Last Updated on September 19, 2022, 2:00 PM | Published: September 19, 2022
OKLAHOMA CITY (Free Press) — The Oklahoma County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) held their regular meeting Monday with a large crowd in attendance. The main attraction for most of the onlookers was news about the Oklahoma County Criminal Justice Authority, better known as the Jail Trust.
Derrick Scobey and Adam Luck were unanimously approved to fill vacancies on the Trust.
Additionally, the BoCC took steps to establish the Oklahoma County Citizens’ Bond Oversight Board. That committee will ultimately provide oversight for the new jail facility construction project.
Marty Peercy reports Local government
Scobey
Pastor Derrick Scobey was nominated by District 1 Commissioner Carrie Blumert after the resignation of Loretta Radform from the Trust. Radford resigned to take on a judgeship in Tulsa.
Scobey has been highly visible in the Oklahoma City community as the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church on Oklahoma City’s Northeast side. Readers may remember that Scobey was arrested during a peaceful prayer vigil for Julius Jones in the days before Jones’s execution was scheduled to be carried out.
Scobey has also been recently seated on the Citizens Advisory Board for the Jail Trust.
Before the vote to appoint him, Scobey was given an opportunity to address the BoCC.
During his remarks, Scobey said that he is not an agitator or an antagonist, he’s also not a conformist. He explained that he answers to a higher calling and will always do what he believes is right, regardless of how unpopular it might be for some. He said, “It’s all love, but I will speak the truth in love.”
Scobey also pointed out that he represents a majority Black community, and noted that the Jail’s population is about 50% Black, while Black people only make up about 10% of Oklahoma County.
At the beginning of the meeting during time for public comment, local musician and activist Jabee Williams spoke to the Commissioners about the early promise from several Jail Trust members to spend 24 hours incarcerated at the jail. Jabee urged the Trust members to spend 48 hours in lock-up.
After the vote, Free Press was able to talk to Scobey about Jabee’s challenge.
“I will go on the record to say not only I am willing to invest 48 hours, but I’m willing to invest 72 hours.”
Scobey told Free Press that he would want no favoritism or special treatment beyond having a notebook and a pen or pencil. A few different people have spoken to him about approaching the Jail Trust with this request, and he is willing, not for a PR stunt, but to get a true first-hand sense of life in our County Detention Center.
“It is a desire to go in and really get an idea of what is really going on inside and be able to talk to detainees and smell the environment, to feel the environment.”
Luck
Adam Luck is well known in the nonprofit space in Oklahoma and as the former chair of the Pardon and Parole Board who oversaw the clemency hearings for Julius Jones. Luck was later asked by the Governor to resign the Board.
Luck is the CEO of City Care, an organization that includes the popular Whiz Kids program, as well as offering permanent supportive housing and the City’s only low-barrier night shelter. Luck spent several years in the Air Force as a cryptologist and received a Masters Degree in Public Policy from Harvard.
Luck was nominated by Commissioner Kevin Calvey to fill the at-large vacancy on the Jail Trust that has existed for several months since the resignation of Joe Allbaugh.
Free Press spoke to Luck outside the meeting on Monday.
When asked what Luck thought to be the two biggest challenges, Luck responded that the facility is number one.
“That’s been an issue for decades. The [new] building isn’t necessarily going to solve all the challenges that we have here. So, I think the building is number one, and number two I think is to be determined.”
Luck told Free Press that he is excited for the appointment and looks forward to meeting the rest of the Trustees and working with them to get a sense of how he can join the good works that’s already being done, while also offering a fresh perspective.
The next meeting of the Jail Trust will be on October 3 at 1:00 p.m.
Oversight Board
As part of the bond that voters approved in June, the County is to establish a board of citizens from Oklahoma County to oversee the process of site location, design and construction of the new jail facility.
On Monday the Commissioners voted to officially establish the Oklahoma County Citizens Bond Advisory Board. That board will consist of seven community members. Each Commissioner will appoint one member and then vote on four at-large seats on the committee.
The Board did not make any appointments at Monday’s meeting, as they are still seeking the proper personnel. They will need to fill all the seats by December 5 of this year which will coincide with the selling of the bonds.
The County Commission will meet next on Monday, October 3, at 9:00 a.m.
Columnist covering local government in Oklahoma City and Oklahoma County from May 2019 through June 2023.
