The Oklahoma Senate passed a bail reform measure on Friday supporters are hopeful will cut pretrial detention rates in the state.
Senate Bill 252 requires a bond hearing within 48 hours of arrest and calls for most people accused of nonviolent crimes to be released on their own recognizance.
Opponents said there’s a risk defendants won’t come back to court, leaving taxpayers to foot the bill for law enforcement to chase them down. Sen. Roger Thompson said the measure is about ensuring due process and getting them in front of a judge in a timely manner.
"If we want to talk dollars and cents, if those things do not happen, and they wind up as they did in Oklahoma County Jail for eight months before appearing before a judge, taxpayers also pay that price," Thompson said.
In Tulsa County, the average person accused of a nonviolent crime stays in jail about a month if they can’t afford bail. In other counties, they can remain behind bars before trial for several months.
"It is true that there are some people who for, I will say, unintentionally, end up sitting longer in a jail cell than they should, and that needs to be addressed," said Sen. Julie Daniels, who voted against SB252. "At the same time, there are folks who are out on their own recognizance and do not come back, or, before they do come back, they reoffend."
In cases where bail may be set, judges must consider 11 factors in setting it, and it must not be higher than necessary to get someone back to court. Bail could still be denied when a defendant is accused of any one of dozens of violent crimes.
Senator Mark Allen was also among the noes on the measure.
"I don’t believe this is criminal justice reform. I believe it’s criminal welfare," Allen said.
SB252 passed the Senate 30–12 and now goes to the House.
