Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater

Your District Attorney in the News

KTOK - District Attorney Backs New Jail Commission Creation

District Attorney Backs New Jail Commission Creation

Best of all he says is no elected officials will be on it.

By Jerry Bohnen - KTOK

Thursday, August 14, 2008

   Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater says the county commission's creation of a new county jail citizen's commission was a correct call and he especially supports the idea that no elected officials will be on it.
   "You don't need elected officials on there," said Prater in response to the creation of the Oklahoma County Detention Advisory Committee. "I think that it would be a bunch of grandstanding and politicizing of the issues."
   Prater said too many times elected officials grandstand and "beat their chests when they get in front of a camera."
   "This needs to be citizens and people who have a stake with their own money and their own safety in this community," added Prater.
   Nine persons will be named to the commission and Prater said there is nothing wrong with the public scrutiny of county operations. "If there is concern about how we're spending that money or operating our office, I don't mind public oversight."
   As far as the jail operations were concerned, Prater said Sheriff John Whetsel's not been the only sheriff to face serious problems. "It was antiquated when it opened. It was overcrowded when it opened so he and other sheriffs have had a tough situation running that albatross for a long time unfortunately."

Oklahoma County D.A. upset judge reduced sentence of convicted killer

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater says it was an "absolute miscarriage of justice" for a judge to reduce the sentence of a convicted killer

District Judge Kenneth Watson has changed the life without parole sentence of 43-year-old Billy Earl Parker to life with the possibility of parole.

Prater says the change circumvents the jury process.

Parker was convicted of murder in the shooting death of 16-year-old Sherman Jackson.

Watson says the reduction is the right thing to do since prosecutors at the time offered Parker a plea deal for a 25-year sentence. The judge also says a key witness in the case was unavailable so the testimony was read from a transcript.

Parker still must serve 85% of the sentence which is about 38 years and won't be eligible for parole until he's nearly 81.

Love of Venezuelan prostitute inspires murder plot
Love of Venezuelan prostitute inspires murder plot
By Nolan Clay
Staff Writer

A former Oklahoma City police officer paid to have his wife murdered because he'd fallen in love with a prostitute at a Venezuelan sex resort, court records reveal.
Kenneth John Griffin "was obsessed with figuring a way to get" the prostitute, Lezette, to the United States, a friend told authorities. Griffin said he had taken out "substantial insurance policies" on his wife.

The murder-for-hire plot unraveled when the friend told the FBI April 14. Griffin was arrested April 16 — the day he wanted his longtime wife murdered.

Griffin, 48, of Tuttle, committed suicide in the Oklahoma County jail April 17 after phoning his wife, Maya, to say he'd been set up. He hanged himself with a bed sheet, officials said.

New details of the plot emerged Wednesday when a judge made public a police investigator's five-page affidavit requesting permission to arrest Griffin.

Griffin gave his friend, Jonathan Eric Conlon, $1,000 in cash the evening of April 15 to pay a hit man, "Vic", for the murder, the police affidavit shows. FBI agents secretly watched.

Conlon, who has been to prison in his past, told authorities he'd made "Vic" up to string Griffin along. The two had a drywall business.

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said Wednesday that police officers arrested Griffin April 16 "because they felt that if he had come home and found that she was still alive or there in the house that he would do it himself."

"I really do believe that they saved her life," Prater said.

Conlon, 32, told The Oklahoman Wednesday, "I really wish I knew what went wrong with him because ... we were really good friends before this all happened."

He said, "I don't feel like I'm a hero. All I know is I couldn't let this happen ... Nobody's life is worth a price. That's the way I feel and that's the way I've always felt."

Griffin began talking about having his wife murdered after he and Conlon went to "Total Satisfaction Adult Resorts" in Venezuela in July 2007.

"This is a place where men go and pick a Venezuelan prostitute to spend their stay with," the police investigator wrote in the affidavit. "Conlon states Kenneth Griffin fell in love with 'Lezette,' the prostitute that Kenneth Griffin picked on this trip.

"Approximately one month later Kenneth Griffin informed Conlon that he would be going back to Venezuela to meet 'Lezette' again. After Kenneth Griffin's return from this trip, Conlon believed something to be wrong with Kenneth Griffin because he was obsessed with figuring a way to get 'Lezette' back to the United States."

Griffin brought up his plan in September 2007, asking his friend to do a "dirty deed," the police investigator wrote. "Conlon asked Kenneth Griffin how dirty of a deed and Kenneth Griffin stated a 'very dirty deed.' "

Griffin talked of waiting six months to a year to bring Lezette here "after the situation was handled."

During the plotting, Griffin gave his friend two photographs of Maya, a hand-written schedule of her travels, two hand-drawn maps and four Google maps "to assist in the murder of his wife," according to the affidavit.

Also, according to the affidavit, "Conlon states in recent days Kenneth Griffin had become very impatient in wanting his wife murdered. Kenneth Griffin recently told Conlon that if 'Vic' cannot get the job done he has three friends from Detroit who are on their way to Oklahoma City to take care of the business."

The district attorney said police were unable to verify whether Griffin had recruited hit men from Detroit.

Griffin quit the police department in 1996 when he was caught defrauding charities. He was sentenced to three years in prison after pleading guilty.

The Total Satisfaction resort in Venezuela closed earlier this year, but the company now has a location in the Dominican Republic.

Oklahoman: Jail growth puts strain on Oklahoma county

Oklahoma County locks people up at a higher rate than all but eight counties in the United States despite chronic overcrowding at its jail, a study released Tuesday shows.

In the past two decades, the number of people sent to county jails nationwide has nearly doubled, according to the Justice Policy Institute's study.

This has put a strain on the pocketbooks of counties, which are forced to commit bigger chunks of their budgets to deal with bulging jail populations.

The study found that the number of inmates booked into the Oklahoma County jail rose at a higher rate than bookings at every major county jail in the nation between 2001 and 2006. Oklahoma County's jail bookings rose about 53 percent during that time.

But Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said the 2,850-capacity jail's inmate population has become more manageable in the past year, thanks to a court ruling that forced the removal of several hundred state Department of Corrections inmates from county cells and new District Attorney David Prater's work to speed up prosecutions.

"It's gotten exceptionally better,” Whetsel said.

The jail's average daily inmate count is down from about 2,900 a year ago to about 2,400 in recent weeks, Whetsel said.

Still, every penny the sheriff gets from Oklahoma County's annual budget goes right to jail expenses and additional money has to be generated for other expenses, said Maj. John Waldenville, who leads the sheriff's administration bureau.

"It takes more than the county gives us to operate this place,” he said.

