Gender, Crime and Incarceration in Oklahoma

摘要

Why is Oklahoma ranked No. 1 in the rate of incarcerating its female population. Senate Bill No. 810 of the 2003 Legislature created the Special Task Force for Women Incarcerated in Oklahoma to answer that question. The Oklahoma Criminal Justice Resource Center provided staff support to the 11-member task force, which met from July-December 2003. Other agencies (Department of Corrections, Department of Human Services, the Courts) also contributed to the task force's final report. The scope of OCJRC's contribution was multi-faceted, focusing on how Oklahoma differs from norms throughout the entire criminal justice system. Topics covered: Arrest rates$ Convictions rates and types$ Focus on drug crimes in particular$ Sentence lengths and types$ How female offenders fare at various stages of the criminal justice process$ How women respond in Drug Courts, Oklahoma's leading alternative to incarceration$ How various states' investment in indigent drug treatment correlates to incarceration rates$ Comparisons with other states spending on other facets of criminal justice$ True costs of imprisoning women, accounting for health care needs and welfare costs of caring for children of inmates$ Historical growth in spending for prisons vs. other government functions, including education, highways and social services$ and Shift over time in mental hospital population and prison population. This report provides a synopsis of the best data available regarding female incarceration in Oklahoma. There is no single or easy explanation for Oklahoma's distinction as the top incarcerator of women. However, this report gives insight into a wide variety of factors that may ultimately contribute to the incarceration rate.