For the second time in three months, Attorney General Gentner Drummond is asking Gov. Stitt to wait until the appropriate time before convening the Contingency Review Board (CRB) to weigh in on a lawsuit settlement that would save the state many millions of dollars.
Briggs v. Friesen contends the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) is violating due process rights by failing to provide timely court-ordered competency restoration services for some pretrial defendants deemed not competent to stand trial. The result has been delayed justice for victims of crime. Other states facing similar litigation have been hit with upwards of $100 million in court-ordered costs and fees.
Federal Judge Gregory Frizzell has ordered a Jan. 15, 2025, hearing on final approval of the consent decree that was brokered by the Attorney General’s Office and plaintiffs’ attorneys. Nevertheless, Gov. Stitt – who already has expressed opposition to the proposal – has scheduled a Tuesday CRB meeting to take up the settlement.
There are additional steps to be taken before the consent decree should be considered by the Contingency Review Board or the state Legislature. The Governor chairs the four-member CRB, which also includes House Speaker Charles McCall, Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat and Office of Management and Enterprise Services Executive Director Rick Rose, a Stitt appointee.
“As Yogi Berra would have said, this is déjà vu all over again,” Drummond wrote Stitt in an Oct. 7 email. “Your call for the Contingency Review Board to meet is premature, just as it was when you last called for a meeting (in August). Your eagerness to reject this well-considered, judicious, and altogether appropriate consent decree is bewildering. The state agency that has put Oklahoma in this indefensible position has shown minimal improvement at best.”
As of Sept. 23, 244 individuals continue to languish in jails waiting for necessary services by ODMHSAS. Of these, 35 have waited for more than a year, while seven have done so for more than two years.
“In the meantime, crime victims and their families have no choice but to endure their own seemingly interminable wait to see justice done,” wrote Drummond. “Because I am the chief law officer of the State and leading this litigation, I assure you I will promptly inform you when it is appropriate to convene the Contingency Review Board. When that time comes, I urge you to give serious consideration to this consent decree, the only feasible way to ensure justice while saving Oklahoma taxpayers untold millions of dollars.”
Filed in June, the consent decree outlines a strategic plan for justice to be administered in a timely fashion by improving ODMHSAS’ restoration services.
Original source can be found here.