The sheriff's department makes most of its additional money by housing city, state and federal inmates at the jail and selling goods to the inmates while they're locked up.

Waldenville said about 78 percent of the department's annual operating budget is spent on the jail. Last fiscal year, the jail's projected operating cost was about $27 million.

County commissioners assembled a jail funding task force in 2003 in an effort to come up with solutions to the jail's funding woes. Its work has stalled, and county officials said it will likely be summer before they try to salvage the work that has been done.

Drug charges, long waits clogging the system

Of the 38,296 bookings at the Oklahoma County jail last year, two-thirds were for drug charges, according to booking records.

Nationally, only a quarter of people jailed in 2002 faced drug charges, according to the study. But that's still a stark contrast from 1983, when about 9 percent of jail inmates faced drug charges.

The study blames poor drug enforcement policy for the dramatic rise in jail inmates. It also notes that more inmates are being held in jail for longer amounts of time before trial.

In 2006, there were 766,010 people in jails nationwide and 62 percent hadn't been convicted. The study said many inmates had been waiting long periods of time on a bogged-down justice system to give them their day in court.

Oklahoma County Public Defender Bob Ravitz said Oklahoma County officials have made a concerted effort to reduce the number of people jailed as they await trial.

Prater said he and Ravitz monitor the length of stay for pretrial inmates to ensure no one needlessly languishes in jail.

"We make every effort to keep those pretrial incarceration numbers down,” Prater said.

Ravitz said there are about 2,000 fewer such inmates in the jail than there were a couple of years ago.

"The key is staying on top of this stuff,” he said.

Journal Record: The CSI effect

OKLAHOMA CITY – It’s called the CSI Effect, a name for jurors’ unrealistic expectations of the types of forensic evidence that attorneys, mainly prosecutors, should be able to produce to prove their case.

It’s supposedly fostered by the multiple versions of CSI and Law and Order television shows, with Cold Case and Without a Trace thrown in for good measure.

Some Oklahoma defense attorneys say it’s a real phenomenon, one that has upped the evidentiary ante in criminal cases.

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said potential jurors may have a certain level of expectation when they first walk into a courtroom due to such programs.

It’s up to prosecutors to educate them that much of what they see on TV is not realistic or its utilization is limited, he added.

“There are not fingerprints in every case, no matter what the suspect may have touched,” Prater said. “DNA is not left at every scene; if it is, many times it’s degraded to a point where it cannot be identified.”

Prater said that much of the technology featured on CSI is real, but finite.

“The extent to which it can realistically be used in most criminal cases, is limited,” he added.

In some cases jurors must be told there is no fingerprint or DNA evidence and prosecutors will rely on eyewitnesses or other evidence, Prater said.

Has Prater seen any lingering effect on jury verdicts?

“Occasionally there are individual jurors that still expect it, even though we’ve told them this science won’t be presented in this particular case,” he said. “If we’re not able to satisfy their curiosity, they’re not going to say we established our burden beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Prater believes that CSI and similar programs have been a kind of double-edged sword.

“I think they’ve raised the level of sophistication of your average citizen as to the criminal justice process and potential evidence that they could see in any given case,” he said. “We do have to overcome the limitation of that science as it relates to the way that science is portrayed on TV. That is the negative side of it.”

A positive side effect Prater sees is the number of students going into forensic fields as a result of CSI and its competition.

He said a new forensics program at the University of Central Oklahoma will lead to better-trained police officers, technicians and the like.

“Going into the area of forensic science is more of an area that’s viewed as being really cool,” Prater said.

Veteran Oklahoma City criminal attorney Irven Box, a former prosecutor, said he noticed a change in what juries see as valid evidence after the 1995 O.J. Simpson trial, one of the first major cases that millions of viewers watched each minute of, on a daily basis.

“From that point, I started noticing a difference in jurors’ viewing police and police work, and then of course CSI comes along, and it also added to the effect,” Box said.

Before the Simpson trial, he said, a police officer or forensics expert could get on the stand and say they knew the moon was made of green cheese, and jurors believed it.

That changed with the Simpson trial and shows like CSI, he said.

“I saw jurors questioning the ability of the police,” Box said. “I think they now expect the police to be able to do those things that we see CSI do in a matter of minutes in a one-hour episode.”

Box said he tried a case a year after the Simpson case, during which jurors asked why the police had not done certain things that they had seen in that celebrity trial, particularly certain types of forensics evidence and DNA. He said the person was acquitted.

Box thinks that overall, the changes in jurors’ perceptions have been more of a positive for the defense side.

“It’s made it more difficult for prosecutors to get a case based on circumstantial evidence and without forensics and the tools that science has now,” he said.

“I think it’s probably made the police and prosecutors better, because they know now that the general public knows that certain things can be done, or at least they perceive they can be done, through forensics.”

As Box pointed out, defense attorneys will challenge the fact that certain tests were not done in cases where a person’s liberty is at stake.

Oklahoma City has also experienced what Box called the “Gilchrist effect,” a reference to questionable forensic work and testimony from former police chemist Joyce Gilchrist, who was fired after criticism and investigation of her methods put the results of many cases in doubt.

“The Joyce Gilchrist effect put things backward,” he said. “Prior to that time, I believe that if a forensic scientist from the police department got on the stand, they believed everything.”

Early on, Box said, defense attorneys had few if any forensic experts on their side to challenge, for example, the hair-sample comparisons made by prosecution experts like Gilchrist – comparisons Box said were near junk science.

Defense attorneys now have those experts, he said.

Box said the national work of the Innocence Project, which has resulted in the exoneration of many wrongfully convicted individuals, including two Ada men whose stories are outlined in John Grisham’s The Innocent Man, has also had an effect.

More than 200 individuals have been exonerated by the project’s work, chiefly through DNA evidence.

“I think that jurors now question, and demand more,” Box said. “I think that if it’s not there, then I think the prosecutor is going to be deficient.”

Jurors’ expectations can sometimes be unrealistic, Box believes.

For example, in his own 30-some years in the criminal justice system, Box said he has not had many cases made or lost due to fingerprint evidence.

“Most people think you get fingerprints from everything,” he said. “Well, you don’t. They’re just not there.”

Likewise, he said, DNA seldom is the decisive factor in a case, unless it deals with crimes such as rape or homicide.

Criminal defense attorney Billy Bock, Oklahoma City, has a different take on the CSI issue.

“I have not had it affect any of my cases where jurors have expected more than they’ve gotten, or less, and had questions about that,” Bock said.

He said that 10 or 12 years ago attorneys would ask potential jurors whether they preferred Law and Order, which was considered a more conservative, prosecution-oriented program, or The Practice, which focused on a criminal defense firm and was considered more liberal in tone.

