This week, the Oklahoma House passed a bill requiring registered child sex offenders to be “chemically castrated” in order to be released on parole.
House Bill 2422 states that a sex offender must be someone who is over the age of 21 and who has committed a crime involving physical touch against a child under the age of 13 that requires registration as a sex offender. If a mental health evaluation determines that the sex offender would commit a sex crime again, the offender is offered the possibility of hormonal treatment in order to gain parole, which must be accepted voluntarily.
“Reoffending, ending treatment or seeking reversal of the treatment, which ‘use chemicals or drugs to stop sex hormone production,’ would result in returning to prison for life without the possibility of parole,” Oklahoma Voice reported.
“I mean, if I’m just brutally honest with you, this is the third freaking year I’ve run this bill in some form or fashion, trying to fix these problems, to keep our kids safe,” GOP Rep. Scott Fetgatter, who authored the bill, stated.
“For whatever reason, this legislative body in the Senate over here, they’ve killed the bill all three years. So I’m trying to get something with some traction going forward so that we can fix this issue and keep our kids safe. Because what happens daily all across the state is unacceptable. And if it were up to me, I’d take them down on the town square in Okmulgee, and you know what I might do with a pair of snips.”
“So to be clear, I’m not allowing anybody to go on parole. Okay?” Fetgatter said. “Because they currently could become eligible for parole as a part of their sentencing, what I’m saying is you can’t get out on parole unless you are mentally evaluated and chemically castrated. You’re not even eligible to be paroled.”
The bill now goes to the Oklahoma Senate for a vote.
