Oklahoma Prison Diversionary Plan For Women Passes

By Tara Vreeland, The News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A bill aimed at keeping nonviolent offender mothers out of prison and with their families unanimously passed a House committee Monday.

The bill aims to establish a statewide pilot program modeled after one pioneered in Tulsa called Women in Recovery.

"Prison is not the answer for addiction. Rehabilitation is the answer for addiction," said Kimberly Cummings, Women in Recovery.

Kimberly Cummings was a drug addict for 23 years. She was arrested for possession of meth last year and faced a 10 year prison sentence.

Cummings says she is proof that a bill to allow women to enter rehab instead of going to prison would benefit mothers and their children, and ultimately Oklahoma.

"Their words alone, actually my 14 and 17-year-old sons were at the sentencing and wrote letters to the judge to give their mom a second chance," said Cummings.

Oklahoma incarcerates women more than twice the national average -- 131 per 100,000 in prison versus 69 per 100,000 nationally.

"Truthfully, we incarcerate women for things that no other state incarcerates them for," said Representative Kris Steele.

With state prisons nearing maximum capacity, lawmakers say there has to be a better way of reducing that number.

"I do not feel like we can continue down the path that we are going from a financial standpoint or from a human resource standpoint," said Representative Kris Steele.

Enter House Bill 2998. A bill that Representative Kris Steele says is "pro-family" and would help rehabilitate non-violent offenders.

"I do not think that this would pose a threat to public safety. Rather I think it's going to help our state collectively by not spending all of our money on incarceration and providing more appropriate services through community based entities," said Representative Kris Steele.

The bill encourages re-entry and diversion programs as opposed to jail time. The women would receive rehabilitative services, all while reestablishing relationships with their children.

The bill passed in committee in front of a packed house that included the women who are success stories from Tulsa's Women in Recovery.

Tulsa's Women in Recovery program is funded solely through the George Kaiser Family Foundation.

The bill still has to make it through the budget committee before being considered by the full House.