“I don’t do that, necessarily, anymore,” he said. “I don’t know whether it really helped or didn’t help.”

Bock said it has been his experience that jurors take their job seriously.

“Every trial I’ve ever had, when jurors have come back, I’ve seen evidence of some of them crying or really, really upset,” he said. “I don’t mean upset like they’ve been arguing, but upset because it plays such a toll on a person to sit in judgment over another person’s life.”

Educating jurors about their side of the case is the job of the prosecuting and defense lawyers, Bock said.

Bock mentioned a recent case tried by a friend in which foot prints were found in the snow near some cocaine. He said a man was found nearby in the street and arrested on a drug charge due to that circumstantial evidence.

If that case was part of a CSI episode, he said, evidence would be presented not only of the footprints, but the exact shoe size, type, style, and the year they were made or bought.

In the real case, Bock said, no pictures were even taken of the footprints, and the man was not convicted.

“I think jurors want to get information,” he said. “But it’s up to the lawyers to be advocates of what’s out there.”

Jurors in real-life cases may hear from several experts on both sides, Bock said, but no one has the capability to present cases as they are outlined on television.

At the same time, Bock describes himself as a CSI fan.

“I look at my wife and I’m like, ‘That would make my job so hard, or so easy,’” he said. “It could disprove people, also.”

Bock said it’s fine with him for jurors to have high expectations of attorneys.

“Potentially, there’s a problem with the unrealistic expectations of the way that evidence is out there,” he said. “Maybe I, as a defense lawyer, would be able to say, ‘You didn’t do this, you didn’t do that,’ and I wouldn’t hesitate to say, ‘Why didn’t you fingerprint this?’ But then it’s up to the prosecutor to say, ‘Is there any way to have fingerprinted that tape?’ And if there was, then maybe they should have done that. But if there wasn’t, then the jurors just need to weigh that accordingly.”

Bock said he can see from a prosecutor’s standpoint where they may not like CSI and similar shows, “because they think the public has made the bar higher for them to prove cases beyond a reasonable doubt.”

However, if cases are investigated and processed fully and correctly from the foundational police work onward, he said, that improves things for both sides.

“It benefits the whole system when good police work is done,” Bock said.

Edmond Sun: UCO partners with district attorney for prevention project

The Edmond Sun

EDMOND— The University of Central Oklahoma has partnered with Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater for the Violence Prevention Project, a new, federally funded, campus-based program aimed to help UCO community members receive confidential services if victimized by relational crimes.
Prater will be part of a Community Education Response Team, which will include other key partners such as members of the Edmond and UCO police departments, members of the UCO staff and outside community partners.
“Mr. Prater will provide support, expertise and guidance about the program functions. He feels very passionate about the issue of domestic violence and we are excited about what Oklahoma County District Attorney’s office will bring to the project here at UCO,” said Kathryn Toahty, coordinator for UCO’s project.
“The program’s overall goal is to effectively minimize incidents of violent relational crimes such as sexual assault, intimate partner violence or abuse and stalking on the UCO campus. Statistics show that only 17 to 19 percent of rapes and sexual assaults are reported. Hopefully, with the Violence Prevention Project, we can allow for comfort and confidentiality in seeking out resources to aid in victims in the healing process.”
UCO’s project is part of a flagship program funded by a $1 million grant recently provided by the U.S. Department of Justice and distributed throughout five Oklahoma universities, including UCO.
The project is conducted through UCO’s Student Counseling Center and is anticipated to enhance the current security measures existing on the campus.
CERT members will assist in overseeing and providing a survivor response system, educational and awareness programs and the development and monitoring of effective campus judicial policies relating to violent crime.
The victims project will assist in training UCO staff, faculty and students on how to recognize signs of violence and how to get assistance.
The project is available to advocate for survivors in the areas of medical assistance, legal assistance, counseling on and off campus, accommodating housing needs or relocation, as well as assistance with addressing academic issues in regards to schedule change concerns.

KSBI TV: Less Money Less Safe

Wednesday, March 12, 2008; Posted: 6.01 pm (CDT)

District attorneys are asking legislators to help them bring $40 million into the system. They say--with what's at risk--this issue should top the Capitol's to-do list.

"We have had band-aids placed on a bleed when we need a tourniquet," says Tulsa County DA Tim Harris.

District Attorneys from all over Oklahoma took the trip to the Capitol to try and find a solution.

"We need the tools to keep you all safe," says Harris.

"We all in the Senate recognize that public safety has to be our number one priority," says Co-President Pro-Tem of the Senate Mike Morgan, D-Stillwater.

Only 55 percent of Oklahoma's district attorneys' budget come from state appropriations. Everything else must be scavenged for from things like bogus check fees and drug asset forfeiture.

"Our bogus check fess are down a third," says Oklahoma County DA David Prater. "Our asset forfeiture from drug dealers, that money is going down as well."

"As state employees, it's ridiculous that I spend half of my time trying to make up 45 percent of my budget," says Harris.

The district attorneys must also deal with a 67 percent cut in federal grants.

"We're sailing dead smack into a perfect storm," says Prater.

Oklahoma County alone sees 15,000 new cases a year with about 55 lawyers to handle them.

"That means--at any given time--they have 275 to 300 new cases coming onto their docket every year," says Prater. "At any time they may have 500 to 600 cases on their docket."

Prater says last year Oklahoma's shootings and gang-related homicides dropped by about half, but decreasing funds means fewer employees to help keep Oklahoma safe.

"We've already seen an increase in gang-related drive-by shootings in the first three months of this year," says Prater. "We cannot lose a foot in the foothold that we created last year."

"Don't take my hammer and my nails and my wood and my level away from me and still expect me to build the house called public safety," says Harris.

District attorneys say about 50 positions have already been lost due to the federal cuts. They say public safety is a priority because it also affects the economy. They say businesses won't want to relocate to Oklahoma if they can't guarantee the basics of public safety.

Both leaders of the Senate say they have several ideas in finding funds for the district attorneys. They said they would not comment about what they are because budget negotiations are ongoing.

City district, ex-chief set to move on

March 7, 2008

By Wendy K. Kleinman
Staff Writer, The Oklahoman

Former Oklahoma City Superintendent John Porter says he is moving forward with his life now that he has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing.

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said Thursday that a six-week, joint investigation by his office and the Oklahoma City Police Department could not substantiate criminal activity.

"The evidence uncovered during the investigation failed to prove that Dr. John Q. Porter committed any criminal act. In fact, a number of documents discovered in the possession of the school district tended to exculpate or explain away most of the allegations made against Dr. Porter by the board,” Prater said.

Prater added that he was surprised that investigators were "very easily” able to obtain documents that exonerated Porter.

