Chip Keating let 450+ inmates out early — and some of them came back to commit murder.
In February 2019, Governor Stitt named Chip Keating as Oklahoma’s Secretary of Public Safety, putting him in charge of the Department of Corrections, the Department of Public Safety, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics, and other public safety agencies. In November 2019, Keating publicly took credit for what was hailed as the largest single-day mass commutation in U.S. history — more than 450 inmates released at once in the name of “criminal justice reform.” Keating then chaired Stitt’s RESTORE Task Force, which recommended bail reform and faster release of accused individuals from jail.
The consequences were severe. By December 2021, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation reported that nearly half of the inmates released in November 2019 — 208 of them — had been re-arrested for new crimes ranging from drug trafficking to assault, child abuse, sexual assault, arson, and murder. Two of the released inmates were later charged with murder: Leo Milligan, sentenced to life in prison for shooting his brother-in-law; and Lawrence Paul Anderson, who killed three people in Chickasha in 2021 — including Andrea Blankenship, whose heart he reportedly carved out and tried to feed to his relatives. An Oklahoma County grand jury issued a scathing report concluding that Anderson’s commutation was approved illegally and that “these three deaths could have been avoided” had the Pardon and Parole Board followed the law.
State data shows that on Keating’s watch, violent crime in Oklahoma rose 6.6% and murders rose more than 15% from 2019 to 2020. Keating resigned as Public Safety Secretary in December 2020, less than two years into the job.
Sources:
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“Criminal justice reform task force to recommend chief cultural officer for DOC,” The Daily Oklahoman, 1/7/20 — https://www.oklahoman.com/
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“In 2019, more than 400 convicts were released in one day. Half have been re-arrested,” The Oklahoman, 4/14/22 — https://www.oklahoman.com/
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“Grand jury criticizes Pardon and Parole Board, governor over commutations,” Tulsa World, 5/13/22 — https://tulsaworld.com/
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“‘He’s Bragging’: Family claims Chickasha triple murderer is on social media, harassing victim’s family from inside prison,” News 9, 4/16/25 — https://www.news9.com/
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“Crime in Oklahoma,” Oklahoma Office of Criminal Justice Statistics, p.17, 9/1/21 — https://oklahoma.gov/sbi/services/statistics.html
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“Governor Stitt Announces Secretary of Public Safety,” Oklahoma Governor’s Office, Feb. 2019 — https://oklahoma.gov/governor/
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“Excited for Cabinet job, Chip Keating discusses coming back to Capitol to ‘be part of the solution’,” Tulsa World, 7/13/19 — https://tulsaworld.com/
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RESTORE Task Force Initial Report — https://oklahoma.gov/content/dam/ok/en/governor/documents/restoretaskforceinitialreport.pdf
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“Gov. Kevin Stitt loses another Cabinet secretary,” Tulsa World, 12/31/20 — https://tulsaworld.com/