Oklahoma Prisoners Seek Money
(and Freedom) the Hard Way (Aug 22, 2007)
Over 100 inmates from eleven state prisons met at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester last weekend to take part in the 67th annual Oklahoma Prison Rodeo. With events like calf roping, inmate bareback riding and bull poker -- where inmates sit at a poker table in the middle of the arena while a bull is let loose -- the event bills itself as the “world’s only behind the walls rodeo.” In one of the final competitions called “Money the Hard Way,” inmates try to grab a $100 bill tied between the horns of a bull. As crazy as it all may sound, many inmates say they look forward to the rodeo all year, as it’s their one taste of freedom.

Guests include Terry Crenshaw, Warden’s Assistant at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary; OSP inmate Danny Liles and inmate Darryl Winters of the Joseph Harp Correctional Center in Lexington, OK.

WEB EXTRA:
View a slideshow of photographs from the 67th annual rodeo



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