But the 278-page report issued by the district attorney's office doesn't leave its subjects unblemished.

The revelation of internal financial processes is prompting the district to review all of its policies and procedures, and some school district employees and board members who were interviewed were critical of Porter's behavior while he was superintendent.

The report from Prater's office covers 15 allegations. Prater said possible criminal acts that could have applied were fraud and other "white collar-type crimes.”

Retired U.S. Attorney Robert McCampbell investigated 21 allegations for the city school district, but Prater has said his office only looked into those that had the potential for criminal culpability.

McCampbell referred questions to school district spokeswoman Kathleen Kennedy. Kennedy said she had no information as to why McCampbell's internal investigation did not turn up everything that was in the district attorney's report.

In addition, Kennedy said that the district acknowledges the report, regrets what happened and is moving forward.

In moving forward, Kennedy said the top district administrators are reviewing their policies and procedures. Any proposed changes would have to be submitted to the board, she said.

Porter issues statement
After the district attorney released in the investigative report, one of Porter's attorney's, Steve Huddleston, released a statement on his behalf. In it, Porter said he is proud of his service and plans to continue his advocacy for children.

"My relationship with some of my school board members was unfortunate but I must forgive and move forward with my life. The people of Oklahoma City are special which is why I want to continue to make this my home,” the statement read.

Huddleston said some of Porter's supporters have talked with him about potential business opportunities here.

With regard to some of the unflattering statements about Porter in interviews in the report, Huddleston said they do not present the "whole view” and some people at the district had different opinions of him.

The Oklahoman could not reach former board Chairman Cliff Hudson or either Porter or his civil attorney, Murray Abowitz, for comment Thursday.

Some school board members, including Hudson, reported in their interviews that Porter had said he would have to sue the board, but because neither Porter nor Abowitz could be reached it was not clear if Porter plans to file a civil suit.

Huddleston said he believes Porter is ready to move on. Prater said he believes the city needs to do the same.

"I think this city needs to heal,” he said. "It was quite a divisive issue. ... If this is the end of it, I'd be very happy.”

District Attorney Prater and OKC Police Ask for Public Help

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK: Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater and the Oklahoma City Police Department are asking for the public's help in the case of a missing Oklahoma City man they fear is a murder victim. Thirty-four year old Manuel Salado was last seen October 8, 2007. Police believe that an unwitting witness could hold the key to solving the case and they are asking that this person contact the police department or the District Attorney's Office.

The man police want to contact had a conversation with Exondia Salado at a rural residence in far eastern Oklahoma County, perhaps the Spencer area, during the weekend of October 13th and 14th. Exondia Salado is the wife of the missing man, and based on the evidence in the case, police and prosecutors believe she is inolved in his disappearance and murder. They believe Exonda Salado was actually in the process of disposing of her husband's body when an unidentified man approached her and began talking to her. The two of them reportedly talked about outdoor grilling or cooking, and this man mentioned that he goes to church in Chickasha. In addition, the two of them may have watched part of a movie during the encounter.

"We do not think this man we are seeking is in any way involved in a crime, but we need him to come forward to help us locate the area where this conversation took place," said Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater. "We hope the precise details of this conversation this man had with Exondia Salado, such as the fact that he goes to church in Chickasha, will spark his memory and that he will contact us to help us find the place where he saw her that day. We will then have a better idea of where to focus our search for Mr. Salado's body."

Exondia Salado is believed to have been driving a maroon 2000 Dodge Caravan during that weekend and may have been wearing military camouflage pants. The van has damage to the passenger side door and the drivers' side front fender is black primer (see below).

Anyone with information on who the man might be that happened upon Exondia Salado that day, or with any other information about the disappearance of Manuel Saldo, is asked to call the Oklahoma City Police Department at 297-1126, Crimestoppers 235-7300 or the Oklahoma County District Attorney's Office at 713-1631.

To view the press release in its entirety, click here. (pdf)

Tulsa World: Contentious merger pushed

Contentious merger pushed

by: BARBARA HOBEROCK World Capitol Bureau
2/21/2008 12:00 AM

A measure would combine the state Medical Examiner's Office and the OSBI.

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A Senate panel passed a measure Wednesday that would merge the state Medical Examiner's Office with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, despite concerns that such a move could hurt criminal prosecutions.

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater told the Senate Appropriations Committee that he thinks the Medical Examiner's Office should be independent of another agency.

Prosecutors would start with a strike against them at trial if the Medical Examin er's Office was under another law enforcement agency and jurors wondered about the medical examiner's independence, Prater said.

Senate Bill 1709 by Senate Co-President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, passed the Senate Appropriations Committee 10-6.

Coffee said, "I'm very disappointed that so much of the criticism of this proposal seems to impugn the integrity and professionalism of the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and calls into question OSBI's ability to provide fair and impartial oversight of the chief medical examiner."

Another bill by Coffee, SB 1698, would merge most of the functions of the Criminal Justice Resource Center into the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. The panel passed SB 1698 by a 13-3 vote.

The committee also passed a measure that would create an Office of Accountability and Innovation within the Legislative Service Bureau. SB 1865, also by Coffee, calls for the newly created entity to conduct regular performance audits of agencies and review the effectiveness of tax incentives, among other things. It would have an initial cost of about $1 million. SB 1865 passed the committee 16-0.

The committee also approved SB 1870 by Sen. Mike Johnson, R-Kingfisher, which would remove the 3 percent growth trigger on additional funding for roads and bridges. The move would result in $50 million in new funding for transportation.

A similar measure, SB 1396 by Sen. Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, also passed. That bill would remove the growth trigger and also would redi rect existing motor vehicle taxes from the general revenue fund to roads and bridges over a five-year period.

Bills passed by the Appropriations Committee are headed to the full Senate.

The House General Government and Transportation Committee, meanwhile, passed House Bill 2551 by Rep. Guy Liebmann, R-Oklahoma City, which would remove the revenue growth trigger, as well. Without the trigger's removal, roads would get $17.5 million.

Meanwhile, the Senate Rules Committee killed Senate Joint Resolution 33 by Sen. Randy Brogdon, R-Owasso, which called for a public vote on setting term limits for statewide elected officials, except for the governor, who already is term-limited.

Consolidation bill passes state Senate committee

Consolidation bill passes state Senate committee
By John Greiner
Capitol Bureau
Senate Republican leader Glenn Coffee's bills to streamline state government cleared the Senate Appropriations Committee today.

Senate Bill 1698 would merge the Criminal Justice Resource Center with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

The resource center operates under the Legislative Service Bureau and gathers data on criminal sentencing for the Oklahoma Sentencing Commission.

