Horowitz: Oklahoma Gov. Stitt uses coronavirus to empty the jails

Every county in Oklahoma voted for Donald Trump, but the state’s Republican governor as may as well be Michael Dukakis. Kevin Stitt, who spearheaded the largest single-day jailbreak in American history, is now using coronavirus as an excuse to empty the jails and even commute sentences, while law-abiding Americans are placed under house arrest. Who needs California when phony Republicans like Stitt will mimic Left Coast policies in the heartland?

After already releasing numerous criminals, Stitt plans to commute the sentences of 450 inmates by the end of the week. Thus, as previously suspected, this is not a temporary measure somehow designed to stop the spread of COVID-19 in prison, but a permanent jailbreak implemented under the guise of public safety.

The majority of those being released are currently in prison for drug possession, but as I’ve noted time and again, very few people serve time for drugs any more unless they have a prior history of being a danger to the community. The jailbreak governors have failed to take into account prior records when determining who they will release.

Despite the streets being empty, crime is skyrocketing in many cities due to the jailbreak and the promise not to arrest criminals (except everyday Americans caught violating lockdown). In Oklahoma, crime has already been surging beyond the national average, as Stitt and his ilk use every excuse to open the prison doors. Last November 4, 462 felons walked out the door of Oklahoma prisons in the largest single-day jailbreak in American history. Oklahoma’s major cities have seen a surge in property and violent crimes over the past few years, to levels well above the national average.

The Soros-funded Brennan Center for Justice urged governors to “release as many people as possible from incarceration,” using coronavirus as an excuse. We knew the governors of New York and California would take up the call to action, but the governor of Oklahoma? Truth be told, Stitt is liberal on many issues, including refugee resettlement.

Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden announced an agreement on many issues as part of Sanders’ endorsement, including on immigration and crime. But if you look at GOP governors like Stitt, it appears that these ideas are bipartisan!

Two weeks ago, Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., the ranking member of the Oversight subcommittee on government operations, wrote a letter to New York City officials expressing concern about coronavirus jailbreak. “Increasing the number of convicted criminals on the streets — some of whom may even be carriers of the virus — while there is a significant reduction in law enforcement capacity is likely a recipe for disaster,” warned Hice in a March 31 letter to New York City Department of Corrections commissioner Cynthia Brann.

Too bad congressional Republicans didn’t realize their own party officials would follow New York values. In every state, while the rights of Americans have been violated more severely than at any time in history, with few exceptions, the only lawsuits that are being filed are by the ACLU on behalf of criminals and illegal aliens. Thus, where the executives aren’t crazy enough to order jailbreak, the courts are doing it via judicial fiat.

Here we are, as law-abiding Americans, being placed under house arrest with no access to the courts, while these same judges and politicians release criminals to loot the shops forcibly left vacant by the same government officials. All in the name of “social distancing.” Now raise your hand if you think these criminals will be eager to follow CDC guidelines while engaging in their “essential” activities! If you’re unsure, just take a look at the streets of Chicago.