A Tulsa County judge on Friday denied early release for Erica Harrison, the first person in the county to receive a resentencing hearing under the Oklahoma Survivors' Act.
The decision centered on whether Harrison’s relationship with her alleged abuser qualified under the law.
The Oklahoma Survivors' Act, which took effect in 2024, allows courts to reduce prison sentences for survivors of abuse if their abuser fits into one of four specific relationship categories: a person who used the survivor for financial gain, a family or household member, a trafficker, or an established sexual partner.
Judge Sharon Holmes ruled that Calvin Anderson, whom Harrison fatally shot in 2012, did not meet any of the criteria. Holmes said a sexual partnership cannot be established solely through rape.
“There was no requisite relationship that existed between Erica Harrison and the decedent in this case, and she fell outside of that relationship that’s required by statute,” Tulsa County Assistant District Attorney Megan Hilborn said after the ruling.
Defense attorney Abby Gore argued during the prior July resentencing hearing that a forced sexual partner should still qualify under the law.
“We just appreciate the community support as we continue with these cases,” Gore said after the decision. “We have several more upcoming, and again, we appreciate the support, even with the result that we had today.”
Harrison was originally sentenced to 25 years in prison for first-degree manslaughter after she shot and killed Anderson. That sentence was later reduced to 20 years in 2016 due to prosecutorial misconduct during trial. She has served more than 12 years.
Marlene Williams, Anderson’s niece, said she supported the court’s decision.
“The whole sentence needs to be served because a jury found her guilty,” Williams said.
Harrison would have been the first person granted early release in Tulsa County under the new law. Barring a successful appeal, she will serve the remaining eight years of her sentence.
