Opponents of SQ 762 are making false claims

To find more about all of the state questions on the ballot in November, see our 2012 State Questions page. Oklahoma is the only state that requires the governor to approve every parole. Removing the governor from the parole process… Read more [More...]

SQ 762: Is Oklahoma ready to be smart on crime?

To find more about all of the state questions on the ballot in November, see our 2012 State Questions page. State Question 762, on the ballot this November, would make paroles granted by the Pardon and Parole Board for non-violent… Read more [More...]

Post-session review: So whatever happened to…

Of the 1,934 bills filed this past legislative session, only a small fraction of those saw any significant action by legislators.  Most bills are never heard by a committee, and almost all of them fall short of a hearing on… Read more [More...]

Guest Blog (Mike Connelly): The questions we should be asking about criminal justice reform

Mike Connelly was the first research director the now-defunct Oklahoma Sentencing Commission in the 1990s.  He went on to direct sentencing commissions in Maryland and Wisconsin before returning to Oklahoma to manage the state DOC’s Evaluation & Analysis unit until… Read more [More...]

Reforming Criminal Justice: What the latest bill does and what stands in the way

A new criminal justice reform law seeks to reduce crime and ease the burden on overcrowded, understaffed prisons. We explain what the new law does and what still stands in the way of reform. Read more... [More...]

Trevor Shanklin: Should we increase the tax on alcohol?

Trevor Shanklin recently completed a summer internship at the Oklahoma Policy Institute. He is a decorated disabled veteran of the Oklahoma Army National Guard where he served as a Recruiting and Retention NCO and a Combat Medic with the 1/279… Read more [More...]