{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-22-22-17","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 22, § 22-17","heading":"Custody and distribution of proceeds from sale of rights","body":"arising from criminal act.\n\nA. Every person who has been charged, convicted, has pled\n\nguilty or has pled nolo contendere to any crime, hereinafter\n\nreferred to as the defendant, or any other person with the\n\ncooperation of the defendant, who contracts to receive, or have any\n\nother person or entity receive, any proceeds or profits from any\n\nsource, as a direct or indirect result of the crime or sentence, or\n\nthe notoriety which the crime or sentence has conferred upon the\n\ndefendant, shall forfeit the proceeds or profits as provided in this\n\nsection; provided, however, proceeds or profits from a contract\n\nrelating to the depiction or discussion of the defendant's crime\n\nshall not be subject to forfeiture unless an integral part of the\n\nwork is a depiction or discussion of the defendant's crime or an\n\nimpression of the defendant's thoughts, opinions, or emotions\n\nregarding the crime. All parties to a contract described in this\n\nsection are required to pay to the district court wherein the\n\ncriminal charges were filed any proceeds or thing of value which\n\npursuant to the contract is to be paid to the defendant or to\n\nanother person or entity. The district court shall make deposit of\n\nproceeds received pursuant to this section and direct the county\n\ntreasurer to make the deposit of those funds in an escrow account\n\nfor the benefit of and payable to victims of the crime or the legal\n\nrepresentative of any victim of the crime committed by the defendant\n\nor to repay a public defender office for legal representation during\n\na criminal proceeding. There is hereby created a lien upon any sum\n\nof money or other thing of value payable to anyone pursuant to any\n\ncontract described in this section, for the purpose of enforcing the\n\nforfeiture obligation established herein, which lien may be\n\nforeclosed in the same manner as statutory tax liens created by\n\nOklahoma law. Any person who contracts without fully providing for\n\nsuch forfeiture in compliance with the provisions of this section\n\nshall be guilty of a Class C2 felony offense and, upon conviction,\n\nshall be punished by a fine of not less than Ten Thousand Dollars\n\n($10,000.00) and not to exceed three times the value of the proceeds\n\nof the contract, or by imprisonment as provided for in subsections B\n\nthrough F of Section 20M of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes, or\n\nboth such fine and imprisonment.\n\nB. Payments from the escrow account shall be used, in the\n\nfollowing order of priority, to satisfy any judgment rendered in\n\nfavor of a victim or a victim's legal representative, to pay\n\nrestitution, fines, court costs, and other payments, reparations or\n\nreimbursements ordered by the court at the time of sentencing\n\nincluding repayments to a public defender office for legal\n\nrepresentation of the defendant and to pay every cost and expense of\n\nincarceration and treatment authorized by law as a cost of the\n\ndefendant.\n\nC. A victim or the legal representative of a victim must file a\n\ncivil action, in a court of competent jurisdiction, to recover money\n\nagainst the defendant or the defendant's legal representative within\n\nseven (7) years of the filing of the criminal charges against the\n\ndefendant. The victims and the legal representative of a victim of\n\nthe crime shall have a priority interest in any proceeds or profits\n\nreceived pursuant to the provisions of this section. If no victim\n\nor legal representative of a victim has filed a civil suit within\n\nseven (7) years from the filing of the criminal charges against the\n\ndefendant, any money in the escrow account shall be paid over in the\n\nfollowing order of priority:\n\n1. For restitution;\n\n2. For any fine and court costs;\n\n3. For other payments ordered in the sentence;\n\n4. For the costs and expenses of incarceration; and\n\nany remaining money to the Victims' Compensation Revolving Fund.\ncharges against the\n\ndefendant, any money in the escrow account shall be paid over in the\n\nfollowing order of priority:\n\n1. For restitution;\n\n2. For any fine and court costs;\n\n3. For other payments ordered in the sentence;\n\n4. For the costs and expenses of incarceration; and\n\nany remaining money to the Victims' Compensation Revolving Fund.\n\nUpon disposition of charges favorable to the defendant, any money in\n\nthe escrow account shall be paid over to the defendant.\n\nD. The district court wherein the criminal charges were filed\n\nshall, once every six (6) months for seven (7) years from the date\n\nany money is deposited with the court, publish a notice in at least\n\none (1) newspaper of general circulation in each county of the state\n\nin accordance with the provisions on publication of notices found in\n\nSections 101 et seq. of Title 25 of the Oklahoma Statutes, notifying\n\nany eligible victim or legal representative of an eligible victim\n\nthat monies are available to satisfy judgments pursuant to this\n\nsection.","path":["OK Code","Title 22"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os22.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"005a04dcef5fa9e2709a1ed1d77b4c9e6d4bd3b9e9522b9c93ad1ae71902a74e","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-22-22-162","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-22-22-171"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}