Mass Incarceration of Women in Oklahoma
By Wendy Cruz ‘27
Currently, Oklahoma has one of the highest incarceration rates, with 563 per 100,000 U.S. residents held under state and federal jurisdiction. (1) Additionally, in the 1980s, Oklahoma became the state with the highest female incarceration rate. (2) Oklahoma held this title for over 25 consecutive years (3) but, in 2022 dropped to fourth behind Idaho, Montana, and South Dakota. (1) Nonetheless, despite the fall in the ranks, the question remains why Oklahoma continues to be a top state for mass incarceration. Research into the policies in Oklahoma have shed light on two reasons contributing to the disproportionate rates: drug possession (1) and failure to protect their children from neglect or child abuse. (4) These two main leading charges are linked to generational cycles and mental health since women are more likely to be dealing with substance abuse and have been victims of domestic violence. Oklahoma’s mass incarceration method further harms women who are dealing with mental health issues as they are placed in prison where they will be less likely to receive proper mental healthcare treatment.
To first explore the criminal offense of women’s drug possession, the charge of drug possession in Oklahoma needs to be defined. The history of Oklahoma regarding drug possession is limited. Up until 2017, getting caught with any drug substance in Oklahoma was a felony, and drug possession was one of the leading causes of incarceration. (5) However, this changed with the introduction of State Question (SQ) 780, which reduced drug possession from a felony to a misdemeanor; however, the change did not apply retroactively to those who had already been convicted of a drug charge. House Bill (HB) 1269 was passed to address this issue which would allow those who have already been sentenced to have the opportunity to have their felony charges reduced. (6) Additionally, SQ 781 was passed simultaneously which aimed at redirecting individuals with drug charges from incarceration to treatment facilities. (5) However, this did not last long and in 2023, House Bill 2153 was passed, which classified a fourth drug possession as a felony. (7) This leads to the present where there is large opposition surrounding incarceration to solve drug possession charges.
While there are many reasons why women are in possession of drugs, two reasons may be that they turn to selling drugs as a means to support their families or they are stuck in a generational cycle of drug addiction. (8) Many women are sole providers for their families and do not have community or financial support which further exacerbates financial stress. This forces many to turn to illegal activities such as selling drugs to make ends meet for their families. Therefore, incarceration would not help women or their families as imprisonment of the main provider would only further devastate families. For instance, the incarceration of women can lead to generational ties in which children of those who have been incarcerated are themselves found in prison. (3) Imprisonment not only affects the women but also the families as it removes a financial and social provider which can then also influence the children’s likelihood to engage in crime as a means of financial relief. Additionally, a review of data collected by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation showed that if people were rearrested it was due to controlled drug possession. (5) The fact that people continue to be in possession of drugs showcases that prison does not offer proper treatment. In addition, substance abuse can also be generational, especially if children grow up in the presence of adults who misuse substances. This ties into the fact that children of women who have been incarcerated for drug possession may themselves turn to selling or abusing substances. Furthermore, women, especially those who are mothers are more likely to receive harsher sentences. (3) This again ties into the fact that women are expected to protect their children from abuse and neglect and having drugs would endanger them. However, instead of providing treatment for drug addiction and resources on how to better protect their children, women are imprisoned. This fails to acknowledge women’s drug addiction and fails to consider the well-being of children who grew up with those influences.
Another top reason why women are incarcerated has to do with the fact that they are charged with failure to protect their children from abuse and neglect. (9) In Oklahoma, one in every six women is currently serving a sentence that is related to child abuse and neglect. Women also make up 93 percent of those charged with child abuse and neglect. This stems from the fact that it is a law for parents and guardians of a child to protect them from things that could be considered abuse and neglect. (4) This law, however, overshadows the reason many women themselves were victims of abuse, and instead of providing treatment and resources for the families to break abuse cycles and ways to cope, it instead furthers cycles through incarceration. In a study that examined the relationship between childhood adversity, mental health, and physical violence perpetrated by women in intimate relationships, it was revealed that seventy-four percent of women had lived with someone with substance abuse disorders, fifty-eight had been victims of sexual abuse, sixty-three had been emotionally neglected, and fifty-eight percent had been sexually abused. (10) Many of the women in prison had once had an adverse childhood experience and, therefore, were victims that were never protected. Instead of redirecting women into counseling treatment, they were punished by being imprisoned, which does not teach women how to deal with past abuse and how to stop the abuse from being continued onto their children. Additionally, the law also failed to consider the fact that the women may have been undergoing abuse concurrently as the child and were, therefore, unable to protect the minor. Despite these statistics, there had not been any advocacy for resources for women. This brings up the question of how a women who were victims of violence and abuse would be able to protect their children if they are unable to protect themselves. In May of 2024, Bill 1835 was passed, which would allow for those being charged with child abuse and neglect to present evidence that they themselves had a history of domestic abuse and violence as a mitigating factor that could help reduce their convection. This step in the right direction helps lessen the focus on punishment however, it still fails to provide counseling and additional mental health resources for women and their families.
