Governor Mary Fallin applauds House of Representatives for passing criminal justice bills

OKLAHOMA CITY — Governor Mary Fallin today commended the Oklahoma House of Representatives for its bipartisan approval of four bills related to criminal justice reform spotlighted in her State of the State address last month.

"These measures address Oklahoma's prison population, which is among the highest in the nation, without jeopardizing public safety," said Fallin. "With our state prisons filled to well over capacity, it is vital that we make some changes to our criminal justice system."

The House passed:

House Bill 2472 which would give prosecutors discretion to file charges for non-85 percent crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies.
House Bill 2479 which would reduce the mandatory punishment for subsequent drug offenses.
House Bill 2751 which would raise the threshold for property crimes to be charged as a felony to $1,000.
House Bill 2753 which would establish means for broader use of drug courts.

The measures, all by Rep. Pam Peterson, now go to the Senate.

The bills were proposed by the governor's Oklahoma Justice Reform Committee.

They won the endorsement of several groups and business leaders: the Oklahoma Policy Institute; the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber; the Tulsa Regional Chamber; the Oklahoma District Attorneys Association; Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs (OCPA) President Jonathan Small; OCPA Impact; Clay Bennett; David Rainbolt; and Adam Luck, state director of Right on Crime.

The Oklahoma Justice Reform Committee includes the governor, House speaker, Senate president pro tempore and heads of corrections and mental health departments, with subcommittees made up of prosecutors, judges and law officers.

The Gayly - 3/10/2016 @ 9:39 a.m. CST