Overview of the Oklahoma Criminal Justice System

Understanding the different parts of the Oklahoma criminal justice system will help you understand the progress of your DUI case. In Oklahoma, like in most other states, different types of law enforcement officers and courts handle criminal cases depending on where a person was arrested and the stage of their case.

Law Enforcement

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol has jurisdiction over all state highways and waterways. Its officers are spread throughout the state.

Each Oklahoma county has a sheriff’s department with deputies who patrol the county roads. Sheriff’s deputies may coordinate with police officers in the major cities. For example, in Oklahoma City the county and city jails are combined for efficiency.

Many cities in Oklahoma, such as Tulsa and Oklahoma City, have their own police departments. City police officers patrol city streets, and people arrested in the city go to the city jail.

People on probation or parole often will work with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections’ Probation and Parole unit, based in Oklahoma City. Six district offices around Oklahoma handle cases throughout the state.

Courts

Like law enforcement, the Oklahoma courts system is divided by city and statewide operations. Municipal courts in some cities – Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and others – handle violations of city ordinances and have jurisdiction only in those cities. Generally, the municipal courts deal with misdemeanor traffic, parking and criminal offenses and also adjudicate code violations in the areas of health, fire, animals, and zoning.

In Oklahoma, DUIs are both state crimes and municipal offenses. As a result, municipal courts used to handle many cases of misdemeanor DUI. A recent law prohibits this practice unless the city has a “Court of Record”, as Tulsa County and Oklahoma County do.

The Oklahoma state court system is made up of the Supreme Court, the Court of Criminal Appeals, the Court of Civil Appeals, and seventy-seven District Courts spread throughout the state. District courts handle most DUI cases in their beginning stages. Trials also occur in the district courts. If a criminal defendant appeals the outcome at trial or another ruling in their case, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals will consider the case. The Court of Civil Appeals and Supreme Court determine civil cases on appeal from the district courts.

Finally, Oklahomans charged with misdemeanors are handled by the county jails, but felony cases are handled by the state correctional facilities.

If you need representation in an Oklahoma court for a DUI charge, seek out the attorney who teaches other attorneys and law enforcement about sobriety testing techniques. Clint Patterson, Esq., of Patterson Law Firm, a former Tulsa prosecutor now using his trial experience and expert-level knowledge of DUI science to defend drivers, has the experience and the insight to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of your case. To schedule a case evaluation, visit Patterson Law Firm online or call Clint’s office at (918) 550-9175.