The life and death of justice reinvestment

For several days in April, the Tulsa County Jail refused inmates arrested on municipal charges. The drastic measure was taken in response to severe overcrowding. At the height of the crisis, the facility contained 1,968 prisoners, which is over 300… Read more [More...]

Action Items for Oklahoma: Criminal Justice

We continue to follow counterproductive policies that push Oklahomans trying to escape addiction into a downward spiral, and the problem is growing more costly to taxpayers every year. [More...]

Barry Friedman: The end of the metaphor

Barry Friedman is a regular contributor to the OK Policy Blog. He writes the column, “Barry Friedman At Large” for Tulsa People Magazine, is a  stand-up comedian, and is the author of two books, “Road Comic” and “Funny You Should… Read more [More...]

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...]

The next criminal justice reforms: Escaping the downward spiral

Oklahoma’s prisons are in a crisis. The state ranks 1st in the nation for incarceration of women per capita and 4th for men. With budgets not adequate to oversee an ever-growing inmate population, the corrections system is severely understaffed. And… 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...]

The pseudoephedrine debate: Available with or without a prescription?

The question of whether to require a prescription for the purchase of pseudoephedrine (the main ingredient in medications such as Sudafed) as a means to help combat the production of methamphetamine,  promises to be one of the  hotly contested issues… Read more [More...]

Watch This: Elderly parole

The Louisiana legislature passed a bill this summer to enable non-violent, non-sex offenders to go before a parole board upon turning 60 years of age, even if their original sentence did not include the opportunity for parole.  The bill’s passage… Read more [More...]