Archive for the Week of August 3, 2008 - August 10, 2008
News Archives (Week of August 3, 2008)
M.E. releases autopsy results on slain girls
8/8/08, 4:05 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Autopsies on two girls gunned down while walking on a country road show one had five gunshot wounds and the other had eight. The state Medical Examiner's office Friday released autopsy results on 11-year-old Skyla Jade Whitaker and her friend, 13-year-old Taylor Paschal-Placker.
They were killed on June 8 a half-mile north of Taylor's home in the small town of Weleetka, 70 miles south of Tulsa. No arrests have been made.
The younger girl had eight wounds to the arms, chest, abdomen and neck, and the older girl had five gunshot wounds to the head,groin and hand.Investigators say two different guns were used, leading to the presumption at least two people were involved.
The isolated nature of the crime scene has led investigators to theorize local people might have been involved. No motive has been identified.
Irving, Texas, officials approve water plan
8/8/08, l2:53 p.m.
MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) - The city of Hugo has filed a lawsuit against Oklahoma's moratorium on out-of-state water sales. The lawsuit filed today in federal court in Muskoge claims the moratorium violates the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
It comes after the City Council in Irving, Texas, agreed to buy water from the city and agreed to spend up to $500,000 to try to solve legal issues. A similar lawsuit was filed last year by a Texas water district. If Irving gets the right to buy the water it would pay Hugo Municipal Authority about 3.8 million dollars while building a pipeline.
The city would then pay Hugo 1.7 million dollars a year when the pipeline becomes operational in addition to what it would pay to buy the water. Oklahoma officials say a statewide study is needed before water is sold to other states. The study is expected to be complete in 2011.
Terrill bankruptcy case reviewed
8/8/08, 2:30 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A federal judge is reopening state Representative Randy Terrill's 2005 bankruptcy filing. The ruling by federal bankruptcy Judge T.M. Weaver comes after reports surfaced that Terrill failed to list money his campaign owed him.
Oklahoma Ethics Commission Reports indicate Terrill was reimbursed between $9,800 and about $11,000 for campaign expenses. Bankruptcy trustee John Mashburn says the ruling allows creditors to try to recover additional money from Terrill's estate. Terrill and his wife filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy and listed less than $80,000 in debt.
Terrill is chairman of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee and was author of an anti-illegal immigration law. Terrill is running for re-election and says political foes in the Hispanic community are using the bankruptcy against him. He says he has no problem with the court taking another look at the bankruptcy case.
Administrator named to head jail
8/8/08, 1:06 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel has hired an administrator to improve conditions at the Oklahoma County jail. The move comes after a U.S. Justice Department report found a series of problems at the jail and removed federal inmates.
Whetsel has hired former federal associate warden Jack Herron to run the jail. Herron says he's just begun reviewing the Justice Department's 24-page report and has no specific changes in mind. He says he wants to improve accountability and reporting on
serious incidents.
Chicken waste dumped near Lawton water supply
8/8/08, 12:22 p.m.
LAWTON, Okla. (AP) - City officials in Lawton are investigating the source of between 40 and 60 tons of apparent chicken waste dumped near a creek that flows into Lawton's main water supply. City Attorney John Vincent filed a complaint with the state Department of Agriculture but it's unclear where the waste came
from.
Vincent says the dumping is illegal because it occurred only 75 yards from a creek that flows from a ranch into Lake Lawtonka. Vincent says the landowner built berms to keep the fecal matter from running into the creek after being approached by city officials. The name of the landowner hasn't been released. Vincent says the creek is dry so he doesn't believe the drinking water has been contaminated.
Judge says Indians owed $455M in trust case
8/8/08, 8:22 a.m.
WASHINGTON (AP) - A federal judge in Washington has ruled that American Indian plaintiffs are entitled to 455 million dollars in a 12-year-old trust case. It's a fraction of the 47 billion dollars sought by the group
and less than the 7 billion-dollar offer made by the government last year that the plaintiffs rejected.
U.S. District Judge James Robertson didn't say how the government should award the money. Robertson's final number is close to government estimates. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of a half-million American Indians and their heirs who alleged that the government had swindled them out of billions of dollars in oil, gas, grazing, timber and other royalties overseen by the Interior Department since 1887.
