The Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC or ODOC) is an
agency of the state of
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
. DOC is responsible for the administration of the
state prison system. It has its headquarters in
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
,
across the street from the headquarters of the
Oklahoma Department of Public Safety
The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (ODPS) is a department of the government of Oklahoma. Under the supervision of the Oklahoma Secretary of Public Safety, DPS provides for the safety of Oklahomans and the administration of justice in the ...
. The Board of Corrections are appointees: five members are appointed by the Governor; two members are appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate; and two members are appointed by the Speaker of the house of Representatives. The board is responsible for setting the policies of the Department, approving the annual budget request, and working with the Director of Corrections on material matters of the agency. T. Hastings Siegfried is the current chairman of the board. The director, who serves at the pleasure of the governor, is the chief executive of the department. The current director of Corrections is Scott Crow, who was appointed after Director
Joe Allbaugh
Joe M. Allbaugh (born July 27, 1952) is an American political figure in the Republican Party. After spending most of his career in Oklahoma and Texas, Allbaugh came to national prominence working for Texas governor George W. Bush and helping mana ...
resigned his post on June 13, 2019. Crow was confirmed by the Oklahoma State Senate as director in May 2020.
History
Prior to 1908, Oklahoma sent prisoners to the Kansas Penitentiary
in
Lansing
Lansing () is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is mostly in Ingham County, although portions of the city extend west into Eaton County and north into Clinton County. The 2020 census placed the city's population at 112,644, makin ...
,
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
. After a disputed report on the conditions in the Kansas Penitentiary, Oklahoma opened an institution in the former federal jail in
McAlester.
On January 10, 1967, Oklahoma created a new state Corrections Department, consisting of a State Board of Corrections, State Director of Corrections, and three divisions: a Division of Institutions, a Division of Probation and Parole, and a Division of Inspection.
In 1973, a three-day riot resulted in the destruction of most of the McAlester facility and the death of three inmates.
In 1976, the first training academy was established in
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
.
On 29 August 1983, the
Dick Conner Correctional Center
Dick Conner Correctional Center is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections state prison for men located north of the town of Hominy, Osage County, Oklahoma. The medium-security facility opened in 1979 with an original design capacity of 400, and i ...
was hit by a riot that resulted in an inmate death. On 17 December 1985 another riot occurred, this time at the McAlester prison. Five members of staff were taken hostage and three were seriously injured.
On 4 November 2019, the state released more than four hundred inmates who had been convicted of nonviolent crimes. The commutations were expected to save the state over twelve million dollars.
Facilities
![OklahomaStatePen (retouched)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/OklahomaStatePen_%28retouched%29.jpg)
As of 2021, the Department of Corrections is responsible for the management, maintenance and security of
23 correctional institutions across the state. Of these facilities, only eight were built originally to serve as prisons.
The
execution chamber
An execution chamber, or death chamber, is a room or chamber in which capital punishment is carried out. Execution chambers are almost always inside the walls of a maximum-security prison, although not always at the same prison where the death r ...
is located at the
Oklahoma State Penitentiary
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary, nicknamed "Big Mac", is a prison of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections located in McAlester, Oklahoma, on . Opened in 1908 with 50 inmates in makeshift facilities, today the prison holds more than 750 male o ...
.
State prisons
*
Charles E. Johnson Correctional Center
Charles E. Johnson Correctional Center (also known as the Bill Johnson Correctional Center, or BJCC) is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections state prison for men located in Alva, Woods County, Oklahoma
Woods County is a county located in th ...
(inmate capacity 600)
*
Dick Conner Correctional Center
Dick Conner Correctional Center is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections state prison for men located north of the town of Hominy, Osage County, Oklahoma. The medium-security facility opened in 1979 with an original design capacity of 400, and i ...
(inmate capacity 1210)
* Dr. Eddie Warrior Correctional Center (inmate capacity 999)
* Howard McLeod Correctional Center (inmate capacity 691)
* Jackie Brannon Correctional Center (inmate capacity 737)
*
James Crabtree Correctional Center
James Crabtree Correctional Center is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections state prison for men located in Helena, Alfalfa County, Oklahoma, with a capacity of 800 medium-security inmates and 200 minimum-security inmates. The grounds were first e ...
