Oklahoma § 57-566 - Dismissal of inmate's action - Definitions - Sanctions for

§ 57-566. Dismissal of inmate's action - Definitions - Sanctions for

frivolous or malicious claims - Judgment - Liability for costs and

fees.

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 57. Prisons and Reformatories

A. Any action by an inmate initiated against any person, party

or entity, the state, the Department of Corrections, an entity

contracting with the Department of Corrections to provide

correctional services, another state agency, or political

subdivision, or an original action in an appellate court, or an

appeal of an action whether or not the plaintiff was represented in

the district court, may be:

1. Dismissed with or without prejudice, by the court on its own

motion or on a motion of the defendant, if all administrative and

statutory remedies available to the inmate have not been exhausted

in a timely manner; or

2. Dismissed with prejudice, by the court on a motion of the

defendant, if the court is satisfied that the action is frivolous or

malicious.

B. As used in this title:

1. “Frivolous” means having no reasonable basis in law or fact,

or lacking any good faith legal argument for the extension,

modification, or reversal of existing law, or being maintained

solely or primarily for delay or to harass the party filed against;

2. “Inmate” or “inmate in a penal institution” includes, but is

not limited to, a person presently or formerly in the custody or

under the supervision of the Department of Corrections or the

Federal Bureau of Prisons, a person who has been convicted of a

crime and is incarcerated for that crime in a county jail, a person

who is being held in custody for trial or sentencing, or a person on

probation or parole; and

3. “Malicious” means filing numerous actions, or actions

brought in bad faith on de minimus issues.

C. If the court determines from the pleadings or the evidence

that one or more of the causes of action are frivolous or malicious,

any one or more of the following sanctions may be imposed, after

notice to the inmate and an opportunity for the inmate to respond,

without the need for an additional hearing:

1. Award attorney fees and actual costs incurred by the state,

the Department of Corrections, another state agency, a political

subdivision, the Attorney General's Office, or the defendant, not to

exceed Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00) per frivolous

cause of action;

2. Court costs not to exceed Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) per

cause of action;

3. Order the Department of Corrections to revoke up to seven

hundred twenty (720) earned credits accrued by the inmate. In any

case in which the prisoner submits a frivolous or malicious claim,

or one that is intended solely or primarily for delay or to harass

the party filed against, or testifies falsely or otherwise presents

false evidence or information to the court in depositions or in a

notarized statement to the court or commits a fraud upon the court,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 57. Prisons and Reformatories

the prisoner shall suffer a loss of earned credits. The earned

credits shall be deducted upon a finding of fact and an order of the

court. In the absence of such a finding by the court and upon

review and recommendation by the Office of the Attorney General, a

prison disciplinary hearing may be held to determine whether the

prisoner has filed such a claim or evidence. Upon such a finding,

the earned credits of the prisoner shall be revoked by the

Department or political subdivision;

4. Order the Department or political subdivision to revoke

permission to have nonessential personal property of the inmate,

including, but not limited to, televisions, radios, stereos, or tape

recorders. If permission is revoked, the Department shall take

appropriate precautions to protect the property during the period of

the revocation;

5. Impose a civil sanction in an amount not to exceed One

Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00); or

6. Impose a monetary judgment against the inmate, not to exceed

Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), to be paid to each named defendant.

D. Any award of attorney fees, or costs, or the imposition of a

sanction shall serve as a judgment against the inmate and the

Department or political subdivision is authorized to take up to

eighty percent (80%) of the inmate's nonmandatory savings trust

funds per month until paid. The judgment shall be subject to

execution without further order of any court for a period of seven

(7) years from the date of an award or imposition of a sanction.

Added by Laws 1985, c. 57, § 5, eff. Nov. 1, 1985. Amended by Laws

1995, c. 141, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 1995; Laws 1999, c. 127, § 1, eff.

July 1, 1999; Laws 2002, c. 402, § 8, eff. July 1, 2002; Laws 2004,

c. 168, § 10, emerg. eff. April 27, 2004; Laws 2004, c. 382, § 1,

emerg. eff. June 3, 2004; Laws 2006, c. 31, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2006;

Laws 2007, c. 151, § 4, eff. July 1, 2007.

NOTE: Laws 2004, c. 382, § 4 repealed the effective date in Laws

2004, c. 168, § 18, causing that chapter to revert to its emergency

effective date.