Census figures show Hispanic population growth
8/7/08, 5:45 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Census figures indicate a growing Hispanic population in Oklahoma. But the statistics are not current enough to gauge the effects of an anti-illegal-immigration law blamed for causing thousands of Hispanics to flee the state.
The figures released today by the U.S. Census Bureau show the Hispanic population increased in all but two of the state's counties with 10,000 or more population from 2006 to 2007. Canadian County saw the highest increase in its Hispanic population with a 13 percent jump. Nowata County was second with 12 percent, followed by Wagoner County with nearly 11 percent.
The Hispanic population of Oklahoma County grew by nearly 5 percent with an increase of 4,000 residents, while Tulsa saw an increase of nearly 3,700 residents, or 7.2 percent. Statewide, the increase was about 5.5 percent.
The figures were tallied before a new law went into effect in Oklahoma that eliminates public subsidies, makes it illegal to house or transport illegal aliens and makes it harder for illegal aliens to receive state identification.
Services held for Air Force officer
8/7/08, 5:42 p.m.
BLANCHARD, Okla. (AP) - An Air Force officer killed when the B-52 bomber in which he was riding crashed off the coast of Guam during a training exercise is remembered during a funeral today in Blanchard. Maj. Brent Williams was one of six airmen killed in the July 21 crash.
Williams graduated from Norman High School in 1989 and attended the University of Oklahoma before joining the Air Force. His commanding officer Lt. Col. Patrick Matthews described Williams as an extraordinary leader and person who was destined for a great career in the Air Force.
An instructor navigator in the Air Force, Williams is survived by his 10-year-old son, Border, 13-year-old daughter Brooke and mother, Sharon Ann Williams, all of Midwest City.
Trial delay possible in Carroll Fisher case
8/7/08, 5:29 p.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A judge's ruling may result in another delay in the tax-evasion trial of former Insurance Commissioner Carroll Fisher. A judge in Tulsa ruled Thursday to limit the evidence the state can use against Fisher and prosecutors say they'll appeal. The trial is currently set for Aug. 18 but an appeal could mean a delay.
Fisher is accused of failing to report more than $80,000 of his 1999 income on his state tax return. The ruling prohibits testimony about a $25,000 check because of evidence Fisher received the check around Christmas 1998. Fisher is currently in prison on a campaign corruption conviction. His tax evasion trial has been delayed when the trial was moved from Oklahoma City to Tulsa and when a new preliminary hearing was ordered.
State expected to add jobs this year
8/7/08, 4:15 p.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A report by Oklahoma State University economist Mark Snead predicts continued job growth in Oklahoma this year. The updated 2008 Oklahoma Economic Outlook projects a 1.4 percent increase in the number of jobs statewide this year. The report estimates a 0.6 percent increase in the number of jobs in Tulsa and a 1.5 percent increase in jobs in Oklahoma City. Snead says Oklahoma's job growth is 1 percent ahead of the national rate and the state added 22,500 jobs last year.
Income levels just below or above national rate
8/7/08, 3:32 p.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - A new survey shows that personal income for the Oklahoma City, Tulsa and Lawton metropolitan areas came in just above or slightly below the national average last year. According to estimates released Thursday by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, personal income grew nationally at 6.2 percent in 2007, down from 6.8 percent in 2006. The bureau surveyed more than 360 metropolitan areas for its report. Personal income for the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metro areas were slightly above the national average. Lawton, whose community includes the Ft. Sill U.S. Army base, came in under the national average.
Jail's death toll draws federal ire
8/7/08, 12:18 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Records from the Oklahoma County Jail indicate that more than 40 inmates have died in custody since Jan. 1, 2000. Several were suicides, often by hanging. A few were beaten to death by other inmates. One may have been killed by detention officers. Many died from natural causes, but sometimes those health problems may have been aggravated by beatings or poor care.
Some of the deaths were actually in the jail. Others were after an inmate had been moved for medical treatment. Three times in the past 10 years babies born to jail inmates did not survive. In a report made public this week, the U.S. Justice Department pointed to some of the deaths to justify its conclusion that inmates' rights are being violated in the jail. Federal officials removed 160 federal defendants from the jail because of the problems.
School districts seek annexation
8/7/08, 9:52 a.m.