(inmate capacity 1175)
* Jess Dunn Correctional Center (inmate capacity 1129)
* Jim E. Hamilton Correctional Center (inmate capacity 730)
* John H. Lilley Correctional Center (inmate capacity 836)
*
Joseph Harp Correctional Center
Joseph Harp Correctional Center (JHCC) is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections state prison for male inmates located in Lexington, Cleveland County, Oklahoma. The medium-security facility opened in September 1978 and with a capacity of 1045 inmat ...
(inmate capacity 1345)
*
Lexington Assessment and Reception Center
Lexington Assessment and Reception Center (LARC) is a maximum-security state prison for men located in Lexington, Cleveland County, Oklahoma, owned and operated by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. The LARC complex also hosts the medium-secu ...
(inmate capacity 1462)
*
Mabel Bassett Correctional Center
The Mabel Bassett Correctional Center (MBCC) is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections prison for women located in unincorporated Pottawatomie County, Oklahoma, near McLoud. The facility houses 1241 inmates, most of whom are held at medium securi ...
(inmate capacity 1415)
*
Mack Alford Correctional Center
Mack H. Alford Correctional Center (MACC, originally the Stringtown Correctional Center) is an Oklahoma Department of Corrections prison in unincorporated Atoka County, Oklahoma, near Stringtown. The medium security prison, which opened in 1973 ...
(inmate capacity 805)
*
North Fork Correctional Facility
North Fork Correctional Center is a medium to maximum security correctional facility for men located east of Sayre, Beckham County, Oklahoma.
From its opening in 1998 through 2015, the prison was owned and operated by Corrections Corporation of ...
(inmate capacity 2589)(formerly managed by
Corrections Corporation of America
CoreCivic, formerly the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), is a company that owns and manages private prisons and detention centers and operates others on a concession basis. Co-founded in 1983 in Nashville, Tennessee by Thomas W. Beasle ...
)
*
Oklahoma State Penitentiary
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary, nicknamed "Big Mac", is a prison of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections located in McAlester, Oklahoma, on . Opened in 1908 with 50 inmates in makeshift facilities, today the prison holds more than 750 male o ...
(inmate capacity 838)
*
Oklahoma State Reformatory
The Oklahoma State Reformatory is a medium-security facility with some maximum and minimum-security housing for adult male inmates. Located off of State Highway 9 in Granite, Oklahoma, the facility has a maximum capacity of 1042 inmates. The med ...
(inmate capacity 1042)
*
William S. Key Correctional Center
William S. Key Correctional Center is a minimum-security state prison for men located in Fort Supply, Woodward County, Oklahoma, owned and operated by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections.
The facility was opened in 1989 and has a capacity ...
(inmate capacity 1087)
Community Corrections Centers
* Clara Waters Community Corrections Center (inmate capacity 304)
* Enid Community Corrections Center (inmate capacity 98)
* Lawton Community Corrections Center (inmate capacity 153)
* Northeast Oklahoma Correctional Center (inmate capacity 585)
* Oklahoma City Community Corrections Center (inmate capacity 262)
* Union City Community Corrections Center (inmate capacity 224)
Private Prisons
* Davis Correctional Center operated by CoreCivic
*
Lawton Correctional Facility
Lawton Correctional Center is a privately managed prison for men located in Lawton, Comanche County, Oklahoma, operated by the GEO Group under contract with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections
The Oklahoma Department of Corrections (DOC or O ...
operated by
GEO Group
The GEO Group, Inc. (GEO) is a publicly traded C corporation that invests in private prisons and mental health facilities in North America, Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida, the company's f ...
Halfway Houses
* Oklahoma City Transitional Center operated by CoreCivic
* Bridgeway, Inc.
Organization
Leadership
The Department of Corrections is under the supervision of th
Oklahoma Department of Public Safety. Under current
Governor of Oklahoma
The governor of Oklahoma is the head of government of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor serves as the head of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma. The governor is the '' ex of ...
Kevin Stitt, Chip Keating is serving as the secretary. The Director of the agency is Scott Crow and was appointed on June 13, 2019, after the resignation of Joe Allbaugh. Crow was confirmed by the Oklahoma State Senate on May 12, 2020.
