7-7-2009 Oklahoma:
Inmates being released before getting treated, state officials say
Sex offenders are likely being released from Oklahoma prisons without any treatment to curb their criminal behavior, a state Corrections Department official says.
Oklahoma only has space for 55 inmates in the treatment program for sex offenders, who number more than 3,000 in state prisons.
"I was not prepared to hear that,” Oklahoma City attorney Robert Sisson said. "It’s appalling.”
That figure came to light last week when Gilbert D. Smith, 20, unsuccessfully sought to have an Oklahoma County judge reduce his 15-year prison sentence for rape.
Sisson, a father of two, said the Corrections Department needs to ensure those offenders aren’t released without receiving treatment to control their sexual urges.
Corrections spokesman Jerry Massie said resources such as bed space and manpower limit the size of the sex offender treatment program. It is not likely to expand.
Inmates who are closest to completing their prison terms are given priority when slots open, Massie said, citing research indicating such programs are more effective at that time.
"You’ve just got to maximize the resources that you have,” he said.
If it is true that public safety is trumped by lack of money, then why is the nation spending billions on the Adam Walsh Act while people are losing their homes in the worst financial crisis this nation has seen in many years?
‘Waste of resources’
Oklahoma City attorney Jack Dempsey Pointer said he plans to ask an Oklahoma County judge to release one of his clients from prison so he can continue sex offender treatment at his own expense. The man — whom Pointer declined to name because nothing has been filed in the case — is not getting treatment in prison.
"This is a tremendous waste of resources,” Pointer said. "Plus my guy’s not getting any help.”
Pointer unsuccessfully lobbied the judge last year to sentence his client to probation, citing his progress in sessions with Dr. Richard Kishur.
Kishur, who created the Corrections Department’s sex offender treatment program, offers similar treatment in his private practice.
Pointer said releasing his client from prison would relieve the burden on the prison system, while allowing him to get the treatment he needs.
He said sex offenders who are amenable to treatment should be allowed to get it, even if that means not putting them behind bars.
Cheaper alternative
Randy Lopp, chairman of the Oklahoma Coalition for Sex Offender Management, said community-based treatment is a cheaper alternative than prison.
"Punishment and treatment are two different things,” he said.
Lopp said recidivism rates are low for sex offenders, which makes them good candidates for treatment instead of incarceration.
Studies show 13 percent to 15 percent of sex offenders are re-arrested, Lopp said.
Oklahoma County prosecutor Suzanne Lister favors treating sex offenders while they’re in prison.
"They’re a captive audience,” she said. "They need to be getting some kind of treatment.”
The state Corrections Department does not provide treatment for sex offenders in the community.
Agency spokesman Massie said it likely would be required for anyone who is being supervised by a probation officer. ..Source.. by JAY F. MARKS
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