Okla. Stat. tit. 57, § 57-566.4

claims - Public records - Default judgment - Venue - Administrative

fees - Judgments - Special report prior to answer - Appeals.

A. No action may be brought in a court of this state by a

prisoner or former prisoner for mental or emotional injury allegedly

suffered while under arrest, being detained, or in custody or

incarcerated without a prior showing of actual physical injury.

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B. 1. Neither the state, any of its agencies or boards, the

Department of Corrections, any county jail, city jail, private

correctional company, nor their members, agents, servants or

employees shall be liable for any form of civil claim or action

alleged to have arisen from any theory of contract law. No arrest

or conviction resulting in detention or incarceration shall create

any contractual obligation, either actual, implied or at common law,

between the prisoner and the state, any of its agencies or boards,

the Department of Corrections, any county jail, city jail nor their

members, agents, servants or employees. No policy or internal

management procedure issued for the management of the prison or jail

shall constitute any contractual relationship or obligation between

the state, agency, board, commission, prison, jail, or any of its

officers, members, servants or employees, and the prisoner or any

visitor to the prison or jail.

2. No tort action or civil claim may be filed against any

employee, agent, or servant of the state, the Department of

Corrections, private correctional company, or any county jail or any

city jail alleging acts related to the duties of the employee, agent

or servant, until all of the notice provisions of the Governmental

Tort Claims Act have been fully complied with by the claimant. This

requirement shall apply to any claim against an employee of the

state, the Department of Corrections, or any county jail or city

jail in either their official or individual capacity, and to any

claim against a private correctional contractor and its employees

for actions taken pursuant to or in connection with a governmental

contract.

C. No civil action of any type may be brought seeking an

injunction or temporary restraining order against any city, county

or state agency, or any officer or employee thereof, brought by a

plaintiff who is currently incarcerated in any jail, state prison or

private prison in the state if the claim alleges matters arising

from the incarceration of the plaintiff and related to management of

the prison, including but not limited to, prison transfers, cell

assignments, prison job or work assignments and disciplinary action.

D. In any complaint or allegation made by a prisoner against

any person holding a license to any state court, agency, board,

commission or association which issues any form of license, in which

the state court, agency, board, commission or association has made a

determination that the complaint of the prisoner is frivolous,

malicious or without merit, the state court, agency, board,

commission or association may sanction the prisoner as provided for

by law.

E. No prisoner of any city or county jail or of any state,

federal or private prison in Oklahoma or any person on parole or

probation may obtain any public records maintained by any government

entity and pertaining in any manner to any public employee, officer

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 57. Prisons and Reformatories Page 216

or to any citizen, or any criminal history record of any convicted

felon. No prisoner, probationer or parolee may obtain without

prepayment of the required fees and costs any other public record

subject to release. The Director of the Department of Corrections

shall promulgate a rule for the release of criminal history records

available to the public which shall include the requirement that

requests for criminal history records include the name of the person
felon. No prisoner, probationer or parolee may obtain without

prepayment of the required fees and costs any other public record

subject to release. The Director of the Department of Corrections

shall promulgate a rule for the release of criminal history records

available to the public which shall include the requirement that

requests for criminal history records include the name of the person

whose record is being requested and shall charge Fifteen Dollars

($15.00) for each completed request responded to in any form of

written communication by the Department.

F. No default judgment shall be rendered against any person,

city, county or state agency, or any officer or employee thereof, in

any form of civil action brought by a plaintiff who is currently

incarcerated in any jail, state prison or private prison in the

state.

G. Venue for tort actions filed by a prisoner or a former

prisoner of any state prison in the state shall be as follows:

1. Venue for actions filed by any prisoner of any state prison

or private prison in which the state, the Department of Corrections,

the Board of Corrections as a whole or individual members, or any

officer or employee that has multicounty responsibilities is named

as a party shall be in the county of the official residence of the

Department of Corrections; and

2. Venue for tort actions filed by prisoners of a county jail

or city jail, and not involving the Department of Corrections, but

against the sheriff, jailer, county officials or employees, or city

officials or employees shall be in the county where the jail is

located.

The limitations on venue set out in this section shall also

apply to tort actions filed by former prisoners, if said tort action

is based on facts that occurred while the plaintiff was a prisoner.

H. The Attorney General, district attorneys and the general

counsel of the Department of Corrections shall notify the Pardon and

Parole Board of all lawsuits filed by any prisoner in which a

determination was made by a court that the lawsuit was either

frivolous or malicious.

I. The Department of Corrections may assess an administrative

fee not to exceed Five Dollars ($5.00) for the processing of any

grievance or disciplinary report that has been appealed to the

Director and shall charge prisoners for the costs of any supplies,

materials or services provided to the inmate at the request of the

inmate. Any fees collected pursuant to this subsection shall be

deposited into the Department of Corrections Revolving Fund. If the

appeal of the grievance or the disciplinary report results in a

finding in favor of the prisoner, all fees and costs collected

pursuant to this section shall be returned to the prisoner.

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J. Judgments rendered against prisoners and received by the

Department of Corrections for, but not limited to, monetary damages,

child support, transportation costs, filing fees, court costs,

sanctions or attorney fees may be withdrawn by the Department from

any funds deposited into a prison trust account of the prisoner and

forwarded to the prevailing party.

K. Upon motion of the defendant or the court for a special

report in any civil action filed by a prisoner or former prisoner or

attorney of the prisoner against any party, the court shall stay all

proceedings in the case and order the custodian or appropriate party

to prepare a special report to the court prior to defendants being

required to answer. The special report will order corrections

officials or the appropriate party to undertake a review of the

subject matter of the petition in order to provide the court with

additional information for the processing of the claim of the

prisoner, to ascertain the facts and circumstances, to consider

whether any action can and should be taken by the institution or

other appropriate officials to resolve the subject matter of the
rections

officials or the appropriate party to undertake a review of the

subject matter of the petition in order to provide the court with

additional information for the processing of the claim of the

prisoner, to ascertain the facts and circumstances, to consider

whether any action can and should be taken by the institution or

other appropriate officials to resolve the subject matter of the

petition and to determine whether other like matters, whether

pending in this court or elsewhere, are related to this matter and

should be taken up and considered together. All reports made in the

course of the review shall be attached to and filed with the special

report, and a date the special report is due to the court shall be

set. All pending motions are stricken without prejudice to their

being reasserted after the special report is filed. All discovery

under the Oklahoma Rules of Civil Procedure is stayed until the

special report has been filed and any dispositive motions based on

the special report are ruled upon. A copy of the special report

shall be sent to the respective parties by the agency or person

preparing the special report. Upon receipt of the special report,

dispositive motions may be filed by the parties and the district

court may properly dismiss the petition as being frivolous or

malicious or for failure to state a claim, may grant summary

judgment or order that the case may proceed under the Oklahoma Rules

of Civil Procedure.

L. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, appeal of a

decision of the district court in a civil action related to a

person’s incarceration or supervision while in custody of the

Department of Corrections, a county or municipal jail, or a private

prison, adverse to a municipal, county or state employee or a person

employed by a private prison, shall be appealed directly to the

appropriate appellate court without further motions.