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In The Know is a daily synopsis of Oklahoma policy-related news and blogs. Inclusion of a story does not necessarily mean endorsement by the Oklahoma Policy Institute. You can sign up here to receive In The Know by e-mail.
Today you should know a court ruled that a Tulsa man who was found innocent after spending 16 years behind bars can seek up to $175,000 in financial compensation from the state. This Land Press discussed a new law that allows Oklahoma to test drivers for marijuana use. Public Radio Tulsa asked why criminal justice reforms are not being implemented in Oklahoma, despite being passed into law.
Governor Fallin said she is leaning toward calling a special session that deals only with lawsuit restrictions. The OK Policy Blog explained why Oklahoma’s latest attempt to defund Planned Parenthood, introduced and passed in the final hours of the legislative session, will likely have no effect. The OK Gazette examined the state of funding to complete the American Indian Cultural Center. National Indian gaming revenues climbed to a record $27.9 billion in 2012, with the Tulsa and Oklahoma City regions showing the fastest growth.
The Oklahoma Geological Survey has started work on a set of “best practices” to reduce the risk of oil-field activity’s causing earthquakes. Policy Options examined how Oklahoma City has invested in pedestrian and mass-transit projects to fight obesity. Officials announced an initiative designed to bring broadband Internet access to rural Oklahoma communities is complete. A Tulsa City Counciler has unearthed a city ordinance from 1907 that may provide a solution to the controversy over changing the name of Brady Street.
The Number of the Day is the number of violent crimes that occurred in 2011 in Ardmore, the city with the highest violent crime rate in Oklahoma. In today’s Policy Note, a long-term study of children born at the height of the crack epidemic in Philadelphia found that poverty hurts kids more than being more to moms on cocaine.
In The News
Tulsa man found innocent after 16 years behind bars can sue the state
A man who spent some 16 years behind bars on now-nullified burglary and robbery convictions has made a sufficient showing of “actual innocence” that he can seek to recover financially from the state of Oklahoma, a Tulsa County judge determined Tuesday. Tulsa County District Judge William Kellough found that Sedrick Courtney “has made a prima facie showing of actual innocence for the purpose of initiating a claim pursuant to the Oklahoma Governmental Tort Claim Act.” The most Courtney could recover through the state’s compensation process for wrongfully convicted people is $175,000, lawyers say.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
High Road: Oklahoma’s new marijuana law
An amendment to the recently passed House Bill 1441 has sparked both confusion and anger among Oklahoma’s marijuana users. The law details routine traffic violations, but the amendment makes Oklahoma the 10th state to legalize screening drivers for marijuana use. Drivers who fail the test will be charged with a misdemeanor, sentenced to up to one year in jail, and be liable for a fine of up to $1,000. Blood, urine, and saliva tests will be used to detect any trace amount of THC. Refusal to take a test will result in a license revocation for 180 days.
Read more from This Land Press.
Why is the ‘Justice Reinvestment Initiative’ on the shelf?
In 2011, the Oklahoma Justice Reinvestment Initiative passed the legislature with great fanfare and signed into law by Governor Fallin. Kris Steele was the Oklahoma House Speaker back then. KRIS STEELE: “While the overall appropriation to corrections has increased 32% over the last 10-years, our violent crime rate continues to increase. 36 other states have experienced a decrease in their violent crime rate while in Oklahoma, ours remains high. In fact, it is increasing.” The Justice Reinvestment Initiative was to have addressed that problem. It hasn’t.
Read more from Public Radio Tulsa.
Oklahoma Governor leaning toward single topic in special session
A decision will be made within a month whether to call a special session for Oklahoma lawmakers to revise a law thrown out last month by the state Supreme Court, Gov. Mary Fallin said Tuesday. The governor is leaning toward a special session dealing only with legislation supported by business and medical groups that would restrict the filing of lawsuits. The high court ruled a 2009 law dealing with how lawsuits are filed violated a state constitutional requirement that bills deal only with a single subject. Since its ruling, the Supreme Court has reversed the dismissal of 11 lawsuits based on the 2009 law. The cases were sent back to district court for further proceedings.
Sorry but you missed: Oklahoma’s failed shot at Planned Parenthood
May was a devastating month for many Oklahomans. While most Oklahomans were preoccupied assisting those affected by storms, Oklahoma legislators used the waning days of the legislative session to revive and approve a measure targeting funding for family planning services provided by Planned Parenthood in Oklahoma. However, it appears likely that their shot drew a blank.