LEONARD, Okla. (AP) - The interim superintendent of a tiny northeastern Oklahoma school district says it is in the students' best interest to merge with a larger nearby school district. The Bixby and Leonard school boards, located south of Tulsa, approved a request this week to call an annexation election on Nov. 4.
If Leonard patrons approve, Bixby Public Schools will absorb the district on Nov. 10. The Leonard district, which covers pre-kindergarten through sixth grade, had an enrollment of 23 last year and 17 this year.
The district would have received only 1,768 dollars in state funds this year - a 99 percent decrease. Last year the school received more than 186,000 dollars. Fourteen of Leonard's students have enrolled in Bixby schools. The other three are going to Muskogee and Haskell.
Water allotment in Norman restored
8/7/08, 8:26 a.m.
NORMAN, Okla. (AP) - A broken water pump has been repaired and the city of Norman is once again receiving its regular allotment of water from Lake Thunderbird. Utilities Director Ken Komiske says engineers with the Central Oklahoma Master Conservancy District were able to fix the pump last night. Komiske says residents can resume watering outside, although officials still urge water conservation.
With recent triple-digit heat, Norman residents were using up to 24 million gallons of water daily. The city gets about 14 million gallons from Lake Thunderbird, which because of the break was reduced to 12 million. About 4 million gallons comes from city water wells, supplemented by purchase of several million gallons of treated water daily from Oklahoma City.
Hundreds remember Bobby Murcer
8/6/08, 4:45 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - New York Yankees Derek Jeter and Andy Pettite and manager Joe Girardi helped family and friends say goodbye to former Yankee and Oklahoma native Bobby Murcer. Hundreds crowded into a church for Wednesday's memorial service for Murcer who died last month after battling brain cancer.
The service included tributes to the Oklahoma City native from astronaut Doug Wheelock, Yankee broadcaster Michael Kay and a tearful remembrance from his son Todd. Pettite later told reporters Murcer lived a wonderful life and it seemed like he showed you how a person should die.
Also on hand was 13-year-old Aaron Gaberman who underwent cancer treatment with Murcer. Aaron said he knows that Murcer is his guardian angel in pinstripes.
Education petition filed with state
8/6/08, 4:35 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Supporters of a plan to sharply increase school funding filed an initiative petition with the secretary of state's office today. The group hopes to get the issue on the ballot for voters by 2010.
The plan would require the state Legislature to increase funding from about $6,900 per student to the regional average that's currently about $8,300 per student. The plan would increase education funding by an estimated 850 million dollars per year.
Some Republican House members have warned the plan could cut road funding, endanger public safety and force tax increases. The supporters have 90 days to get at least 138,970 signatures of valid registered voters in order to get the plan on the ballot.
Cooler weather in state's forecast
8/6/08, 3:36 p.m.
UNDATED (AP) - Cooler temperatures and a chance of showers and thunderstorms are in Oklahoma's forecast through the weekend. Following several days of triple-digit temperatures in the state, the National Weather Service says cooler conditions are forecast tomorrow as the remnants of Tropical Storm Edouard moves northwest into central Texas.
Clouds and chances of showers and thunderstorms will develop across the state Thursday and Friday as high pressure builds over the Rocky Mountains and low pressure develops along the East Coast. More storms are likely Sunday and Monday as another wave moves across the central plains.
80,000 state stimulus checks unclaimed
8/6/08, 10:01 a.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - For thousands of Oklahomans, the check is still not in the mail. The Tulsa World reports from its Washington bureau that almost 80,000 Oklahomans have not claimed stimulus checks approved by Congress earlier this year to boost the nation's slowing economy.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says those unclaimed rebate checks total 23.8 million dollars. In Tulsa County, checks could be waiting for more than 10,000 residents. IRS spokeswoman Nancy Mathis said Tuesday that the agency is asking people to file for the rebate checks by October 15th to ensure that they will be sent out this year. However, Mathis says that if any eligible people fail to claim their payment this year, they still can do so in 2009.
Some Panhandle businesses eligible for SBA loans
8/6/08, 9:42 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - A disaster declaration for western Kansas counties makes non-farm businesses in two Oklahoma counties eligible for low-interest loans. The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering the loans to non-farm businesses affected by extreme weather that includes drought and high winds since Jan. 1.
The primary disaster area is in Kansas but includes Cimarron and Texas counties in the Oklahoma Panhandle. Businesses primarily involved in farming or ranching are not eligible for the SBA loans and should contact the Farm Services Agency.