Senate Bill 1709 by Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, would put the office of the medical examiner into the OSBI.

Coffee said many states have their medical examiner operations under state law enforcement agencies.

Coffee also won approval from the Appropriations Committee for Senate bill 1865 to create the Office of Accountability and Innovation within the Legislative Service Bureau.

The new office would conduct regular performance audits of agencies, recommend the best practices for improving efficiencies in government, review the effectiveness of tax incentives and bring new innovations to government, Coffee said.

Merging the office of the medical examiner with the OSBI would free the chief medical examiner from day-to-day administrative duties, Coffee said.

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said he was concerned that the merger might create a reason for jurors to question the veracity of medical examiner evidence if it were placed under the OSBI.

He said he in no way questions the integrity of the OSBI.

The bills now go to the full Senate.

David Prater Statement:
Clearly there needs to be clarification. The statement I gave to Mr. Greiner was "I am concerned that a merger might create a reason for jurors to question the veracity of medical examiner evidence if it were placed under any law enforcement agency." That was my testimony before Senator Coffee's committee this morning (2/20/08) and Senator Coffee knows that. I clearly stated that I strongly support the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and believe them to be a fine law enforcement agency, but I do not believe this merger is prudent.

Oklahoman September 27: Racketeering case draws DA's praise

Racketeering case draws DA's praise

By Jay F. Marks
Staff Writer

Oklahoma County authorities are poised to treat gangs as criminal enterprises in their efforts to stamp them out.

District Attorney David Prater and Oklahoma City Police Chief Bill Citty pointed Wednesday to a racketeering case filed last week against members of a violent gang as proof of their new plan of attack.

"This'll be the status quo in Oklahoma City,” Prater said.

The racketeering charge filed Thursday against seven members of the Walnut Gangster Crips carries at least 10 years in prison on conviction.

The case includes 32 counts against eight men, with charges ranging from drug trafficking to drive-by shootings to murder.

Court papers claim the suspects are younger members of the gang who sold drugs and carried out violence at the direction of a gang founder.

The gang has been involved in a turf war since 2003 over an area known as the "Blue Jungle” that is its part of its market for crack cocaine and marijuana, wrote officer Keith Medley in an affidavit.

Police linked the gang and its associates to at least 13 shootings in December, the affidavit states. The violence peaked with five shootings in a three-day span starting Dec. 18.

Kenneth Jaron "Mooney” Packer, 19, and Dontia Roshawn "Goldie” Sweet, 22, are charged with killing Raymond Smith Jr. when he answered the door shortly past midnight Dec. 17 at 1818 N Jordan, according to the affidavit.

Packer, Sweet, Justin Tyrone "J-Style” Davis, Rakeem Jamall "Easy Money” Johnson and Catrelle "Baby Boy” Coney were implicated in many drive-by shootings in days that followed, the affidavit states.

Undercover officers bought crack cocaine and handguns from Remington Raymond "Gucci” Leathers and Derlon Antwon "P-Wood” Bray, according to the affidavit.

Davis, 20, also is accused of lying as a witness in a Feb. 23 preliminary hearing for a rival gang member accused of shooting him in October, the affidavit states. He failed to identify the man who allegedly shot him.

Marco "51” Hollins, another member of the group, is charged with possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute and possession of drug proceeds.

‘We're not going to stop'

Prater said it may be too late to turn those people away from gangs, but he is optimistic community groups can help young people find alternatives.

Citty said he would like to eliminate street gangs, although he acknowledged that is not a realistic goal.

"We're not going to stop,” he said. "We're going to keep the pressure on.”

Oklahoman September 21: How Jena echoes here

How Jena echoes here

By Devona Walker
Staff Writer

On Thursday, hundreds wore black to the state Capitol's south plaza to protest the treatment of six black youths about 550 miles away in Jena, La. But the message at the demonstration hit much closer to home.

"This stuff still happens. I know it happens right here in Oklahoma City,” said Hiawatha Bouldin, 52. "This is not a black problem. This is not a white problem. This is an American problem.”

For Bouldin and many others, the demonstration was a call to action to address the inequities in the criminal justice system.

Meanwhile about 20 blocks from the Capitol, a hundred or so black law enforcement and correctional officers from Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana held an annual convention in conference rooms of the Holiday Inn. They, too, wore black, protesting treatment of the Jena Six.

"This is a mirror of things that are going on all across the U.S. It just so happens that Jena, La., is where the attention fell,” said Joyce Jackson, an Oklahoma correctional officer and spokeswoman for the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice. "This should have been a suspension or an expulsion from school and what did it turn into? Attempted murder.”

Many blacks seek careers in criminal justice to address inequities in the system, Jackson said.

"But often times we, as minorities, are thrown in the same pot. We are perceived as being part of the system, and part of the problem,” Jackson said. "But our point is that we are part of the solution.”

‘Justice for all'

District Attorney David Prater ran on the platform of "justice for all” and bringing a sense of fair play to the judicial system. Since taking office, he has upped participation in drug and mental health court, as well as other diversion programs.

He also made a striking number of personnel changes.

"There really is a philosophy of prosecution. I think you need to make sure that everyone in the office has that philosophy, that is, to not use this office as a means to harm people,” Prater said. "This is not an office that feels itself to be a good old boys' club. We represent the community as a whole, and we will respect the community as a whole.”

KOTV: Field Of American Flags Focuses Attention On Child Abuse Deaths

Field Of American Flags Focuses Attention On Child Abuse Deaths

AP - 9/20/2007 3:56 PM - Updated 9/20/2007 4:09 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Bagpipes wailed from a field of American flags Thursday as child abuse prevention advocates focused attention on child deaths and urged Oklahomans to help stop the kind of abuse that led to the deaths of 41 children in the state in 2005.

A total of 1,400 American flags unfurled to a gentle breeze on the state Capitol's south lawn _ one for every child abuse death in the U.S. in 2005. Forty-one Oklahoma flags stretched across another part of the lawn, one for each of the Oklahoma child abuse deaths.

``In every one of these child deaths there has been an adult who could have saved that child,'' Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said. ``Be that person.''

Prater became emotional as he looked out upon the Healing Field of red, white and blue flags and thought of his own daughter.

``I'm so blessed by having a child,'' he said. ``What I see are not flags _ I see dead childrens' bodies.''

During the ceremony, bagpipes played “Amazing Grace” as a memorial to the 1,400 child abuse victims in the U.S.

Oklahoma led the nation in per capita child abuse deaths in 2005 with 4.8 child abuse fatalities per 100,000 children, according to the National Center on Child Abuse Prevention Research. The national average that year was 1.96 fatalities per 100,000 children.

