Oklahoma Archives - Fines and Fees Justice Center

Feenstra v. Sigler

The complaint alleges Judge Jared Sigler, Judge John Gerkin, and former Judge Curtis DeLapp (Judicial Defendants) failed to conduct inquiries into individuals’ ability to pay before imposing fines and fees or before sanctioning individuals for nonpayment.

Special Report: How a legal system dependent on fines, fees affects Oklahomans

This five-part series uses personal accounts from Oklahomans to show how fines and fees negatively affect people who cannot afford them.

Personal Narrative: Andria Collins

Andria Collins is a mother raising eight children in Oklahoma City, OK. She has been struggling with court debt and drivers’ license suspensions for over a decade.

Why journalists should cover local jails

In this article for The Poynter Institute, Al Tompkins underscores the importance of journalists covering local jails and suggests several coverage angles that journalists can use to convince readers to care more about incarceration at the local level.

“You Miss So Much When You’re Gone”- The Lasting Harm of Jailing Mothers Before Trial in Oklahoma

This report provides a brief history on the disproportionate rise of women’s incarceration in the US and in Oklahoma before explaining four kinds of barriers that prevent mothers from returning to normalcy after they come into contact with the system, with a particular focus on fines and fees.

Personal Narrative: John Griggs

John was arrested for driving with a suspended license in December 1999 and given $400 in court fines, fees, and costs. It wasn’t until February 2018 – nearly 20 years after he was originally arrested – that he finally completed his sentence by spending 20 days in jail to pay down his debt.

Oklahoma Justice Reform Task Force Final Report

In this report, the Oklahoma Justice Reform Task Force investigated Oklahoma’s exploding incarceration rates and the judicial policies that contribute to prison overcrowding. The Task Force used their analysis to develop 27 policy recommendations aimed at improving public safety by reducing recidivism and reforming sentencing policies.

Oklahoma Senate Bill 689: Criminal procedure; judgments and execution of sentences; pilot program; sentencing powers of the court.

This Oklahoma bill, which did not pass, would have amended statutes related to life without parole sentences, payment plans for fines and fees, and how the requirement of restitution can affect conditions of supervision.

Oklahoma SB 340: Options for repayment of fines and costs

For individuals who are unable to pay their fines and fees, their total debt may be cited and entered into the district court judgement docket. A judge may also replace fines and fees with court-ordered community service (credited at a minimum rate of at least federal minimum wage), if community service doesn’t cause undue hardship.