Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 27, 2025

HB 1003: Crimes and punishments; modifying age limitations for certain prohibited acts.

HB 1003 modifies Oklahoma's rape statutes by raising age thresholds for certain offenses. It increases the age of protection from 16 to 18 years in key situations (e.g., when a victim is under 18, in school, or in foster care), and clarifies that school employees engaging in sexual conduct with students under 20 must be 18 or older. The bill also updates age difference rules for consent-based cases, requiring perpetrators to be at least 18 and four years older than the victim (who must be 16 or older). These changes directly affect minors in educational or foster care settings and their adult perpetrators. The law took effect May 27, 2025, without gubernatorial action.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeRaises age protections for victims in rape statutes, strengthening legal safeguards against exploitation of minors under 18.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✗ Voted No ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · Senate May 27, 2025

SB 562: Crimes and Punishment; Bus Passenger Safety Act; expanding scope of unlawful acts. Emergency.

SB 562 strengthens Oklahoma's Bus Passenger Safety Act by expanding criminal penalties for violence targeting buses and passengers. It defines "bus" broadly to include vans, railcars, and other public transit vehicles, and makes it a felony to seize control of any bus (up to 20 years in prison), intimidate drivers/passengers (up to 10 years), or use deadly weapons during such acts (up to 20 years). The bill also prohibits discharging firearms in buses or terminals without valid self-defense justification (up to 5 years). These provisions directly affect bus passengers, drivers, and transit staff by increasing legal consequences for threats and violence against them.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill expands criminalization by increasing felony penalties (up to 20 years) for bus-related violence, directly opposing reform-focused justice through harsher sentencing.95% confidence ✓ TransportationSupports TransportationStrengthens public transit safety by criminalizing violence against buses/passengers, enhancing passenger protection in transportation infrastructure.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 21, 2025

HB 1066: Bail; prohibiting bail on appeal for certain offenses; effective date.

HB 1066 prohibits defendants from obtaining bail while appealing a conviction for 14 specific serious offenses, including murder, rape, robbery with weapons, drug trafficking, and crimes involving firearms or prior felony convictions. It directly affects individuals convicted of these offenses who seek to appeal their sentences. For all other felony cases, courts retain discretion to grant bail on appeal but must state their reasoning in writing. The law takes effect November 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeRestricts defendant rights by prohibiting bail on appeal for 14 serious offenses, limiting judicial review and increasing pretrial detention for convicted individuals.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · Senate May 14, 2025

SB 657: Justifiable homicide; authorizing appeal of certain ruling to Court of Criminal Appeals. Effective date.

SB 657 (Oklahoma Senate Bill 657) allows police officers and others acting under their command to appeal pretrial rulings finding their use of deadly force unjustified directly to the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals within 10 days. The law requires the court to give these appeals priority and automatically stays the underlying case while the appeal is pending. Officers who miss the 10-day deadline forfeit the immediate appeal but retain the right to raise the issue at trial or on direct appeal. The bill amends Oklahoma Statute 21 O.S. 2021, Section 732, and takes effect November 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeAllows officers to bypass lower courts in deadly force cases, weakening accountability and oversight of law enforcement.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 14, 2025

HB 2105: Felony reclassification; modifying classifications for certain crimes; effective date.

HB 2105 reclassifies specific serious crimes into higher felony categories (Class A3 and Class B1) in Oklahoma, directly affecting individuals convicted of these offenses by increasing potential penalties. It adds 21 crimes to Class A3 (including domestic assault with a deadly weapon, child sexual abuse, terrorism, and arson causing injury) and 20 crimes to Class B1 (such as caregiver abuse, certain sodomy offenses, and child pornography-related acts). The bill modifies Oklahoma's criminal code to ensure these offenses carry stricter sentencing under the new classifications. This law became effective without the Governor's signature on May 14, 2025, making the reclassifications enforceable.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeReclassifies crimes into higher felony categories (A3/B1), increasing penalties for offenses like domestic assault and child abuse, directly expanding criminalization and harsher sentencing.95% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 13, 2025

HB 1222: Driving under the influence; requiring certain arrested person make bail before release; effective date.

