The Senate gave unanimous approval to legislation Tuesday to allow judges to consider post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a mitigating factor when making sentencing decisions for veterans.  Sen. Frank Simpson is the Senate principal author of House Bill 2595, which he says will help veterans get the assistance they need rather than being sent to jail.

“We send our veterans overseas to fight and they face situations that we couldn’t imagine in our worst nightmares. They suffer physical, emotional and mental wounds.  The physical wounds are easy to treat because they can be seen but the others are not,” said Simpson, R-Springer.  “When they return, if they don’t get the proper treatment to deal with their PTSD, they may unexplainably lash out violently at others or turn to alcohol and drugs to numb themselves, which can land them in court.  They are not criminals, they are wounded heroes and they deserve special consideration from the courts.”

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State Capitol Building in Oklahoma City

The full Senate has added its approval to a House bill supporters say will enable more cold cases to be solved in Oklahoma.  Sen. Clark Jolley and Rep. Lee Denney are the principal authors of HB 2275, which amends current law so that DNA samples could be collected upon arrest for a felony crime. The DNA would be collected through a sample of saliva.

“Right now Oklahoma collects DNA upon conviction for felonies and certain misdemeanors. We’re in the minority of states that don’t do this upon arrest,” said Jolley, R-Edmond. “We collect fingerprints upon arrest, but DNA identification is much more accurate.  This will enable us to solve crimes as well as cold cases for some of those most heinous crimes in our state and it will also prevent future crimes by making sure the true culprit is behind bars.”

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