Last year, child abuse specialists with the state Department of Human Resources investigated more than 63,000 suspected child abuse and neglect cases and confirmed 13,827, about 21% of those investigated. About 85% of the cases involved neglect, 11% physical abuse and the balance, 4%, sexual abuse, officials said.

The problem of child abuse has been in the public eye in recent months following high-profile criminal trials over the abuse-related death of Kelsey Smith-Briggs, a 2-year-old girl who suffered months of physical abuse while in the custody of her mother and stepfather before dying due to a blunt force injury to her abdomen.

Rob Davidson of Tucson, Arizona, national president of the National Exchange Club, characterized child abuse as a ``brutal and despicable crime.''

``You better get involved because the government is not going to fix our problem,'' Davidson told an audience of adults and dozens of children from a northwest Oklahoma City school choir that performed during the ceremony.

Prater encouraged Oklahomans to intervene in suspected cases of child abuse they see in stores, parking lots and other public places.

``Don't turn away _ that child is depending on you. You have a responsibility to act,'' he said. ``These 1,400 children were depending on someone who did not act.''

The district attorney said community involvement can have an impact in stopping abuse.

``We must be engaged. There's no telling what these precious children will become,'' Prater said.

August 14 Oklahoman: DA wants to know how boy, 5, died

DA wants to know how boy, 5, died

By Diana Baldwin
Staff Writer

EDMOND — The death of a 5-year-old Edmond boy is being called suspicious by the district attorney.

Declan Stewart died Saturday evening after Edmond police were told the boy fell in his closet and hit his head. The incident originally was labeled as an accident by Edmond police and fire officials, said Glynda Chu, police spokeswoman

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said, "We are looking forward to seeing the full investigation. We are waiting on the medical examiner.”

An autopsy on the boy had not been completed Monday afternoon.

George Johnson, Department of Human Services spokesman, said information about any child's death is protected by confidentiality laws unless charges are filed by the district attorney.

What happened

It is unclear who was in the home when the child was injured, but it was the boy's mother, Janet Stewart, who called for help. Paramedics said it appeared the boy fell about 3 to 4 feet in his closet and hit his head on a bed, according to a report released Monday.

Chu said emergency workers originally thought he only had a concussion.

Previous investigation

This boy was at the center of a child abuse investigation last year.

On Jan. 9, 2006, Oklahoma City and Edmond police were called when the boy was taken for treatment of injuries to his genital area and dehydration, a police report states.

In the 2006 case, Declan was taken to the Neighborhood Family Clinic, 5909 Northwest Expressway, and later transferred to The Children's Hospital at OU Medical Center in Oklahoma City, reports show. The boy, 3 years old at the time, was admitted to the hospital.

A Department of Human Service worker was called to the hospital and the boy was placed into protective custody, a police report shows.

Read the rest of the story here (subscription).

Tuesday August 7 Oklahoman: Police seek witnesses in '99 death

Police seek witnesses in '99 death
By Bryan Dean
Staff Writer
Investigators with Oklahoma City's re-established cold case squad are sure someone knows who killed Collin Moaning, and they understand why no witness has come forward — no one wants to end up buried next to him.

What happened
•Moaning, 27, was driving a green Camaro in far-northeast Oklahoma City on March 24, 1999, when someone in a maroon pickup opened fire and shot him in the head.

•The car belonged to a friend, a passenger in the car who had testified in a double murder trial three years earlier.

•Oklahoma City police believe the friend was the true target.

•The shooting occurred in the 8000 block of N Highland Road.

•The shooter's vehicle was a maroon Chevrolet extended cab pickup.

Seeking justice

•Detectives with the cold case squad hope time can help persuade witnesses who once feared for their lives to come forward and bring justice for Moaning.

•"That is an affront to the justice system to make an attempt on the life of a state's witness,” Detective Kyle Eastridge said. "It ought to outrage this whole community.”

Are witnesses scared?

•If anyone knew anything, they weren't willing to talk. The leads stopped coming in and no arrest was made, though investigators are convinced the slaying was intended to punish Moaning's friend, whom police don't want to name.

•"We believe there are quite a few people in that area who know who the shooter is, but they are afraid to tell us for obvious reasons,” Eastridge said. "We have a lot of people who are living in fear in that area. The only way for things to change is for someone to take a stand. We just hope there is somebody out there who knows enough.”

Cold case unit

•The Moaning case is the first taken on by the re-established cold case unit, which includes Eastridge and Mike Burke, a former Oklahoma City police detective who is now working for District Attorney David Prater.

•Burke worked for the cold case unit during part of his 18-year career with the police homicide unit. The department got a grant to look for DNA evidence in old unsolved cases.

•"Some of the cases we solved were my old cases,” Burke said. "It's extremely satisfying.”

•There is no grant this time around, and police credit Prater for making the cold case unit happen.

Read the rest of the story HERE.

Sunday July 22 Oklahoman, Drug court discussed at seminar

Drug Court Discussed at Seminar

By Jay F. Marks
Staff Writer, Oklahoman

More than 100 attorneys attended a Thursday seminar about programs that provide alternatives to incarceration in felony cases.

The seminar, which counted as continuing education credit for lawyers, was mandatory for Oklahoma County's prosecutors and public defenders.

Public Defender Bob Ravitz, who sponsored the seminar with District Attorney David Prater, said it is important for attorneys who practice criminal law to understand available programs like community sentencing and drug court.

Ravitz said attorneys need to know who qualifies for the programs and how they work so the criminal justice system can work effectively.

There are about 8,000 felony cases filed in Oklahoma County each year, he said, so officials need options.

Ravitz said the programs allow authorities to provide treatment for offenders with mental health or substance abuse problems and sanction them if they're not doing what they're supposed to do.

Prater said such diversionary programs can reduce recidivism by addressing issues that can lead to criminal behavior.

He said drug court also is a cheaper alternative to incarceration. It costs about $5,000 a year to put someone in drug court, which includes substance abuse treatment and intensive supervision, while it costs at least $18,000 a year for a prison bed.

Prater said he would like to place as many people as possible in the available diversionary programs, especially with Oklahoma's rising prison population.

Oklahoma County's drug court program began in 1998. Officials expect it to have more than 600 participants by fall, thanks to an additional $1 million in funding from the state.

The program's success rate is about 76 percent, meaning that more than three out of four graduates do not get in any more trouble a year after completing the program.

July 17 Oklahoman: Victim shows progress; shooting inquiry doesn't

Victim shows progress; shooting inquiry doesn't

By Augie Frost
Oklahoman Staff Writer

An investigation into the shooting of a 1-year-old girl more than four months ago in northeast Oklahoma City has stalled, but the girl is expected to recover fully, police said

The family of shooting victim Isjanna James has refused to cooperate with the investigation, making it harder to solve the case, police Sgt. Paco Balderrama said.

