OKLAHOMA CITY – A bill protecting the privacy rights of incarcerated women has been signed into law by Governor Kevin Stitt.
Senate Bill 418 requires the Oklahoma Department of Corrections to designate restrooms, changing areas and sleeping quarters exclusively for either female or male inmates.
This legislation was authored by Senate Majority Floor Leader Julie Daniels, R-Bartlesville, and Rep. Toni Hasenbeck, R-Elgin.
“Current policies do not completely rule out the possibility of housing inmates of opposite sexes together,” Leader Daniels said. “I felt it was important, especially for the protection of female inmates, to make it unmistakably clear in state law that this will not be permitted in Oklahoma prisons.”
The law prohibits the Department of Corrections from housing men in women’s facilities or women in men’s facilities unless the agency creates single-occupancy areas. Only employees, medical personnel or law enforcement of the opposite sex can enter these spaces under certain limited circumstances.
Senator Daniels and Representative Hasenbeck worked closely with the Alliance Defending Freedom to craft and advance this legislation.
“States have a duty to protect the privacy and safety of women and girls,” said Sara Beth Nolan, attorney for the Alliance Defending Freedom. “Letting men intrude into women’s intimate spaces is a denial of the real biological differences between the two sexes and has devastating effects on women. SB 418 ensures that women’s intimate spaces in correctional facilities are protected for women.”
SB 418 takes effect Nov. 1.
For more information, contact Senate Majority Floor Leader Julie Daniels at 405-521-5634 or email [email protected]
