Oklahoma News Archives

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' The state's largest state workers organization says it agrees with Republican state Senate leaders who are calling for a special session of the Legislature in December.

Oklahoma City police have discovered an infant in the back seat of a car buried beneath items they believe were stolen in home burglaries.

The proposed changes would affect any agency that contracts with the state. Under the new plan, only licensed alcohol and drug counselors with a master's degree would be allowed to provide assessments, oversee treatment plans or provide psychotherapy.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol is reporting that both lanes of westbound Interstate 40 in Okfuskee County are shut down because of an overturned tractor-trailer. The OHP reported the lane closures about 6 a.m. Monday east of Okemah at mile marker 227.

Authorities say an Ada teenager died after he crashed his vehicle during a police chase in Pontotac County.

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' Federal economic stimulus money will be used to fund more than 20 drinking water projects in Oklahoma.

A state lawmaker is raising concerns about a plan to beef up the state's electronic insurance verification system.

State game wardens are investigating a reported sighting of an alligator at a pond at a park in northwest Oklahoma City.

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' The University of Oklahoma's plan to power its Norman campus with wind energy was approved Wednesday by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission.

Gov. Brad Henry and First Lady Kim Henry will be joined by schoolchildren from across the state for the annual lighting of the State Capitol Christmas tree.

Oklahoma Wesleyan has tied an NAIA Division II men's basketball record with its 27th consecutive win.

A former Marine has been arraigned on six counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of four people whose bodies were found in a burning home, including a prostitute featured on the HBO reality series "Cathouse." David Tyner appeared Monday morning by video before Oklahoma County Special Judge Russell Hall, who denied bail.

The first seven members of the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Hall of Fame have been selected.

For the first time, AAA's popular Tipsy Tow service over the Thanksgiving holiday - from 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov.

A preliminary autopsy report for a prostitute featured on the HBO reality series "Cathouse" shows that she was shot, stabbed and slashed multiple times.

Nov. 21--The final piece of steel was lifted high and placed on the uppermost tip of the building on the University of Oklahoma campus Thursday.

The offices of Oklahoma's governor and lieutenant governor were temporarily evacuated Monday after a man threw a package onto an X-ray machine at a security checkpoint on the east side of the state Capitol.

In this May 8, 2007 file photo, Dr. Jay Chapman holds a human skull from Nepal that has been hand decorated with silver at his home in Napa, Calif .

U.S. Congressman Dan Boren voted to provide local firefighters with the tools and resources they need to prevent and fight fires, and to continue keeping communities safe.

Corrections officials say several inmates were hurt after disturbances erupted at three prisons in Oklahoma.

More investigators are joining the fight against Internet predators thanks to federal stimulus dollars.

About $10,000 worth of jewelry was stolen from one of four people found shot to death last week inside a burning home in Oklahoma City, police said Thursday.

An attorney for an Oklahoma man accused of hiring his handyman to kill a Fargo, N.D., dentist says his client plans to waive extradition and return to North Dakota.

The American Automobile Association predicts Thanksgiving travel among Oklahomans will be up about 7.5 percent this year.

WOODWARD a ' More than 40 whooping cranes have been spotted on or around the Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge during the past week.

A public employees' group has lodged a complaint against the governing board of the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, alleging a violation of the state's Open Meeting Act.

Brad Henry to call a special session of the Legislature for December. Henry, a Democrat, had suggested earlier this week that a January special session might be possible to deal with the state's ongoing budget issues, after the state Board of Equalization releases revenue estimates on Dec.

A federal judge scolded the 30-some attorneys on Oklahoma's pollution case against the Arkansas poultry industry Thursday, accusing them of bombarding him with "thousands" of documents as the bench trial dragged into its 25th day.

Authorities are investigating the possibility that narcotics are missing from the ambulance service Medicus in Seminole.

U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton on Wednesday granted a motion by Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson to dismiss the lawsuit filed by the Tarrant Regional Water District.

