Criminal Justice

in committee · Oklahoma · Senate Feb 13, 2025

SB 78: Crimes and punishments; modifying statutory references to certain offenses. Effective date.

SB 78 requires individuals convicted of 22 specific serious offenses - including first-degree murder, rape, child sex trafficking, human trafficking, and aggravated assault - to serve at least 85% of their prison sentence before becoming eligible for parole. This applies to all sentences imposed after the bill's effective date (November 1, 2025). The bill prohibits earned credits or other sentence reductions that would allow parole eligibility before completing 85% of the sentence. It updates statutory references and language in Oklahoma law related to these sentencing requirements.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeMandates 85% prison time before parole for serious offenses, prohibiting early release options that would reduce sentences, aligning with indicators of restricting defendant rights and increasing mandatory sentences.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Probation & Parole Sentencing Violent Crime

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in committee · Oklahoma · House Feb 4, 2025

HB 1856: State government; Oklahoma 10-8 Fund; grant program; Office of the Attorney General; revolving fund; appropriation; effective date.

HB 1856 creates the "Oklahoma 10-8 Fund Grant Program" to provide one-time bonuses to new peace officers (police, deputies, troopers) who meet specific criteria. Eligible officers receive $10,000 if hired by an agency with 50+ sworn vacancies or $5,000 if hired by an agency with 15-49 vacancies, upon verification of state certification and six months of service. The program, funded by a $20 million state appropriation, prohibits agencies from reducing officer salaries due to these bonuses. It applies to officers hired after the bill’s effective date (November 1, 2025) who are either new to Oklahoma law enforcement or returning since January 2020.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesAllocates $20M state appropriation for peace officer bonuses, directly increasing government spending on public safety programs per budget & taxes topic.95% confidence ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeBill funds new officer recruitment via bonuses to address vacancies, directly strengthening law enforcement staffing within criminal justice system.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Appropriations Law Enforcement Policing

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signed · Oklahoma · House May 5, 2025

HB 1001: Crimes and punishments; Lauria and Ashley's Law; minimum prison sentences; effective date.

HB 1001, known as "Lauria and Ashley's Law," requires individuals convicted of 23 specific serious crimes - including murder, rape, child exploitation, trafficking, and certain violent assaults - to serve at least 85% of their prison sentence before becoming eligible for parole. It prohibits earned credits or other reductions that would shorten sentences below this 85% threshold. The law applies to all offenders convicted of these designated offenses and takes effect November 1, 2025. It was signed into law by the Governor on May 5, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeRequires 85% minimum prison sentence for serious crimes, prohibits sentence reductions via earned credits, increasing mandatory incarceration and reducing parole eligibility.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Corrections Probation & Parole

in committee · Oklahoma · Senate Mar 12, 2025

SB 928: Assault and battery; creating misdemeanor and felony offenses. Effective date.

SB 928 creates new misdemeanor and felony charges for assaulting or battering county employees while they are performing their duties. It defines "county employee" broadly to include workers for counties and contracted firms. Simple assault/battery becomes a misdemeanor (up to 1 year in jail or $1,000 fine), while aggravated attacks become felonies (up to 2 years in prison or $5,000 fine). The bill also requires counties to post clear signage stating that felony charges may apply for such attacks. This law directly affects county employees and aims to strengthen protections for them during work.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeExpands criminalization by creating new assault offenses against county employees, increasing penalties, aligning with 'oppose' indicators.90% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentProtects county employees from assault, enhancing workplace safety protections for workers performing duties.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Corrections Violent Crime

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passed · Oklahoma · House Apr 1, 2025

HB 1593: Criminal procedures; authorizing peace officers to dispute reports of misconduct; codification; effective date.

HB 1593 prevents prosecutors from disqualifying peace officers as witnesses based on unproven misconduct allegations. It allows officers who are placed on a "Do Not Call" list for alleged misconduct to dispute the claim by filing a petition with the Attorney General. An administrative law judge will hold a hearing to review the allegations, and if the misconduct claim isn't proven by a preponderance of evidence, the officer must be reinstated as credible. Courts must then consider the judge's findings when evaluating the officer's testimony. This bill directly affects peace officers and changes how misconduct allegations impact their ability to testify in criminal cases.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill weakens accountability by requiring proof to disqualify officers for misconduct, reducing oversight of law enforcement conduct.92% confidence

Sub-Topics Judges Policing

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in committee · Oklahoma · Senate Feb 4, 2025

SB 857: Automatic license plate reader systems; authorizing certain use by law enforcement. Effective date.

