Attorney General Jeff Sessions speaks in Oklahoma

MIDWEST CITY, Okla. — U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was the keynote speaker Thursday during a meeting of the Oklahoma Sheriff's Association in Midwest City.

Sessions voiced concern over efforts to reduce federal sentences and cited statistics showing a recent increase in violent crime nationwide.

He says Oklahoma's murder rate jumped 40 percent from 2014 to 2016, while the number of overdose deaths in Oklahoma spiked by nearly 70 percent over the last decade.

“These tired, tough on crime tactics do nothing to serve the interests of Oklahoma,” said Ryan Kiesel, Executive Director at ACLU of Oklahoma

The head of the Oklahoma Sheriff's Association and some Republican lawmakers, who spoke at the event vowed to oppose legislative efforts next year to reduce certain criminal penalties.