OKPOLICY.ORG
Although Oklahoma ranks 4th in the nation for incarceration per 100,000 people, reforms aimed at making the criminal legal system fairer and less reliant on incarceration remain difficult to achieve. If incarcerating people at a higher rate than 46 other states made us safer, Oklahoma should rank near the bottom in crime. Instead, the state ranks near the top at 14th in violent crime and 12th in property crime, according to 2024 FBI data.
Despite this irony, one of those difficult criminal-law changes passed this session in the form of House Bill 3742 by Rep. Erick Harris and Sen. Julie Daniels. HB 3742 addresses two sections of criminal procedure: the first being 22 O.S. Section 258, the rules for preliminary hearings.
Currently, the judge is required to terminate the preliminary hearing once it is determined that a crime was committed and there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed it, but only if the prosecutor, at his option, has made available to the defense for inspection “law enforcement reports within the prosecuting attorney’s knowledge or possession at the time” within five days of the preliminary hearing.
In effect, the statute allows the prosecutor to reduce the preliminary hearing’s value as a discovery tool for the defense by disclosing law enforcement reports. The statute, however, does not define the term “law enforcement reports.”
HB 3742 will require, in all felony cases, that the prosecutor, at the request of the defense, disclose both the initial and supplemental reports in possession of the district attorney and summaries of victim interviews not contained in the reports not less than 30 days before the preliminary hearing. Items intended to be introduced at the preliminary hearing, such as video or audio recordings, summaries of videos, photographs, photo lineups, DNA reports, and 9-1-1 calls, must also be provided.
HB 3742 also amends the Oklahoma Criminal Discovery Code, 22 O.S. Section 2002. The code already has a relatively robust list of required disclosures by the prosecutor. However, the bill updates, amplifies, and clarifies those requirements.
HB 3742’s most significant change is its new discovery deadline. Under current law, discovery is due 10 days before trial — far too late for adequate trial preparation and, in many cases, meaningful plea negotiations. The bill extends that deadline, requiring discovery to be completed at least 30 days before trial.
Because nearly all criminal cases are resolved with a guilty plea — typically the result of a plea agreement with the prosecutor — the only changes that can truly be called “reform” in my view are those that influence plea negotiations between the accused and the prosecutor. By changing the discovery deadline from 10 days to 30 days before trial, the defense can have greater knowledge of the strength of the case when negotiating a plea, which may be reflected in the outcome. And in the few cases that go to trial, the defendant will have time to better prepare.
Plea agreements in Oklahoma exist with little judicial oversight. Because plea discussions and agreements often occur early, another beneficial provision would be to require that discovery be completed before the court accepts a plea agreement. But that’s a battle for another day. For now, HB 3742 should be celebrated as a significant improvement in Oklahoma’s criminal justice system.
