Page 5 - Kris Steele News Today

On any given day, four or five people sit in the mental health intake room at the Rogers County jail for observation. The small space is clean and painted different

Among other criminal justice legislation passed by the Oklahoma Legislature in 2021, Senate Bill 320 clarifies who’s eligible for medical parole and makes a

By Keaton Ross | Oklahoma Watch Jun 4, 2021 5 hrs ago Michael Washington holds a sign with the number of an inmate who was infected with COVID-19. Washington, who was incarcerated in the 1970s and helps inmates with legal paperwork, joined a small crowd outside of the Department of Corrections Oklahoma City headquarters in December to protest prison conditions. Whitney Bryen / Oklahoma Watch Looking to prevent widespread COVID-19 outbreaks behind ...

The attention comes as the board is playing a more pivotal role than ever in the criminal justice system in Oklahoma, finding itself embroiled in a high-profile death penalty case

The City Sentinel May 3, 2021 By Patrick B. McGuigan Patrick B. McGuigan, Special to The Southwest Ledger Oklahoma City – Senate Bill 131 originated as a proposal from state Senator Jessica Garvin, a Duncan... By Darla Shelden By Darla Shelden, City Sentinel Reporter -- OKLAHOMA CITY – Solar Power of Oklahoma has announced the completion of its municipal installation project for the... By Staff Report Staff Report  Oklahoma City – Each year, thousands of military families are transferre...

By Bill Kaplan - May 3rd, 2021 02:22 pm //end headline wrapper ?> Robin Vos Wisconsin GOP Assembly Speaker Robin Vos has led the Assembly since 2013, and is the outgoing president of the National Conference of State Legislators. He is at the apex of power, but at a crossroad. Does Vos want to continue to play to part of Wisconsin, the small minority of voters (25% according to a Marquette Law School poll) who oppose the expansion of Medicaid, or leave a broader ...

The City Sentinel April 24, 2021 By Darla Shelden By Darla Shelden, City Sentinel Reporter -- CHICKASHA, OK – Oklahoma’s only public liberal arts university, the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (USAO),... By Staff Report Staff Report  OKLAHOMA CITY - Legislation to stop the unfair practice of people being unfairly punished for missing court dates due to being incarcerated or... By Staff Report The City Sentinel, Staff ReportOklahoma City – State Senator Kay Floyd said she wa...

The City Sentinel April 8, 2021 By Darla Shelden By Darla Shelden, City Sentinel Reporter -- OKLAHOMA CITY – The temporary Willard Winter Night Shelter, created to fill a gap in shelter beds caused... By Patrick B. McGuigan Patrick B. McGuigan, Publisher, The City Sentinel Analysis for The Southwest Ledger Pat McGuigan  Oklahoma City, April 1, 2021 – In the public square, each...

Quinton Chandler / StateImpact Oklahoma Oklahoma has made some big changes to its justice system in recent years. Activists and lawmakers proposed big picture reforms and some of the suggestions succeeded. Voters decided to give more lenient sentences to people convicted of drug possession and certain low level property crimes in 2016. Lawmakers extended those benefits to some people convicted of the same crimes before the law changed. Lawmakers also made granting state prisoners parole eas...

LEGISLATIVE SERVICE BUREAU PHOTOGRAPHY In his speech marking the start of the year’s legislative session on Monday, Governor Kevin Stitt didn’t mention ongoing efforts to reduce the state’s prison population and overhaul the criminal justice system. Kris Steele with Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform says Stitts State of the State address was a disappointment. "I don’t think we can be a top 10 state until we get out of the bottom 10," said Steele. "Right now we are among the worst...