Isjanna was shot in the head about 2:30 a.m. Feb. 26 while sleeping in the front bedroom of a rental home at 4209 NE 16, police said.

The bullet entered the top of her head and exited through her left cheek, her family said in February.

She was taken in critical condition to OU Medical Center, where she underwent surgery.

She has slowly progressed, lead detective Bill Lord said.

"I think her prognosis is encouraging as far as a full recovery, from what I understand,” Lord said.

‘No new leads'

Despite numerous interviews, the case has gone cold. The case is still open, but "unfortunately there have been no new leads,” Lord said.

Police have dedicated a lot of resources to the case, and even Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater pleaded with the public to come forward, Lord said.

In early March, Prater held a news conference offering leniency on a pending charge to anyone with information on the shooting. The news conference did not yield the results police hoped for, Lord said.

"It's very frustrating. Very frustrating,” Lord said. "Any time anybody — but especially a kid — is shot, it's one that you really want to solve.”

The detective said he knows there is someone out there with information about the shooting, but they have not come forward.

July 8: Norman Transcript, VINE helps public keep tabs on justice system

VINE helps public keep tabs on justice system

The Norman Transcript

Technology is making it possible for crime victims and their families to keep closer tabs on an offender's status in the state's prison system.

VINE technology is now available in 49 of the state's 77 counties, including Cleveland County. Oklahoma County joined the system this month. It came about through the efforts of Attorney General Drew Edmondson, Sheriff John Whetsel and Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater, who grew up in Norman and was a police officer here.

Although it was intended to track violent criminals, the system keeps track of people who go through the state's criminal justice system for any reason. Career criminals often target victims multiple times.

Crime victims will be able to access the VINE Web site and request notification any time an offender's status changes.

VINE (www.vinelink.com) picks up where the the state's Supreme Court case network leaves off. That system, (OSCN.net) allows anyone with a computer and Internet access to check on the status of a case. But after sentencing, that network does not track the whereabouts, parole or release status of any offenders.

Oklahoman Editorial, July 6: Promise kept: DA expanding use of drug court

Promise kept: DA expanding use of drug court

The Oklahoman Editorial July 6

OKLAHOMA County District Attorney David Prater is making good on his campaign promise to make better use of drug courts and save the jail cells for those who present a greater danger to the public.

At the end of 2006, the county's drug court had 250 participants, Prater said. It now has about 450 and that's expected to top 600 this fall. The court hits a milestone this week, with the assignment of a full-time judge.

The focus on taking advantage of and expanding drug courts is an important one. In Oklahoma County and elsewhere, jail cells are packed. Many inmates are violent offenders who need to be locked up. Others are low-level violators with drug-related crimes who could be more productive citizens with the right combination of punishment and treatment. Routing more people through drug courts also could help the county's clogged crime docket, speeding up justice.

Studies have shown that drug courts are working. Participants are five times less likely to reoffend than those who stay on the traditional criminal justice path. It's also cheaper for taxpayers. Drug court costs about $5,000 per year per participant versus $18,000 to $23,000 for those sent to prison.

Participants must be nonviolent offenders whose crimes are related to a drug or alcohol addiction. And there's nothing easy about it. It can take a year or longer for participants to finish the program, which includes mandatory drug testing.

We'll be eager to see the drug court program's statistics as more offenders participate. Drug and alcohol addictions can be devastating for families and especially children, overwhelming the corrections system and social service agencies that must deal with the aftermath. If Prater's office can maintain the success rate of helping people turn away from crime and beat their addictions, that will be a huge accomplishment.

AP: June 24, 2007 - New DA Won't Drop Murder Charge Against Meth Addict

New DA Won't Drop Murder Charge Against Meth Addict

AP - 6/24/2007 2:09 PM - Updated 6/24/2007 2:10 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) _ Oklahoma County's new district attorney plans to continue pursuing a murder conviction against a methamphetamine addict whose baby was born stillborn more than three years ago.

Theresa Lee Hernandez, now 30, was charged with first-degree murder after the stillborn birth in April 2004, following 32 weeks of pregnancy. An autopsy on the child indicated lethal amounts of methamphetamine, although Hernandez's supporters have said it can't be proven that her drug use led to the stillborn birth.

Hernandez became the first woman in Oklahoma history to be charged with murder of her unborn child. Hernandez, who has been denied bail, has been jailed since September 2004. Her trial is scheduled to begin on Oct. 15.

``It's not fair that she's charged with murder,'' said attorney Robin Shellow, who joined Milwaukee attorney Jim Dixon on Hernandez's case at the request of the New York-based National Advocates for Pregnant Women.

Despite those complaints, David Prater _ who became the county's district attorney earlier this year _ said he is convinced the stillborn boy would have survived if not for Hernandez's drug use. State law considers a pregnancy viable at 24 weeks.

Prater said those who think he shouldn't prosecute Hernandez in the case likely do not understand its history. Prater noted that the state Department of Human Services has taken away Hernandez's custody of five children, including two who had developmental disabilities traced to her drug abuse.

Read the rest of the story here.

KTEN: June 25, Gang members meet in OC, call for truce

Gang members meet in OC, call for truce

Associated Press - June 25, 2007 9:15 AM ET

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Hundreds of people including members of 17 rival gangs met in a northeast Oklahoma City park in an effort to call a truce.

Gang member Dana Johnson says the meeting is about the rival gangs becoming one gang - or one family - and taking care of each other.

Read the rest of the story here.

Oklahoman June 3

Drug program funds OK'd

Jay Marks

Staff Writer - Oklahoman

David Prater is devoted to putting more people into drug court instead of state prisons.

Read the Oklahoman story here.

Oklahoman, May 20

County vendors fear a shakedown
By Randy Ellis and John Estus
Staff Writers - The Oklahoman

The state county commissioners association mailed letters to private vendors this year seeking donations for a scholarship program to benefit commissioners' children who are headed to college, an investigation by The Oklahoman has confirmed..

"There's so many things wrong with (the letters),” former U.S. Attorney Bill Price said. "Obviously, it could be viewed by vendors as being extortion.
"I don't believe that any public officials or a public officials' association should set up a scholarship fund for their children and solicit funds from people who do business with the government,” said Price, whose office led a multiyear investigation of county commissioners that culminated in the early 1980s with 162 commissioners and 62 suppliers convicted of kickback and bribery-related charges.

The controversial letters encouraged vendor affiliates to donate to the scholarship fund through an auction and golf tournament.

