Oklahoma House committee to take up criminal justice bills

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – Legislation supported by Gov. Mary Fallin that would increase the value of some property crimes before they could be prosecuted as felonies in Oklahoma will be considered by a legislative committee.

The House Criminal Justice and Corrections Committee is scheduled to vote on the bill Wednesday. It is among a package of legislation Fallin has proposed to help reduce overcrowding in the state prison system.

Fallin expressed support for the bill in her State of the State speech which opened the 2016 Oklahoma Legislature on Feb. 1. Fallin says the $500 benchmark for property crime felonies has been in place since 2002 and needs to be raised.

Fallin has also called for lowering Oklahoma’s mandatory drug possession sentences and reducing some drug crimes to misdemeanors.