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SB 545
(Kerr/Braddock): Prohibits intentional discharge of any
firearm into a dwelling or building. The penalty is a felony
with 2 to 20 years imprisonment. Adds this offense to the
list of crimes eligible for murder in the first degree if a
person is killed as a result of the commission of the felony
offense.
SB 610
(Douglass/Bryant): Expands victims rights. The bill
clarifies exceptions which previously limited victims from
receiving certain assistance from the Crime Victims
Compensation Fund, and expands the list of information which
must be provided to victims from the district attorney's
office. Restitution to victims is mandated for all property
offenses, and the bill provides that restitution is a
continuing obligation of the defendant until fully paid. A
procedure is established for obtaining a restitution order.
Restitution claim forms must be provided to victims through
the district attorney's offices and must be review by the
court. The bill also has provisions expanding who may view
an execution. It authorizes certain persons who are not
immediate family members of the deceased victim and any
surviving victims to view the execution. There are also
provisions in the event the defendant has been sentenced to
death in multiple jurisdictions. This bill has an emergency
clause.
SB 611
(Douglass/Sadler): Focuses on driving under the influence of
alcohol and ignition interlock devices. When a person is
subject to a suspension of any driver license due to blood
alcohol concentration, the Department of Public Safety may
not modify the license until an ignition interlock device is
installed on each vehicle the operator will drive. This
provision does not apply to vehicles owned or leased by
employers. Employers may give permission to have the device
installed upon any employer owned or leased vehicle. The
court upon appeal may only review whether or not the person
should have a modification to drive. The court cannot order
any modification without the installation of an ignition
interlock device. All provisions relating to where a person
may drive under modification have been removed, since there
is no authority to drive without the ignition interlock
device. The bill also provides an increase in the fee
allowed for attendance of an offender to a victim impact
panel from $15 to $25.
SB 628
(Shurden/Stanley): Relates to firearms. Persons with
nonviolent felony convictions who have received a full and
complete pardon from the proper authority and have had
restored all their rights of citizenship may apply for a
concealed handgun license and have in their possession
firearms. This bill clarifies the provisions of the Oklahoma
Self-Defense Act, by amending attempted suicide, mental
illness, and other emotional disorders needing medication by
requiring at least ten years stabilization and a medical
certificate be presented. The bill amends provisions for
victim protection orders which have been withdrawn or
dismissed by providing a one year waiting period before
application for a handgun license, and makes any preclusion
period begin when the final order is entered. Any
administrative fee charged for any infraction of a concealed
handgun license must be paid within thirty days or the
license will be suspended.
SB 645
(Wilkerson/Askins): Creates the Oklahoma Drug Court Act,
which establishes a judicial intervention procedure for
treatment of substance abusing offenders arrested on
nonviolent criminal offenses. The district attorney must
approve eligible offenders and a treatment plan must be
submitted with a plea agreement for approval of the drug
court judge. Eligible offenders who are admitted to the drug
court program immediately receive treatment under court
monitoring and vigilant drug testing. Upon successful
completion of the treatment program the offender may not be
incarcerated in a state prison facility.
SB 721
(Rozell/Steidley): Would have created the Oklahoma Community
Corrections Act. The entire bill was incorporated into the
Truth In Sentencing Act, House Bill No. 1213, which was
signed by the Governor on April 22, 1997, and becomes
effective July 1, 1998. The bill originally was
discretionary and under the Truth In Sentencing Act and
sentencing matrices became mandatory for nonviolent felony
offenses. (Pending in the Legislature)
SB 723
(Smith/Hastings): Would amend the Sex Offender Registration
Act. (Pending in the Legislature)
SB 745
(Gustafson/Davis): Mandates pre-sentence investigations for
violent offenders. The authority to waive a pre-sentence
investigation has been removed. The cost for the
pre-sentence investigation, which must be paid by the
offender, has been lowered, and provisions have been made
for a payment schedule of the fee, if the defendant has an
economic hardship. The information to be collected in the
pre-sentence investigation report has been expended to
include more characteristics about the offender. The court
is prohibited from approving any plea agreement without
reviewing the pre-sentence investigation report, and the
district attorney must have the report before finalizing any
plea agreement on any violent offender. The term violent
offense is defined for purposes of this bill.
HB 1213
(Steidley/Dickerson): Enacts Truth In Sentencing Act.
- Amends all felony
offenses to conform with sentencing matrices, and
mandates 85% of prison sentences will be served;
- Creates a specialized
parole process for inmates incarcerated before July 1,
1998, and repeals other early release laws;
- Establishes a mandatory
Community Sentencing Act for nonviolent offenders to be
sentenced locally;
- Expands the bid process
for private and public prison construction projects;
Authorizes renovation of existing state prison facilities
by 600 beds with additional private leasing of 1500 beds
this year; and
- Increases county jail
per diem rates from $7 to $24 per day for state inmates
awaiting transfer to the Department of
Corrections.
Sentencing under the act
begins July 1, 1998, and counties are required to have local
planning councils in place by October 1997, with plans for
the community sentencing system submitted for state funding
by February 1998. Misdemeanor offenses are not affected by
this measure. The Oklahoma Sentencing Commission is directed
to make all future modifications to the state's sentencing
ranges and membership is expanded.
HB 1225
(Steidley/Wright): A companion bill clarified and made minor
changes to HB 1213.
HB 1729
(Paulk/Helton): Amends provisions of the Sex Offenders
Registration Act, which resembles "Megan's Law," federal
legislation named for a seven year old girl raped and
murdered in 1994 by a twice-convicted pedophile who lived in
anonymity across the street from the girl's home. This law
requires local authorities, organizations and families to be
notified whenever dangerous child molesters or rapists are
released and move into their communities.
The changes to HB 1729 are
as follows:
- Defines "predatory sex
offender" as anyone convicted of a sex crime prior to
November 1, 1997 and who subsequently convicted of sexual
abuse or sexual exploitation will be deemed a predatory
sex offender for the next ten years;
- Allows local law
enforcement agencies to be authorized to alert anyone
deemed appropriate whenever a sexual predator is released
from custody and would be permitted to divulge any
information it has about a predatory sex offender to
anyone who requests it or to any parent using a child
care provider or child care facilities and to other
entities that provide services to children;
- Mandates every sex
offender required to register with the Department of
Corrections regardless of whether convicted in this state
or any other state;
Requires every convicted sex offender in Oklahoma to
provide a blood sample to the Oklahoma State Bureau of
Investigation for inclusion in the agency's DNA genetic
database; and
- New penalties for any
violation of the Sex Offender Registration Act. The
violation would be considered a felony, as would hiring
any sex offender to work in a child care facility or day
care center. In either instance, the penalty would be a
prison sentence of up to five years and/or a fine up to
$5000.00.
Also, the provisions of the
Sex Offenders Registration Act shall not impose a duty upon
a licensed Realtor to disclose any information regarding an
offender required to register.
The protection provided to
the public by the provisions of this act is vital because
355 sex offenders who completed their sentences were
released from custody last year, and 335 were released the
year before. According to the Department of Corrections,
Oklahoma's sex offender registry currently bears the names
of approximately 1900 convicts.
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