Group seeks signatures to relieve Oklahoma prison crowding

Oklahoma City (AP) — An advocacy group looking to slow prison-population growth by reforming how Oklahoma classifies some drug and property crimes launched a campaign Thursday to collect signatures for a pair of possible ballot proposals.

Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform must gather more than 65,000 signatures for each of the proposals in the next 90 days to get them on the November election ballot. The first proposal would reclassify some drug and property crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies. The second would require the state to estimate the resulting cost savings and direct that money toward crime-prevention efforts such as rehabilitation programs, education and job training.

"Moving forward, if you look at the trajectory, this gives us the opportunity to slow the prison growth in future years and make better use of our state's resources," said former Republican House Speaker Kris Steele, who is leading the effort.

Oklahoma's state-run prisons are operating at 122 percent capacity, Department of Corrections spokeswoman Terri Watkins said. Drug offenders make up 26 percent of the state prison population. Another 23 percent of inmates are imprisoned for nonviolent crimes.

Efforts to enact similar reforms in the past have failed to make their way through the Legislature, but Steele said he believes the state's recent fiscal troubles and a shift in public attitudes toward criminal justice have created an opportunity to move these ballot initiatives forward.

Supporters of the proposals packed a small room Thursday at the Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform headquarters, where Steele announced the initiative alongside local leaders in business, religion and politics.

The plan was for Steele to be the first to sign his name in support of the proposals, but he became emotional and asked Oklahoma banking mogul Gene Rainbolt to provide the initial signatures. Rainbolt has openly supported the measures.

Meagan Gaddis, a mother of two who said she had been jailed for crimes she committed to support her drug addiction, spoke in support of the proposals during the signature campaign launch. Gaddis said she avoided a prison sentence by going through ReMerge, a diversion program for mothers facing incarceration.

"I really needed that environment of support and non-judgment," said Gaddis, who completed the program and now works for ReMerge.

The Department of Corrections' revenue from appropriations this year is $366 million, down 7 percent from its original certified mark after a series of mid-year state revenue failures. Gov. Mary Fallin recently announced the department would receive $27.6 million in emergency funding from the state's rainy day fund.

Online: State Questions 780 and 781: www.bit.ly/1U5j7X9

By Daniel C. Houston, Associated Press. Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Gayly – March 11, 2016 @ 7:20 a.m.