OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin is directing state prison officials to change the way they calculate earned credits for some of the most violent offenders in a way that could allow some criminals to be released from prison earlier.
In a memo to the Oklahoma Board of Corrections that the governor's office released publicly on Monday, Fallin says state law allows inmates convicted of most 85-percent crimes to begin earning credits once they're incarcerated.
Department of Corrections spokeswoman Terri Watkins says the agency currently is not allowing these inmates to begin earning credits until they've served at least 85 percent of their sentence.
Watkins says the Board of Corrections will vote on the governor's directive during its regular meeting on Thursday.
The policy change could affect about 6,000 inmates.