OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma District Attorneys Association encourages defeat of State Question 762, which would remove the Governor from the pardon and parole process on non-violent offenders. Recent recommendations of the Parole Board relating to early release of inmates have prompted the Association to call for a comprehensive review of the early release process.
In the past several months, District Attorneys have discovered serious issues with the way the Parole Board is handling paroles. Recent consideration of an 85% inmate after serving only 4 years of a 10 year sentence raised serious questions about the recommendations. Crime victims have been told that offenders serving time for 85% crimes (crimes involving violence) will have to serve at least 85% of the sentence before any chance of release. That isn’t happening on all cases. Offenders sentenced to life without parole sentence have been considered for release. Offenders facing consecutive sentences are being paroled through the second sentence to the street. Any while this SQ won’t impact all those situations, they cause concern for removing the Governor from any part of the process.
“Removing the Governor from the parole process would be a terrible mistake. There would be absolutely no accountability for those who are tasked with releasing criminals from our prisons. And we know based on recent cases that the Parole Board is not acting responsibly,” said District Attorney Greg Mashburn, Norman, and President of the Association. If SQ 762 is passed, non-violent offenders, if recommended by the Board for parole, will hit the streets within days of the decision. Drug dealers, drunk drivers, child pornographers, abusers of vulnerable adults in nursing facilities and white collar criminals will all be eligible for release without review of the Governor. No crime is victimless. It is imperative to keep the Governor in this process as the ultimate gatekeeper.
Let’s remember why voters required the governor and the parole board to be jointly involved in this important process. They are a check and balance on each other. State Question 762 is not right for Oklahoma. “It is imperative to keep the Governor in this process as someone who takes this task very seriously. This way the public can be assured that no one is released from prison to our streets that shouldn’t be,” added Mashburn.
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