Oklahomans will soon be able to use medical marijuana, but it doesn’t extend to those serving time. The drug remains prohibited for inmates in Oklahoma and other states that have partially or fully legalized it.
Federal Court Sides With Oklahoma, Blocks Caps on Inmate Phone Costs
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A federal appeals court has struck down limits on what jails and prisons can charge for in-state phone calls. Oklahoma was among the states that challenged the limits.
After Year and a Half, Charges Filed in Deadly Cushing Prison Fight
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A year and a half after the deadliest prison fight in Oklahoma history, Payne County prosecutors brought charges Monday against seven people in connection with the incident.
A Call to Give Early Release to Older, Medically Frail Prisoners
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Research shows that older prisoners are less likely to commit new crimes after they’re released. A new proposal would allow the state Pardon and Parole Board to give early release to nonviolent offenders who are age 50 or over and have serious health issues.
Purchase Would Increase Dominance of Private Prison Company
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Oklahoma’s largest private-prison company is proposing to acquire the state’s second largest provider of halfway houses, which would give the company a dominant footprint in private incarceration in the state.
End of Hope: One Offender’s Path to the Penitentiary
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David Hammock was one of nine men who took their own lives in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary between 2012 and 2015. Convicted of arson at age 18 for burning down the old Sallisaw High School, he failed at chances to gain early release, and then, in the end, lost hope.
Bleak House: Suicides in the Penitentiary
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Between 2012 and 2015, nine inmates in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary took their own lives, giving Oklahoma’s only state-owned maximum security prison the highest suicide rate among corrections facilities. Is solitary confinement to blame?
Oklahoma’s Prison Mortality Rates Among Highest in Nation
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Oklahoma has among the highest prisoner mortality rates and homicide rates in the nation, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics.
Debbie Aldridge: Running a Prison for Women
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Debbie Aldridge worked for more than 20 years at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Now she runs Oklahoma’s largest prison for women, the Mabel Bassett Correctional Center in McLoud.
Big Challenges, Little Support for Children of Incarcerated Parents
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As many as 96,000 Oklahoma children have a parent in prison, yet the state is cutting back programs that give them better odds in life.
As Inmate Population Climbs, Number of Corrections Officers Drops
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The ratio of corrections officers to inmates in state-run prisons has risen in every year but one since 2006, creating what corrections officials and some legislators say is a huge public-safety issue.