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Oklahoma Lawmaker Introduces Bill to Lift Prison Smoking Ban

Loaded on May 8, 2018 by Monte McCoin published in Prison Legal News May, 2018, page 57
Filed under: Smoking, State Legislation. Location: Oklahoma.

by Monte McCoin

The Enid News & Eagle reported on February 23, 2018 that Oklahoma State Representative Rick West had introduced a bill to dismantle a six-year ban on cigarette sales and smoking inside state prisons. The measure, which passed a House committee with a vote of 5-4, moved forward to the full House.

“It’s caused more problems and didn’t solve anything,” West said of the Department of Corrections’ smoking ban. “If the intent was that no smoking be allowed amongst the prisoners, that certainly didn’t happen. They’re smoking in there right now as we speak. What it did was create numerous, numerous problems within the system, and the biggest one is the black market that was created.”

“As a whole, most officers would be OK with allowing tobacco sales back into prisons,” added Jackie Switzer, executive director of Oklahoma Corrections Professionals. “When it was removed, all it did was create another black market item. It created a lot more work for officers having to search out and write up infractions for tobacco. [And] it created a lot more opportunity for, I guess, debts to be accrued inside the prisons between inmates.”

A state budget analysis indicated that prisoners spent nearly $3 million on tobacco products between August 2010 and July 2012, when cigarettes were last sold in Oklahoma prisons.

Department of Corrections officials declined to say whether they supported West’s proposed legislation.

Source: www.enideagle.com

 

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  1. In the Eye of the Storm: When Hurricanes Impact Prisons and Jails, by Matthew Clarke
  2. North Carolina Woman Attempts Bail Bond Scheme from Inside Jail, by Monte McCoin
  3. Porn Reading Rooms in Iowa Prisons Placed on Legislative Hit List
  4. U.S. Coast Guard Operating Inhumane Floating Prisons, by Christopher Zoukis
  5. Wrongful Death Case Against New York Jail Settles for $101,500, by Derek Gilna
  6. Nebraska Sheriffs Profiting from Jail Phone Contracts, by Christopher Zoukis
  7. Phony New York Lawyer Defrauds Prisoners, Sent to Prison, by Edward Lyon
  8. North Dakota: Altered Pencil in Prison Results in Weapon Possession Conviction
  9. Pro Se Rhode Island Prisoner Wins First Amendment Settlement, by Derek Gilna
  10. Oklahoma Lawmaker Introduces Bill to Lift Prison Smoking Ban, by Monte McCoin
  11. Major Wage Ratio Gap Between Executives, Employees at Private Prisons, by Steve Horn
  12. Former Michigan Prisoner Receives Over $817,000 for Wrongful Conviction
  13. Virginia Federal Court Holds Nation of Gods and Earth is a Religion
  14. Dying Prisoner’s Complaint Alleged Claim for Failure to Treat Hepatitis C
  15. Federal Lawsuit Filed Against Oklahoma Sheriffs – All of Them, by Derek Gilna
  16. Ohio: $75,000 Settlement Reached after 60-Year-Old Woman Body Slammed by Jail Guard, by Christopher Zoukis
  17. Newspaper Investigation Reveals Significant Problem with Life Sentences in Arizona, by Christopher Zoukis
  18. California: Governor Signs Bill to Block Expansion of For-profit Detention Centers, by Dale Chappell
  19. Washington Prisoner’s Negligence Suit Settles for $75,000
  20. Justice Department Failing to Assess Prison Population Reduction, Clemency and Reentry Programs, by Christopher Zoukis
  21. Alabama: State Agencies Have Absolute Immunity in a Court of Law or Equity
  22. Confusion Over Insanity Defense Leads One Jury to Issue Two Verdicts in Triple Murder, by Christopher Zoukis
  23. $437,500 Settlement for Brutal Beating at Missouri Jail
  24. The “Qualified Immunity” Doctrine Needs to be Reexamined, by Derek Gilna
  25. FTCA Claims Survive; PREA Policy Defeats Discretionary Function Exception, by Jeremy Pinson
  26. $15,000 Award for New York Prisoner in Medical Negligence Case
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  28. Indiana County Settles Jail Guard’s ADA/Discrimination Suit for $150,000, by Matthew Clarke
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  30. $14.3 Million Settlement for Probationers Subject to Extortion by Private Company
  31. Female Prisoners More Likely to be HIV Positive than Non-prisoners, by Edward Lyon
  32. Former Pennsylvania Guards Settle FMLA Lawsuits for $110,000, by Derek Gilna
  33. $330,000 for Florida Prison Guards Abused at Training Academy
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  35. Court Certifies Class of Missouri Prisoners Denied Hepatitis C Treatment, by Matthew Clarke
  36. New York Issues New Solitary Confinement Rules for Local Jails Amid Lawsuits, $5 Million Settlement, by Christopher Zoukis
  37. Seventh Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity in Jail Suicide Suit, by Matthew Clarke
  38. Iowa Prison Officials Drop Disciplinary Sanctions in Controversial Case, by Matthew Clarke
  39. Federal Prisoner Shot in the Eye Awarded $80,000, by Jeremy Pinson
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  47. Prison Chaplain Wins Standoff with BOP Over Carrying Pepper Spray, by Monte McCoin
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  53. “Witness to Human Torture”: On Both Sides of the Prison Walls, Social Workers Confront Solitary Confinement, by Valerie Kiebala
  54. British Prison Guard Sentenced for Contraband Smuggling Conspiracy, by Monte McCoin
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  56. New Mexico Jail Sued by HRDC for Censoring Book Orders, by Derek Gilna
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  58. Rash of Security Breaches Plagues Nation’s Prisons and Jails, by Christopher Zoukis
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  60. From the Editor, by Paul Wright
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