SB 857 authorizes Oklahoma law enforcement agencies to use automatic license plate reader (ALPR) systems on highway rights-of-way under specific conditions. It requires agencies to obtain a Department of Transportation permit, adopt public policies covering data use and security, and delete most license plate data within 30 days unless part of an active investigation. The bill prohibits using ALPRs to issue traffic citations or sell collected data, mandates encryption for data security, and requires agencies to maintain access logs for accountability. This directly affects law enforcement operations and the privacy of drivers whose license plates are scanned, with the law taking effect November 1, 2025.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeImposes strict data retention limits (30-day deletion), prohibits citations/selling data, and mandates encryption - enhancing privacy protections for civil rights in law enforcement data collection.85% confidence ✓ TechnologySupports TechnologyRequires data deletion within 30 days, encryption, and bans data sales to protect privacy in ALPR systems95% confidence

Sub-Topics Law Enforcement Consumer Data Protection

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in committee · Oklahoma · Senate Feb 4, 2025

SB 767: Hiring practices; creating the Fair Chance Hiring Practices by Public Employers Act; prohibiting certain employment practices. Effective date.

SB 767, the "Fair Chance Hiring Practices by Public Employers Act," prohibits Oklahoma state and local government employers (like schools, agencies, and municipalities) from asking about an applicant’s criminal history before making a conditional job offer. It allows employers to ask only about convictions that would disqualify someone under existing law and permits checking criminal history after a conditional offer is made. The law excludes sensitive roles - such as law enforcement, school staff, correctional officers, and positions involving vulnerable populations - from its requirements. The bill takes effect November 1, 2025, applying only to job applications submitted on or after that date.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeProhibits pre-offer criminal history inquiries for public jobs, advancing reintegration and reducing recidivism barriers. Excludes sensitive roles like law enforcement.90% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentProhibits pre-offer criminal history inquiries, reducing employment barriers for applicants with records and aligning with worker rights protection in hiring practices.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Law Enforcement

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in committee · Oklahoma · House Feb 4, 2025

HB 1061: Crimes and punishments; making certain acts unlawful; codification; effective date.

HB 1061 makes it a crime to intentionally assault or batter municipal, county, or state officials while they are performing their official duties. It creates two offenses: a misdemeanor for assault (up to 1 year in jail or $1,000 fine) and a felony for battery or assault-and-battery (up to 5 years in prison or $5,000 fine). The law specifically covers officials like police, fire, health, code enforcement, and zoning personnel, as defined in the bill. It applies to intentional harm without justifiable cause, directly affecting both officials performing their duties and individuals who target them. The bill takes effect November 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeCreates new criminal offenses for assaulting officials with penalties, expanding criminalization without reform elements.92% confidence

Sub-Topics Corrections Policing Violent Crime

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in committee · Oklahoma · House Feb 4, 2025

HB 2186: Pretrial data; Pretrial Collection Data Act; requiring certain entities to collect specific data; effective date.

HB 2186, the "Pretrial Data Collection Act," requires Oklahoma police departments, sheriff offices, and county jails to collect and report specific data about individuals in pretrial detention starting January 1, 2026. It mandates monthly collection of demographic details (like race, age, ZIP code, and unhoused status), offense information, mental health/substance use disorder status, jail costs, and facility metrics (such as operational capacity and average stay length). This data must be submitted to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and published publicly in machine-readable format by July 2026. The bill directly affects law enforcement agencies, county jails, and the public, aiming to standardize pretrial data for transparency and analysis.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeMandates data collection on demographics and detention factors to enhance transparency and identify disparities, supporting accountability in pretrial processes.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Corrections Law Enforcement Policing

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in committee · Oklahoma · House Feb 4, 2025

HB 1307: Crimes and punishments; establishing penalty for certain persons convicted of murder in the first degree; effective date.

HB 1307 amends Oklahoma law to change penalties for first-degree murder convictions. It mandates the death penalty for foreign-born individuals convicted of first-degree murder who were in the U.S. without valid immigration documentation or violated their visa terms at the time of the crime, unless "overwhelming mitigating evidence" is presented. For all other first-degree murder convictions, the bill maintains the existing options of death, life without parole, or life imprisonment. The law takes effect November 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeMandates death penalty for foreign-born murder convicts without valid immigration status, expanding criminalization and increasing severity for a specific group, opposing reform-focused criminal justice principles.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Probation & Parole

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