prisons
Culture change at Oklahoma corrections department aims to give inmates a voice
LEXINGTON — At the end of a recent inmate council meeting at a state prison, Jacob Watson was eager to talk about how encouraged he felt after seeing the Department of Corrections director on local TV news the night before. Director Steven Harpe was on screen defending his decision to fire some prison leaders and […]
Opinion: Prisons and jails shouldn’t be built anywhere near public schools
Some leaders across the Oklahoma City area have raised the alarm recently about an odd provision of state law that allows correctional facilities to be built uncomfortably close to public schools. A debate over relocating the Oklahoma County jail has highlighted an obscure provision in state law that allows correctional facilities to be built about […]
Oklahoma high court weighs in on state’s $27 inmate reimbursement rate
OKLAHOMA CITY — County jail officials can charge above the state minimum for housing Department of Corrections inmates, but any costs must be directly related to incarcerating the prisoners, the state Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. The ruling caps off a yearslong dispute between county leaders, state Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd and the Department of […]
Leadership changes at Oklahoma prison under scrutiny for sexual misconduct allegations
OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma prison warden, whose facility faced scrutiny from a state lawmaker for allegedly mishandling inmate sexual misconduct reports, has resigned. Greg Breslin, the warden at Eddie Warrior Correctional Center in Taft, resigned last month after spending some time on medical leave, said Department of Corrections spokesperson Kay Thompson. Breslin, who had […]
Oklahoma corrections department aims to revive state’s prison rodeo in McAlester
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s corrections director is backing a $9.3 million effort to revive the state’s prison rodeo, an event that was once among the largest in the nation, drawing thousands of spectators to McAlester every year. Although rodeo fans have long advocated for the state to re-launch the event that was stopped in 2010 […]
Oklahoma to continue lethal injections as Alabama eyes nitrogen gas executions
OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma prison officials are watching closely as Alabama attempts to become the first state to use nitrogen hypoxia to carry out an execution. Steven Harpe, Department of Corrections director, said in an interview that he’s open to the alternate method, but he’d like to see nitrogen hypoxia used in a series of […]