Several vendors complained privately to The Oklahoman that they felt pressured to give if they wanted to continue getting business from counties.

However, the executive director and officers of the association said extortion was never their intention, and it never crossed their minds the letters might be interpreted that way.

"At no time has anybody been pressured to give to this,” said Gayle Ward, executive director of the Association of County Commissioners of Oklahoma. "This was just supposed to be a fun thing.”

Echoing Ward's comments were Johnston County Commissioner Mike Thompson, who is president of the commissioners' association, and Roger Mills County Commissioner Jerry Dean, the state group's secretary-treasurer.

"I don't even know who donated,” Dean said, adding that donations play no role in his purchasing decisions.

"It don't make no difference to me,” Thompson said. "I come from an extremely poor county. Usually, we buy what's the cheapest.”

Ward said the association may halt vendor participation in the scholarship program, which raised about $10,000 for scholarships this year.

"Now that it has caused a problem, we probably won't do it,” she said.

Are the letters legal?
It is questionable whether the letters are legal.
Price said the solicitation may violate the commissioners' oath of office, which states public officials will not knowingly receive, "directly or indirectly, any money or other valuable thing, for the performance or nonperformance of any act or duty pertaining to my office.”

Read the rest of the story including District Attorney Prater's comments here.

Oklahoman, May 16

State seeking to improve offender law

By Jennifer Mock

The Oklahoman

Onerous living restrictions on sex offenders approved in recent years by the Legislature are driving dangerous child molesters underground and unduly punishing lesser offenders, law enforcement officials said Tuesday.

A tiered system for sex offenders, ranking them on their risk of re-offending, would help law enforcement focus its resources toward the most dangerous criminals, Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said.

Background
Prater, along with other Oklahoma City and Tulsa law enforcement officials, were at the Capitol on Tuesday talking to lawmakers about their concerns with a law restricting sex offenders from living within 2,000 feet of schools, day cares, playgrounds or parks.

Under those guidelines, sex offenders don't have many places they can live, especially in urban communities.

Sgt. Gary Stansill with the sex crimes unit of the Tulsa Police Department said they have seen a drop in the number of offenders registering because of the residency restrictions.

"If we know where they are, we can watch them,” he said.

A tiered system is being worked on in House Bill 1760, which is currently in conference committee.

There, House and Senate members of both political parties will negotiate the bill's final language.

Rep. Gus Blackwell, author of the bill, said an unintended consequence of putting more restrictions on sex offenders is leaving more unregistered and may lead to them re-offending.

"This is not a soft-on-crime bill; it is a tough-on-crime bill because it ensures these guys get registered, which is key,” said Blackwell, R-Goodwell.

Story continues here.

KOTV - May 9

DA Accuses Welfare Worker Of Lying

AP - 5/9/2007 2:28 PM - Updated 5/9/2007 2:31 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A 3-year-old boy who drowned in a bathtub in his Oklahoma City home was returned to the home because a state child welfare worker lied when she told authorities the house had been cleaned up, District Attorney David Prater said.

"I'm waiting to find out what the Department of Human Services is going to do with that worker," Prater told The Oklahoman.

DHS, which refused to comment on Prater's allegations or identify the worker, has come under criticism since the March 21 drowning death of William Barnard, who had Down syndrome.

Oklahoma City police officers had removed Barnard and two siblings from the home March 16 -- five days before the boy's death -- citing squalid living conditions.

Three days later, the children were returned to the home in accordance with a recommendation that a state child welfare worker made to an Oklahoma County assistant district attorney.

Two days after that, William drowned. His mother, Alzaina Marie Barnard, 25, has been charged with child neglect. An investigator said Alzaina Barnard admitted leaving the 3-year-old boy and his 5-year-old sister in a bathtub for at least 2 hours while she played games on the Internet.

DHS released a report last week that stated one of its child welfare workers had visited the home on the day the children were allowed to return and found the home had been cleaned up.

Prater said the contents of the report are consistent with what the DHS worker told his assistant, Jane Brown, which prompted her to agree to allow the children to return home.

However, the report is inconsistent with the filth police officers once again reported finding when they went to the home after the drowning.

Prater said he doesn't believe the house was cleaned up and made fit for children in three days, only to return to squalid conditions two days later.

"It's obvious that house could not have been cleaned up on Monday and then be in the condition officers found it in on Wednesday," he said. "There is just no way possible. So, yeah, we question the validity of that information that was provided to Jane. We just know it was false. It had to have been."

Prater said he is also concerned about what the child welfare worker didn't tell his assistant prosecutor. The worker didn't reveal that this was the fourth complaint in 16 months Oklahoma DHS workers had received about children in the home living in dirty or unsafe conditions, Prater said.

The worker also didn't reveal that the family had previous encounters with child protective services officials in Texas, which was "apparently why they left Texas," Prater said.

Courthouse drama not good for EOC

Editorial
The Sunday Sun

— Soap opera-like drama is nothing new in Oklahoma County government, but the events over the last two weeks is setting a new standard.
District 2 Commissioner Brent Rinehart’s indictment on 10 felony charges relating to his 2004 campaign for that office remains the central character in the script. Rinehart and his campaign manager, former state legislator Tim Pope, are accused of soliciting illegal campaign contributions by setting up “straw donors” — people who have already contributed the maximum or close to it funneling even more money to Rinehart’s campaign through other people who didn’t actually donate a penny to the campaign.
Pope was the political operative who allegedly misused political funds to set up a telephone bank campaign against District 1 Commissioner Jim Roth a few years ago, but that bit of hanky-panky has been already dealt with.
In the wake of his indictment, a defiant and clearly angry Rinehart made an unexpected appearance at a news conference called by the other eight elected county officials on April 4, vowing to stay on the job and calling his indictment an example of “good ole boy politics” at the courthouse.
This past week, Rinehart took his defiance a step further, filing complaints with the Oklahoma Bar Association against State Attorney General Drew Edmondson for public statements made by Edmondson in announcing the indictments .
Perhaps the only positive to come out of this mess is the performance of the county’s new district attorney, David Prater. Being the county’s chief law enforcement officer, Prater could have made a lot of political points with the matter, but instead has stayed in the background, offering solid advice to the other two commissioners that they couldn’t suspend Rinehart because the allegations deal with conduct before he joined the board.
The concern is how much this will affect the residents of District 2, which includes most of Eastern Oklahoma County. Although Rinehart has said the legal matter will not affect his performance as commissioner, it must be noted he was already the odd-man out on many issues going before the Commission. Roth and District 3 Commissioner Ray Vaughn are in lockstep concerning many issues, leaving Rinehart as the dissenter. The legal problems facing Eastern Oklahoma County’s commissioner can’t help.

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