As of now, there are limited amounts of programs designed specifically to help women with mental health treatment and reintegration. One program in particular that has helped many women in Oklahoma is Women in Recovery, which aims to provide services to help women with any past and current trauma that contributed to their incarceration (including substance abuse and domestic abuse) as well as providing emotional and social support to reintegrate into the community. (3) Programs like this not only help women return successfully to the community but also provide mental health services to help treat abuse and trauma, which can help break the abuse cycle. Additionally, this program also offers community support and resources to help women dealing with financial stress and burdens that may lead them to engage in crime, such as selling drugs to make ends meet. The treatment program’s availability and accessibility is limited which continues to be a barrier. However, expansion and increased availability will help counter the punishment focused approach reinforced by prison.
While drug possession and failure to protect children from abuse and neglect seem like very separate issues, there are many overlaps within the mental health and generational realm. The current laws in Oklahoma continue to be a barrier that prevents women from accessing treatment and resources to help combat drug possession, drug addiction, and child abuse and neglect. These two charges continue to be the top reason for the mass incarceration of women in Oklahoma because of the lack of resources and treatment programs. Additionally, these top charges continue to reign because they are treated with incarceration, which limits access to resources and further harms women and their families. Instead of prison as a punishment, Oklahoma should provide treatment programs that target women’s trauma and drug addiction to prevent women from recommitting and re-entering prison. This allows women to be able to break generational cycles within their families and better protect their children. There is still a long way to go in terms of reform and making programs more accessible, however, based on the current data and policies, incarceration is not the best treatment or program to help women in Oklahoma.
Endnotes
(1) Ann E Carson, “Prisoners in 2022 – Statistical Tables,” Bureau of Justice Statistics, November 2023, https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/prisoners-2022-statistical-tables.
(2) “Female Incarceration.” Metriarch, December 16, 2024. https://www.metriarchok.org/female-incarceration/.
(3) Allison Herrera, “Why Oklahoma Has the Highest Female Incarceration Rate in the Country,” The World from PRX, September 18, 2017, https://theworld.org/stories/2017/09/18/lock-em-state-whats-causing-oklahomas-high-female-incarceration-rate.
(4) “Oklahoma Survivors’ Act Provides New Mitigation Criminal Defense Strategy,” Oklahoma Legal Group, June 30, 2024, https://www.oklahomalegalgroup.com/news/survivors-act.
(5) “Misdemeanors, Municipal Crimes, and Old Warrants: The True Story of What Happened to People Released under HB 1269,” FWD.us, May 12, 2022, https://www.fwd.us/news/oklahoma-commutation-hb1269/.
(6) Damion Shade, “HB 1269 Makes 780 Retroactive but Leaves Issues Unresolved - Oklahoma Policy Institute,” Oklahoma Policy Institute - Better Information, Better Policy, May 28, 2019, https://okpolicy.org/hb-1269-makes-780-retroactive-but-leaves-issues-unresolved/.
(7) Erin Christy, “Sheriffs Applaud New Law That Amends Sq 780 Passed in 2016,” 2 News Oklahoma KJRH Tulsa, May 26, 2023, https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/sheriffs-applaud-new-law-that-amends-sq-780-passed-in-2016.
(8) Hinders, Dana. “Breaking the Cycle of Addiction through the Generations.” Waypoint Recovery Center, June 17, 2024. https://waypointrecoverycenter.com/blog/breaking-cycle-addiction-through-generations/#:~:text=Addiction%20is%20a%20biologically%2Dbased,this%20cycle%20can%20be%20broken.
(9) “When Men Murder Women in Oklahoma,” Violence Policy Center, May 28, 2024, https://vpc.org/when-men-murder-women-oklahoma/.
(10) Jones, Melissa S., Stephanie W. Burge, Susan F. Sharp, and David A. McLeod. “Childhood Adversity, Mental Health, and the Perpetration of Physical Violence in the Adult Intimate Relationships of Women Prisoners: A Life Course Approach.” BYU ScholarsArchive. Accessed November 14, 2024. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/4092/.