HB 1222 modifies Oklahoma's bail procedures for specific offenses, primarily affecting individuals arrested for domestic violence, substance abuse violations, or repeat driving under the influence (DUI) offenses. The bill requires courts to consider factors like substance abuse history, domestic violence records, and threat levels when setting bail, and prohibits personal recognizance bonds for domestic violence arrests or second/third DUI offenses. For repeat DUI arrests (Section 11-902), courts must determine bail and provide written findings on public safety risks before release. It does not change DUI penalties but alters release conditions for these specific cases. The bill became law without the Governor's signature on May 13, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill restricts bail options for domestic violence and repeat DUI offenders, reducing defendant rights and increasing pretrial detention.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · Senate May 12, 2025

SB 630: Crimes and punishments; expanding scope of certain offense related to rape. Effective date.

SB 630 expands Oklahoma's legal definition of rape to include new scenarios involving vulnerable individuals. It specifically makes it rape when a person under 20 engages in sexual intercourse with a school employee (including contractors) while a student at an elementary, secondary, or vocational school. The bill also adds rape charges for sexual acts between a foster youth (19 or younger) and a foster parent or applicant, or between a victim in state custody and a foster parent or agency employee. These changes directly affect minors and individuals under legal custody or supervision who interact with authority figures in educational or care settings. The law becomes effective November 1, 2025.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeExpands rape definition to include vulnerable minors with school/foster staff, increasing criminalization of specific acts per bill's explicit scope expansion.90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 12, 2025

HB 1217: Obscene material; making certain acts unlawful; codification; emergency.

HB 1217 makes it a misdemeanor to perform adult shows containing obscene material in public spaces where minors might view them, including on public property or in unrestricted public areas. It defines "public place" to exclude venues with age restrictions (like ticketed events limiting minors) and sets penalties of up to $1,000 fines or 1 year in jail for violations. The law overrides conflicting local ordinances and applies to both individuals performing such acts and public entities like cities that permit exposure to minors. It directly affects performers, public venues, and local governments managing public spaces.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill expands criminalization by creating new misdemeanor offenses for public performances of obscene material, increasing penalties rather than advancing reform or accountability.85% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 12, 2025

HB 1693: Criminal procedure; clarifying evidentiary hearing requirements; effective date.

HB 1693 clarifies Oklahoma's process for determining if a death row inmate is mentally competent to be executed. It requires inmates to file a motion challenging competency within seven days of the state's execution date request, with the court ordering a hearing to assess if the inmate can rationally understand the execution. The law establishes a presumption of competency, meaning inmates must prove incompetence by showing a "substantial doubt" through evidence like medical records. If found incompetent, the court mandates mental health treatment to restore competency within 30 days, with the state providing care until the inmate regains competency or the execution date is rescheduled.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeImposes high burden on inmates to prove incompetence, restricting defendant rights in capital sentencing procedures90% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice

signed · Oklahoma · House May 12, 2025

HB 1413: Domestic violence; making certain pleas or finding of guilt to stalking violations constitute a conviction for purposes of sentencing; effective date.

HB 1413 amends Oklahoma law to treat certain pleas or findings of guilt for stalking violations as formal convictions for sentencing in domestic violence cases. This change directly affects individuals who commit stalking offenses and later face domestic violence charges, as prior stalking pleas or findings will now count as prior convictions. The bill modifies sentencing provisions under Oklahoma Statutes Title 21, Section 1173, ensuring that stalking-related convictions impact sentencing severity for subsequent domestic violence offenses. This policy change standardizes how stalking history is considered in domestic violence sentencing without altering the underlying stalking penalties.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeTreats stalking pleas as convictions for sentencing, increasing penalties in domestic violence cases, aligning with stricter sentencing policies.92% confidence | Rep's Stance ✓ Voted Yes ✗ Opposes Criminal Justice