Oklahoma

Lawyer fatally shoots a client; no charges expected

An Oklahoma City lawyer who shot and killed a client on Saturday evening is not expected to face charges. Police say criminal defense lawyer Jay Silvernail shot the client during a confrontation outside a home, report NewsOK.com and the Daily Mail. The client, 54-year-old David Scott Smith, is believed to…

Jun 22, 2015 7:52 AM CDT

Thieving accountant, wrong number proved costly for lawyer; court lifts suspension

An Oklahoma lawyer learned a costly lesson when he left payment of taxes to an accountant who embezzled from him and took out a mortgage of more than $100,000 on his home. After the accountant quit the job in 2005, lawyer Larry Douglas Friesen discovered more problems, according to the…

May 28, 2015 8:27 AM CDT

Lawyer’s skull and crossbones logo gets her evicted

An Oklahoma City lawyer says she was evicted from her office space because she put an unusual skull and crossbones logo on her window. Criminal defense lawyer Joi McClendon tells KOCO.com she thinks the logo is “fun.” Her landlord, however, didn’t like its association with death, piracy and poison. McClendon’s…

May 20, 2015 6:51 AM CDT

Oil baron’s ex can’t appeal divorce award because she cashed his $1B check, top state court says

Unhappy that she got only about $1 billion of her husband’s fortune of at least $10 billion, the ex-wife of Harold Hamm appealed the divorce award. But Sue Ann Hamm, a lawyer and economist who is also known as Sue Ann Arnall, cashed Harold Hamm’s check for not quite $975…

Apr 28, 2015 4:15 PM CDT

Report: Cops were ordered to alter training records for reserve deputy in fatal shooting

The Tulsa County Sheriff’s office has launched an internal investigation after a newspaper report alleged that supervisors were ordered to falsify training records for a reserve deputy involved in a fatal shooting. Multiple anonymous sources told the Tulsa World that supervisors were ordered to give reserve deputy Robert Bates credit…

Apr 16, 2015 12:32 PM CDT

Reserve deputy who mistook gun for Taser is charged in fatality; ACLU blames ‘buy a badge’ program

A reserve deputy who says he mistook his gun for a Taser in a fatal mishap was charged on Monday with second-degree manslaughter. Robert Bates, 73, is an insurance broker who had donated thousands of dollars worth of equipment to the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Department, the Tulsa World reports. He…

Apr 14, 2015 8:58 AM CDT

2 students are expelled over racist frat video; is ouster a First Amendment violation?

University of Oklahoma President David Boren announced on Tuesday that two students have been expelled for an alleged leadership role in a video of fraternity members singing and chanting a racist song. In a press release posted on Twitter, Boren says he acted because the two students had “created a…

Mar 10, 2015 2:35 PM CDT

Oklahoma lawmakers consider nitrogen gas for executions

Lawmakers in Oklahoma are considering legislation that would authorize executions using nitrogen gas if the state’s lethal injection method is struck down. Some Republican lawmakers are backing the legislation, which would make Oklahoma the first state in the nation to allow nitrogen executions. The Associated Press has a story noted…

Feb 11, 2015 7:00 AM CST

Alleged genitals photo leads to suspension for Oklahoma lawyer

An Oklahoma lawyer accused of sending a picture of his penis to his client has been placed on an interim suspension following his no contest plea to distributing obscene material. The Oklahoma Supreme Court suspended lawyer Jeremy Daniel Oliver, 35, on Tuesday, giving him until March 6 to show cause…

Jan 28, 2015 11:04 AM CST

Humane Society suit claims harassment by Oklahoma attorney general

The Humane Society of the United States claims in a suit filed Wednesday that Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt is harassing the organization for political gain. The suit was filed on behalf of the Humane Society by former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson, the Tulsa World and Courthouse News Service…

Jan 23, 2015 5:45 AM CST

Mom of murdered baby didn’t want killer executed; prior lethal injection in Okla. was botched

Updated: Oklahoma scheduled the execution of convicted baby killer Charles Warner for 6 p.m. Thursday, though the victim’s mother opposed it. The execution took place at 7:10 p.m., and Warner was pronounced dead 18 minutes later, CNN reported. Warner was the first Oklahoma inmate put to death since the botched…

Jan 15, 2015 9:48 AM CST

Oklahoma lawmakers considering ban on wearing hoodies in public

Oklahoma lawmakers are considering legislation that would ban the wearing of hoodies in public. State Sen. Don Barrington, who is sponsoring the bill (PDF), says it’s designed to fight crime, television station KFOR reports. “The intent of [the bill] is to make businesses and public places safer by ensuring that…

Jan 8, 2015 5:00 PM CST

Attorney ex-wife rejects energy chief’s $975M check; judge nixes reduction despite oil price plunge

An Oklahoma oil baron wrote a check to his ex-wife for almost $975 million on Monday. But Sue Ann Arnall, a lawyer and economist, refused the payment, according to the Oklahoman and Value Walk, which provides a copy of the $974,790,317.77 check. Arnall is appealing the divorce award as representing…

Jan 7, 2015 11:55 AM CST

Billionaire’s ex-wife appeals $995M award in divorce case

After 25 years of marriage, a divorce award of nearly $1 billion isn’t enough, says the ex-wife of an Oklahoma oil baron with an estimated net worth of $10.7 billion to $18 billion. So Sue Ann Arnall, a lawyer and economist, has filed an appeal of last month’s ruling in…

Dec 5, 2014 4:50 PM CST

Oklahoma lawyer gives chase after confronting man who had stolen law-office shotguns

Tulsa, Oklahoma, lawyer Mark Lyons wanted his shotguns back. Lyons, a senior attorney at Lyons & Clark, told FOX23 that he was in the building hallway as he was arriving at his downtown law office Monday morning when he saw a man holding two of his shotguns emerge from a…

Nov 18, 2014 1:39 PM CST