The Department of Corrections is governed by the Board of Corrections. The board consists of five members appointed by the Governor, two members each appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives. Each board member is assigned to one or more of the following committees: Executive, Audit/Finance, Public Policy/Affairs/Criminal Justice, or Population/Security/Private Prisons.
Internal structure
The internal structure of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections is as follows:
*
Governor of Oklahoma
The governor of Oklahoma is the head of government of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. Under the Oklahoma Constitution, the governor serves as the head of the Oklahoma executive branch, of the government of Oklahoma. The governor is the '' ex of ...
*
Cabinet Secretary of Public Safety
** Director
*** Chief of Staff
*** Chief of Operations
**** Division of Institutions
**** Community Corrections and Contract Services
***** Probation & Parole
*** Chief of Strategic Engagement
**** Communications
**** Programs
**** Classification & Population
*** Chief Financial Officer
*** Health Services
*** General Counsel
*** Inspector General
Divisions
The Department of Corrections is governed by the nine-member Board of Corrections, responsible for establishing and reviewing policies, and confirming the appointment of wardens. The director is appointed by the governor of Oklahoma. As the head of the Department of Corrections, the director supervises, directs, and controls the department.
* Administrative Services Division - responsible for all financial, budgeting, personnel, purchasing, information technology and administrative management needs of the Department
* Inspector General Division - responsible for conducting and monitoring all international criminal investigations of inmates and Department employees, including fugitive apprehension
* Health and Offender Services Division - responsible for offender programs, offender medical services, offender mental health, offender education, and Departmental staff training
* Community Corrections and Contract Services Division - responsible for the operation of community corrections centers, statewide probation and parole operations, and monitoring private prisons
* Community Sentencing - responsible for the Community Service Sentencing Program and thirty-six statewide planning councils
* Division of Institutions
** Facilities - responsible for seventeen prisons across the state which house male and female prisoners
Hiring
Oklahoma state and United States federal law both place limitations on who can be employed as a correctional officer with the Department. They include any of the following:
* No person who is a registered sex offender
* No person who has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude, unless they have received a full
pardon
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
for such crime
* No person who has been convicted of any form of felony, unless they have received a full
pardon
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
for such felony
* No person who has been convicted of any form of domestic violence, unless they have received a full
pardon
A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the ju ...
for such crime
* No person who has been dishonorably discharged from any branch of the
Armed Forces of the United States
Budget
The Department of Corrections has annual budget over $500 million.
That budget is derived primarily from yearly appropriations, Departmental fees and funds generated by the Prison Industries activities.
[FY 2014 State Budget](_blank)
Oklahoma Office of State Finance
The Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services (OMES) is a government agency which manages and supports the basic functioning of the government of Oklahoma. Under the leadership of the Oklahoma Secretary of Agency Accountability, OMES p ...
For Fiscal Year 2014, 88% of the Department's budget comes from yearly appropriations, 6% from the Prison Industries Fund, 4% from the Department's Revolving Fund, and 3% from all other sources.
In late 2017, the department requested more than 1.5 billion dollars, triple its usual budget to make long-delayed improvements.
Fallen Employees
Since the establishment of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, 22 employees have died in the line of duty.
See also
*
Oklahoma State Penitentiary
The Oklahoma State Penitentiary, nicknamed "Big Mac", is a prison of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections located in McAlester, Oklahoma, on . Opened in 1908 with 50 inmates in makeshift facilities, today the prison holds more than 750 male o ...
*
List of United States state correction agencies
This is a list of corrections agencies in the states of the United States.
State adult prison agencies
* Alabama Department of Corrections
* Alaska Department of Corrections
* Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation & Reentry
* Ark ...
*
List of law enforcement agencies in Oklahoma
This is a list of law enforcement agencies in the state of Oklahoma.
According to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics' 2008 ''Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies,'' the state had 483 law enforcement agencies employing 8,639 sworn ...
References
External links
Oklahoma Department of Corrections website
{{authority control
State corrections departments of the United States
Department of Corrections
In criminal justice, particularly in North America, correction, corrections, and correctional, are umbrella terms describing a variety of functions typically carried out by government agencies, and involving the punishment, treatment, and s ...
Penal system in Oklahoma
1967 establishments in Oklahoma
Government agencies established in 1967