

Storms bring record-setting rain, flooding across parts of Oklahoma

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News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

‘A Real Good Test For the First Amendment’ Comes to the Supreme Court

Published

20 hours ago

April 30, 2025

Staff Editor

oklahomawatch.org – Em Luetkemeyer – 2025-04-30 06:00:00

by Em Luetkemeyer, Oklahoma Watch
April 30, 2025

The Supreme Court will hear a case on Wednesday that could pave the way for a much closer relationship between church and state. Some members of Congress from Oklahoma, where the case originated, are eager to hear updates on the case from across the street.

Rep. Kevin Hern said he’d “certainly be getting updates every chance I possibly can.”

“This is going to be a real good test for the First Amendment, and we will see where it goes,” Hern said. “There are a lot of people watching this in Oklahoma on both sides. I would argue there are people watching this across the country — and not just Catholics, but other religions as well.

“I think we’re all waiting,” he said.

Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board v. Drummond will determine whether St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School can contract with the state of Oklahoma and receive public funds. The case could expand the use of public funds on religious schools when it is decided later this term.

It’s a case that’s split Republicans into several camps, and it’s getting close attention from lawmakers outside of Oklahoma and religious-rights groups.

“The court is a very hard body to predict,” Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, who filed an amicus brief in March in support of the school, said. “I really do not have a good sense of how they’ll come out of this. Obviously, they granted it, which is, I think, fantastic.”

While lawmakers go about their business on Capitol Hill this Wednesday morning, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on behalf of the school from lawyers, including some affiliated with the Alliance Defending Freedom and from Notre Dame Law School’s Religious Liberty Clinic. Gregory Garre, a former solicitor general, will argue on behalf of Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who has said the school could “force taxpayers to fund all manner of religious indoctrination.”

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, who wrote an amicus brief in support of the school, plans to attend the arguments, his spokesperson told NOTUS. Ryan Walters, Oklahoma’s superintendent of public instruction and an outspoken supporter of religion’s role in public schools, will likely not be at the hearing due to “last minute changes,” a spokesperson said.

Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford, who was also among the conservative lawmakers who filed the amicus brief supporting the school, told NOTUS he won’t be able to attend the hearing Wednesday, but he’d be watching for updates on the case.

“This court, for the last really 15 years, has taken on a lot of issues dealing with religious liberty. It’s not just been even since the new members were added during the Trump administration or the Biden administration,” Lankford said. “This is a very niche-type question, but a pretty significant question of cooperation between a state entity and a religious entity. What can that relationship be?”

Not all members of the Oklahoma delegation have weighed in. Rep. Stephanie Bice’s office did not respond to NOTUS’ request for comment. Reps. Tom Cole and Frank Lucas, as well as Sen. Markwayne Mullin, said they had not been following the case.

“I haven’t been paying attention to it at all,” Mullin said. “Probably should’ve been, but I’m not.”

Rep. Josh Brecheen said that the understanding of the First Amendment has changed over time from “what our founders” intended and has grown beyond this intent due to “liberal interpretation.” This case, he said, could help bring back that “original intent.”

“We’ve, for decades, taken what the founding era believed about God’s place in the public square and we turned it on its head. They never meant for God to be kicked out of the public square,” Brecheen said of the case.

This article first appeared on Oklahoma Watch and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

The post ‘A Real Good Test For the First Amendment’ Comes to the Supreme Court appeared first on oklahomawatch.org

Oklahoma Watch, at oklahomawatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Right

The content presents a primarily factual and measured overview of a Supreme Court case concerning public funding for religious schools, highlighting perspectives from Republican lawmakers and conservative-leaning groups such as the Alliance Defending Freedom. It emphasizes constitutional and religious liberty arguments commonly associated with conservative and right-leaning viewpoints. However, it maintains a neutral tone by including different opinions and background information without explicit editorializing, situating it in a center-right position rather than far-right or partisan advocacy.

News from the South - Oklahoma News Feed

Rain totals continue to climb as storms move across Oklahoma

Published

1 day ago

April 29, 2025

Staff Editor

www.youtube.com – KOCO 5 News – 2025-04-29 21:39:17

SUMMARY: Rain totals are rising as storms move across Oklahoma, with no current tornado warnings. Thunderstorms and heavy rain are impacting areas including Edmond, Oklahoma City, Yukon, Mustang, and Piedmont. Edmond has received two inches of rain in a few hours, with significant amounts also reported south of Lawton (3.5-4 inches). A flash flood warning has been issued, indicating a wet night ahead. Severe thunderstorm warnings include 70 mph winds affecting Slaughterville, Lexington, Wayne, Paola, and Pauls Valley. Western Oklahoma expects more storm development this evening, with ongoing rain and flood risks particularly in Oklahoma, Cleveland, and McClain counties.