#oklahoma incarcerates more women that Iran

[coochiequeens]

Enough is enough

“A nation is not conquered until the hearts of its women are on the ground. Then it is done, no matter how brave its warriors or how strong their weapons.”(Cheyenne proverb)

We’re experiencing a pivotal moment where Oklahoma can say “enough is enough” and allow women to protect themselves, even in complicated situations. Let me explain.

For the last decade, I’ve been at the University of Oklahoma, and while my journey may be unique, it has always followed the evidence.

My career began as a SWAT officer and police detective. I know firsthand the importance of the justice system and the need to hold people accountable for the commission of crime. The things I saw in those roles made me question why people commit crime and led me to a career in forensic psychopathology.

I moved to Oklahoma in 2013 to investigate differential criminal behavior among women. If you didn’t know, Oklahoma incarcerates women at rates among the highest in the developed world. We are three to five times higher than New York or California and over 15 times higher than Iran, a country currently in cultural and political upheaval regarding women’s rights.

Data shows men and women commit crimes with fundamentally different drives and motivations. While the majority of all criminal justice-involved people have experienced trauma, women who commit crimes have experienced trauma that’s significantly more extreme and problematic.

ACE (adverse childhood experience) scores measure childhood trauma on a scale of 1 to 10. The average ACE in the United States is about 1.5. The average in Oklahoma is about 3, and the average for an incarcerated woman in Oklahoma is over 5 with about 40% of incarcerated women in Oklahoma having an ACE score of 7 or higher.

Adding to the impact of this childhood trauma, upward of 65% of incarcerated women in Oklahoma were in abusive relationships at the time of their arrest. Trauma follows them across their life span and creates a biological injury to the brain that can cause mental illness, and almost always affects behavior and decision making.

However, did you know that evidence of abuse isn’t commonly considered by courts in most states when handing down sentences? In February, Rep. Toni Hasenbeck, R-Elgin, introduced legislation, House Bill 1639, that would help domestic violence survivors who fight back against the person abusing them.

When that legislation passed the Oklahoma House with a unanimous vote on March 22, it was a key step toward allowing the courts to have more discretion when sentencing crimes where domestic abuse plays a significant factor.

HB 1639 also could give women convicted of a crime the opportunity to provide evidence of their abuse for consideration at sentencing modification hearings.

We already know a majority of women in Oklahoma prisons are trauma survivors. Courts not taking into account the abuses these women have suffered is basically saying they’re OK with our criminal justice systems endorsing the abuse.

Rigid sentencing laws have already devastated too many women who have experienced terrible trauma. I think that’s why HB 1639 has had such strong support, so far.

I also strongly believe our state’s lawmakers should maintain the language demanded by impacted families. Our legal system must consider the circumstances behind every crime, and sentences should be proportional — and retroactive — depending on each individual situation.

The authors of HB 1639 didn’t say people should be free to commit crimes or avoid responsibility for their actions. Rather, they said context is important. They got the bill language — both the sentencing angles and the retroactivity — exactly right.

I encourage Oklahoma legislators to pass HB 1639 with full retroactivity, and to limit sentences to 10 years and allow courts to rehear cases and hand down shorter sentences to people who show a significant link between the domestic violence they experienced and their crime.

It’s the right thing to do. Because, truly, enough is enough

By David A. McLeod, Ph.D., MSW, is associate director and professor at the Anne and Henry Zarrow School of Social Work at the University of Oklahoma.