OKC and Tulsa are "dirty" cities
8/45/08, 5:35 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY - The state's two major metropolitan areas have now violated the Environment Protecation Agency's standards for ozone. By violating the EPA's federal standard, both Tulsa and Oklahoma City are now eligible to be put on the so-called "dirty air list, and that could lead to higher gasoline prices.
Many businesses may avoid coming to the state because they would have more federal requirements to comply with, says Nancy Graham of INCOG. The state's two major metropolitan areas are awaiting the official word from the EPA, and are trying to determine what government sanctions might be coming.
Lawmakers mull ban on cell phones while driving
8/4/08, 5:29 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - State lawmakers are exploring the possibility of banning the use of cell phones while driving, particularly among younger drivers. Reps. Sue Tibbs and Danny Morgan plan to hold an interim study on the issue and say they're open to anything from age-specific restrictions to an outright ban on using cell phones, except with handsfree devices.
Tibbs says she asked for the interim study at the request of an Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper. Morgan authored a bill last session that would have outlawed the use of cell phones by drivers under 18 years old, but the bill never received a hearing in a House committee. Morgan says he'd like to start with teen drivers, and if the ban leads to fewer collisions, possibly expand it to include adult drivers. Bans currently are in place in six states plus the District of Columbia.
Weyerhaeuser to cut 6.3 percent of work force
8/5/08, 3:58 p.m.
FEDERAL WAY, Wash. (AP) - Weyerhaeuser Company is announcing plans to cut about 1,500 employees - more than 6 percent of its worldwide work force. It wasn't immediately known if the cuts would include workers at Weyerhaeuser plants in Oklahoma.
The company recently sold its containerboard unit to International Paper which includes a packaging center in Oklahoma City and a mill in Valliant in southeastern Oklahoma. Weyerhaeuser also has timber and wood operations in Broken Bow and Idabel. Most of the job cuts will take place in Weyerhaeuser's Federal Way, Washington, headquarters, which currently employs about 2,500 people. The cuts will occur by the end of 2009.
Lawton eliminates 500 school bus stops
8/4/08, 11:08 a.m.
LAWTON (AP) - The Lawton school district is eliminating hundreds of bus stops in an effort to save money but the move forces more than 1,500 students to find another way to school. The school board approved the change last night and officials say it'll save the district an estimated $250,000.
Under the new policy middle and high school students are allowed to ride the bus only if they live more than 1½ miles from school. Elementary school students must live more than one mile from school in order to ride a bus.
Superintendent Barry Beauchamp says the change eliminates 500 bus stops each morning and afternoon and allows the district to remove 18 buses from service.
Ballard offered superintendent's job
8/4/08, 9:12 a.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - The executive director of the Oklahoma State School Boards Association has been offered the superintendent's job in the state's largest school district. The Tulsa school board voted unanimously tonight to offer the position to Keith Ballard. Officials say the terms of an employment
contract for Ballard, including salary, benefits and any incentives, still must be negotiated but could be ready for a board vote by Aug. 18.
Ballard was out of state at a national conference of state school board associations. But he told the Tulsa World he wants some time to consider the offer. He also says he hopes to meet soon with community leaders and district patrons who were concerned that the board did not have any public receptions, as it has done in previous superintendent searches.
Family supports accused soldier
8/4/08, 8:39 a.m.
BRAGGS, Okla. (AP) - Family members of an Oklahoma soldier accused of killing an Iraqi detainee say he will be vindicated. Staff Sgt. Hal M. Warner of Braggs, is one of two Oklahoma soldiers facing charges in the case. The other is 1st. Lt. Michael C. Behenna of Edmond. They are charged with premeditated murder in the fatal shooting of Ali Monsour Mohammed. In addition to the murder charges, both are accused of assault, making a false official statement and obstruction of justice. Warner also is charged with being an accessory after the fact. The charges were no surprise to Warner's relatives, who have lived in the Braggs community for more than 25 years. Warner's brother, Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Warner, a member of the 82nd Airborne Division, says he believes Hal Warner eventually will be cleared.
PAC monies scrutinized
8/3/08, 12:35 p.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - State Republican Party officials are calling for an investigation of a political fund controlled by workers' compensation attorneys that donates money primarily to Democratic candidates.
