This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

OKLAHOMA CITY – Advocates for reducing Oklahoma’s prison population are praising Gov. Kevin Stitt’s selection of three new members to the state’s Pardon and Parole Board.

Stitt announced Tuesday the appointment of Kelly Doyle, Adam Luck and Robert Gilliland to the five-member panel, saying he hoped the reconfigured board would address a “backlog in the system.”

“The collective knowledge of our three new Pardon and Parole Board appointments, and their experience around criminal justice in Oklahoma, will bring a fresh perspective to the review process,” said Stitt. “I look forward to working alongside the entire board to address the backlog in the system and move the needle in criminal justice reform for non-violent offenders.”

The Republican governor has said reducing the prison population will be one of his top priorities, and he proposed $150,000 in his executive budget for hiring more pardon and parole investigators.

A recent analysis by the Tulsa-based think-tank Oklahoma Policy Institute shows the number of inmates granted release on parole in Oklahoma decreased 77 percent from 2008 to 2017.

The author of the study, Damion Shade, praised Stitt’s appointees as advocates for changes to the parole system.