This past legislative session, Oklahoma took an important step toward a smarter, more effective criminal justice system. Governor Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill 1618 into law, establishing a data-driven approach to pretrial decision making.
The new law requires courts to utilize a pretrial risk assessment for defendants to help inform decisions about their pretrial release. These assessments evaluate two key factors: a defendant’s likelihood of appearing in court and their potential risk to public safety if released back into society.
These assessments are designed to guide judicial decision-making, not replace it. Judges will continue to make determinations based on the facts of each individual case and retain full discretion over release decisions.
Oklahoma law already allows judges to deny bail when the state presents clear and convincing evidence that release of an individual would impact protection of a community. Senate Bill 1618 strengthens that process by providing judges with an additional evidence-based tool to help identify risk to make more informed decisions.
For decades, courts have relied on factors such as criminal history, prior failures to appear, and community ties when making pretrial determinations. While these factors remain important, they have traditionally been applied through largely unstructured discretion. Modern risk assessment tools are grounded in extensive research and help courts evaluate those same factors in a more consistent, transparent, and objective manner.
Risk assessment tools are ultimately designed to reduce guesswork and limit the influence of bias by focusing on measurable indicators linked to court appearance and public safety outcomes. They help distinguish between the individuals who pose a genuine risk to communities, and those who can be safely released under the right conditions.
This risk-based approach allows courts and law enforcement agencies to focus limited resources on offenders who pose a higher risk to safety while avoiding unnecessary detention for lower-risk individuals. The result? A system that is both tough on crime but smart about public safety.
This new measure also reflects the views of Oklahoma voters. A recent CPAC survey found that 78 percent of Oklahoma voters support using risk assessments to help determine whether an individual should remain in jail or be released pending trial.
Senate Bill 1618 represents a commonsense improvement to Oklahoma’s pretrial system. By equipping judges with validated, research-backed information while preserving judicial independence, the law helps ensure that pretrial decisions are truly driven by risk to the public, rather than guesswork.
Safety is strongest when decisions are informed by evidence. Senate Bill 1618 gives Oklahoma courts another tool to protect communities, hold offenders accountable, and make pretrial decisions with greater confidence and consistency.