According to NJ.com, Miller was released March 21 after serving 15 years in a New Jersey state prison for robbing a Stride Rite in Toms River, New Jersey, in 1999. What did he do on the first day of his freedom? Treat himself to a steak and lobster dinner? Party like it was still 1999? […]
prison
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Life after prison
“You have fines and parole fees you have to pay when you are released from prison,” Smith said. “Without a job, it makes it even more difficult.” Smith isn’t alone. The Oklahoma Department of Corrections’ 2012 Annual Report states it released more than 34,000 state inmates over the past four years. To help those released […]
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Follow the money
The three primary donors are Corrections Corporation of America, the GEO Inc, and Avalon Correctional Services, Inc. The largest among the three is CCA, which operates three private prisons in the state. With the state corrections department searching for more bed space to house a record number of inmates, it’s apparent the clout these companies […]
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Baby, it’s cold inside
On Dec. 9, News9 reported that the heating system at the jail is out of date and, therefore, unable to adequately heat the entire building. While parts of the building are kept warm, others stay a little on the chilly side. The sheriff’s department told News9 that hot air travels nine blocks from the east […]
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Drug deal
Law enforcement agencies in Oklahoma continue to fight the War on Drugs, but it’s not solely for noble purposes. For certain, illegal drugs are seized and bad guys are put in prison. Still, agencies like the Oklahoma City Police Department, the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drug […]
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Lockdown
Locking up nonviolent drug users and perpetuating the 42-year-old War on Drugs has become a profitable and political tool used by Oklahoma’s elected officials and the for-profit prison industry. Many of those offenders have a recognized need for treatment or a halfway house setting instead of incarceration, said state Rep. Gus Blackwell (R-Laverne), an advocate […]
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LETTERS
I’m not sure who these unhappy socialists are whom Mr. Rixmann obviously knows so well, but the World Happiness Report this year listed the countries of Norway, Denmark and Switzerland as the top three happiest nations on earth. All three countries have what I assume would be labeled “socialist” economies by Mr. Rixmann’s standards, and […]
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Debtor’s prison, sort of
Here’s how it works. Get arrested and booked into jail. Stay one night and you’re billed $117 for that wonderful room and guest service provided by the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s Department, which provides questionable accommodations to all those folks arrested by OKC’s finest. As the guests check out, or bond out, they’re told about the […]
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Criminals now stealing from children, too
A nationwide scheme propagated by prison inmates resulted in at least 438 federal tax return checks issued, with possibly fraudulent refund proceeds totaling $1,828,084 in Oklahoma alone, according to The Oklahoman. State officials estimate that overall statewide fraud totals may top $4 million. So far, how the prisoners are filing the fraudulent returns is unknown. […]
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Women need help, not prison
Many factors contribute to the high female incarceration rate. However, the root cause is one that makes for uncomfortable conversation: the fact that women and girls in our state are not treated well. Oklahoma has an inordinate number of girls who suffer abuse and other forms of trauma in childhood and then carry the symptoms […]