Republican state lawmakers today called on Democrats to return what they call "tainted money" received from the fund. One Democrat, Sen. Judy Eason McIntyre of Tulsa, said she will keep the $5,000 donation from Working Oklahomans Alliance and described the GOP request as"political baloney."
In Sunday's editions, The Oklahoman reported Working Oklahomans Alliance raised close to $1 million over the past decade. Much of the money came from injured workers who sometimes didn't even know they donated. Many of the donations may be illegal, The Oklahoman reported.
DOJ report leads to inmate removal
8/3/08, 10:29 a.m.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Sheriff John Whetsel says a U.S. Department of Justice report on the Oklahoma County Detention Center has led to the removal of 160 federal inmates from the facility. Whetsel planned a Monday afternoon news conference to discuss the findings of the new report. He also planned to provide a tour of the jail to show what steps have been made to deal with the federal concerns. The jail's capacity is 2,850 inmates.
Tulsa debris removal lags
8/3/08, 8:47 a.m.
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - It's been two months since windstorms downed tons of trees in Tulsa and city officials still are not sure when debris removal will be complete. The debris removal began in June and is about one-third done.
Paul Strizek with Tulsa's Public Works Department says emergencies and maintaining pot holes and drainage systems take precedence over debris removal. He says city workers are collecting tree limbs and debris on Saturdays to speed the process. One alternative to waiting for city crews to pick up yard debris is for residents to take the material to the city's green-waste site. No disposal fee will be charged to people with driver's license proof of Tulsa residency.
US attorney files complaint against Gene Stipe
8/3/08, 8:26 a.m.
MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) - U.S. Attorney Sheldon Sperling has filed a complaint against former state Sen. Gene Stipe accusing him of illegally running an insurance company. Sperling says Stipe was barred from the insurance industry because of felony convictions for federal campaign violations and perjury.
Sperling says Stipe held an ownership interest in Corporate Financing Group which was the parent company of American Land and Aircraft Title Company. He says that company was the underwriter for insurance policies sold through abstract companies owned by Stipe and others. Stipe is in the custody of the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Mo., for a mental evaluation.
More Oklahoma News:
Ex-Beatle stops in OKC (8/7/08)
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Former Beatle Paul McCartney and girlfriend Nancy Shevell made Oklahoma City one of their stops on a cross-country tour along famous old U.S. Route 66. They spent the night Tuesday at the downtown Skirvin Hilton Hotel and dined at Nonna's Euro-American Ristorante and Bar in the Bricktown entertainment district. The hotel's management would not confirm or deny hosting the two but a restaurant chef talked about the dinner fixed for the couple. John Burruss says he recalls they had regular salads with homegrown tomatoes and McCartney wanted a slice of avocado on top and hazelnut vinaigrette was on top of that. They also had tomato soup and spinach quiche. The couple arrived at the eatery around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and spent about two hours there.
Devon to buy Colcord (8/3/08)
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Devon Energy Corp. has agreed to buy the historic Colcord Hotel as part of the company's plan to develop a new corporate headquarters in downtown Oklahoma City. Plans for the purchase were announced Monday. Terms were not disclosed. Larry Nichols, Devon's chairman and CEO, says the company will make improvements through further investment and incorporate the hotel into its adjacent headquarters project. Nichols says activity during construction of its new headquarters could affect the Colcord. He says purchasing the hotel is the fair and honorable thing to do. Nichols says the Colcord is a very nice boutique hotel that fills an important niche within the downtown community and Devon intends to preserve it. The hotel will remain open and continue operating under current management.
Toby Keith says movie set was all business (8/6/08)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Toby Keith says the set of his new movie"Beer for My Horses" was all business. With Willie Nelson, Ted Nugent, Mel Tillis, David Allan Coe and Rodney Carrington on the set one might imagine a few parties. But Keith says with 12-hour work days there wasn't time to even pick up a guitar. Keith co-wrote the movie and plays a small town deputy trying to break up a methamphetamine ring and rescue his girlfriend from a Mexican drug lord. The title comes from his duet with Nelson and he says its an old western saying. Keith says he worked for a rodeo contractor who carried a pint of whiskey in his pocket and at the end of the night would say "Whiskey for my men and beer for my horses." The movie also stars Tom Skerritt, Barry Corbin, Gena Gershon and Claire Forlani.