Read more from the OK Policy Blog.
American Indian Cultural Center & Museum officials hope donors remain loyal
Supporters of the half-built American Indian Cultural Center & Museum (AICCM) were days away from receiving $40 million in state funds this state legislative session when a deadly tornado ripped through south Oklahoma City and Moore. The money would have sealed the completion of the project, which originated 18 years ago as a concept for advancing Oklahoma’s Native American culture. Having faced numerous hurdles before, museum supporters advised legislative leaders to delay action and focus attention on the tornado victims.
Read more from the OK Gazette.
Tulsa and Oklahoma City regions show fastest Indian gaming revenue growth in nation
National Indian gaming revenues climbed to a record $27.9 billion in 2012 — a 2.7 percent increase over the previous year. The fastest revenue growth was reported in the Tulsa Region, which consists of eastern Oklahoma and Kansas, where revenue rose 6.6 percent. The second-fastest growth was in the Oklahoma City Region, which is composed of western Oklahoma and Texas, where revenue increased 5.8 percent. The Tulsa Region reported gross gaming revenues of about $2 billion in 2012, while the Oklahoma City Region reported $1.8 billion in revenues.
Oklahoma Geological Survey working to reduce risk of oil-field-related earthquakes
The Oklahoma Geological Survey has started work on a set of “best practices” to reduce the risk of oil-field activity’s causing earthquakes. The Oklahoma Geological Survey has been skeptical of conclusions that oil-field activity produced a series of earthquakes in and around injection disposal wells in Lincoln County. The cluster started in 2010 and culminated in a Nov. 6, 2011, magnitude 5.7 earthquake, the largest in contemporary state history.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Reducing obesity by way of sidewalks
In 2008, Mayor Mick Cornett — personal weight 217 pounds — put Oklahoma City on a diet. Numerous rankings repeatedly placed the state capital among the fattest cities in America, with obesity rates accelerating faster than in anywhere else in the country. But Mayor Cornett and Oklahoma City did more than just lose a lot of weight. They have pushed the frontiers of public health with a less publicized but highly innovative approach to combating obesity: the Metropolitan Areas Project, a 10-year urban planning program that began in 2010.
Read more from Policy Options.
Oklahoma rural broadband initiative reaches completion
An initiative designed to bring broadband Internet access to rural Oklahoma communities is complete, state officials announced Tuesday. The Oklahoma Community Anchor Network, or OCAN, brings broadband access to 33 so-called community anchors in rural towns statewide. The program comes on line Aug. 1. The project is a joint venture by the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services and the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education. The project is funded through a $74 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Another name discovered for Brady Street could solve controversy
Tate Brady’s legacy likely will always be up for debate, but history might have provided an answer to the Brady Street dispute, after all. City Councilor Jack Henderson said Tuesday that a city ordinance naming and renaming Tulsa streets – dated Dec. 23, 1907 – shows the street listed as Burlington Street with “Burlington” scratched out and “Brady” scribbled in its place. Henderson plans to ask his fellow councilors to consider renaming the street Burlington Street on Thursday, when the issue will be on the council’s agenda for a first read. The council vote would come the following Thursday, Aug. 1.
Read more from the Tulsa World.
Quote of the Day
While the overall appropriation to corrections has increased 32% over the last 10-years, our violent crime rate continues to increase. 36 other states have experienced a decrease in their violent crime rate while in Oklahoma, ours remains high. In fact, it is increasing.
-Former House Speaker Kris Steele, who criticized Governor Fallin for refusing to implement reforms to Oklahoma’s criminal justice system (Source: http://bit.ly/168HUgi)
Number of the Day
405
Number of violent crimes that occurred in 2011 in Ardmore, the city with the highest violent crime rate in Oklahoma.
Source: FBI’s Uniform Crime Report via Oklahoma Watch
See previous Numbers of the Day here.
Policy Note
Poverty hurts kids more than being born to moms on cocaine
In 1989, nearly one in six babies born in Philadelphia city hospitals had mothers who tested positive for cocaine. In the 25 years since then, researchers in Philadelphia have been performing one of the longest-running studies on what really happens to these babies as they grow up. FitzGerald, who has written about the study over the year, covers its staggering conclusion this week. The researchers consistently found no significant differences between the cocaine-exposed children and the controls. While the cocaine-exposed children and a group of nonexposed controls performed about the same on tests, both groups lagged on developmental and intellectual measures compared to the norm. Hurt and her team began to think the “something else” was poverty.
Read more from Atlantic Cities.
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