The number of people expected to travel at least 50 miles from home during the Thanksgiving holiday is expected to rise both nationwide and in Oklahoma over last year.

State health officials say the swine flu vaccine is now available to all Oklahomans.

Oklahoma City attorney Jim Priest is the latest candidate to announce his plans to seek the attorney general post in 2010.

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' Gov. Brad Henry on Tuesday put out a three-point plan to address the state's budget challenges.

State health officials say all Oklahomans who want to reduce their risk of H1N1 infection are now eligible to receive H1N1 influenza vaccine.

A suspect in the killing of four people in Oklahoma City, including a prostitute featured in the HBO reality series 'Cathouse,' turned himself in to authorities on Tuesday, police said.

Many state lawmakers asked Governor Henry to dip into his discretionary fund to help senior nutrition centers.

Please note that many events, especially court appearances, are subject to change at the last minute.

With Oklahoma facing budget cuts because of the economic downturn the governor and legislative leaders have different ideas on use of the state's Rainy Day Fund.

Oklahoma's American Indian tribes have received more than $135 million in federal stimulus dollars, and many are hastily coming up with suitable ways to use the money.

Temperatures will soon make their way toward freezing, accompanied by the opportunity for snow and ice - making this a good time for Oklahomans to become winter-weather prepared.

The owner of a Nevada brothel featured on the HBO reality show "Cathouse" said Thursday he fears one of his employees is among the four people whose bodies were found in a burning house in Oklahoma City.Dennis Hof, the owner of the Moonlite BunnyRanch near Carson City, Nev., said he has not spoken with Brooke Phillips for more than a week and is ...

The Oklahoma Department of Human Services is battling a federal class action lawsuit.

The Oklahoma Hall of Fame has added seven new members, including a posthumous honor for basketball star and musician Wayman Tisdale.

Dennis Hof is the owner of the Moonlite BunnyRanch. He says he has not spoken with 21-year-old Brooke Phillips for more than a week and is unable to reach her.

DHS Secretary Howard Hendricks urged a state Senate budget panel Thursday to maintain current funding levels for the agency that provides services to abused and neglected children and the elderly.

No one thinks of them as "real cars" although the Wheego Whip, above, tries to be the Cadillac of NEVs but they certainly serve a purpose and can meet the transportation needs of some people, some of the time.

Many people agree education is the key to our future. Oklahoma has an opportunity to get their share of $4.3 billion in federal stimulus money to spend on education, but to get it, the state has to compete in the race of a lifetime.

A child welfare expert says five foster children in the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Human Services were scalded in bath water, sexually molested, beaten with tree switches and belts and hit in the mouth - a pattern of abuse the expert called "outrageous and immoral." The 121-page report by independent consultant Peg McCartt Hess was filed ...

Oklahoma's revenues came in below expectations for the 10th straight month in October, but Treasurer Scott Meacham said there is hope that economic conditions in the state could soon improve.

In Oklahoma, the wind famously comes sweepin' down the plains. Today, that wind represents more than a song lyric or the harbinger of unpredictable weather: It represents the potential for clean energy and jobs for Oklahomans.

Jason Hunt was one of 13 victims of last week's deadly shooting in Fort Hood. a oeHe just wanted to help the world, help everyone, strangers, everyone.

There may be a last ditch effort to keep the kitchen open at a metro senior center that recently stopped serving meals.

Ken Miller has filed campaign paperwork indicating his plans to seek the state treasurer post in 2010.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation is dishing out more than $450 million in stimulus dollars, but they're not all going to Oklahoma companies.

State Sen. Susan Paddack is entering the race to become Oklahoma's next state superintendent.

A list of some of the state tax exemptions, credits and deductions approved by lawmakers and the Oklahoma Tax Commission's estimate of their cost: - Livestock purchased outside Oklahoma and brought into the state for feeding or breeding purposes, and which is later resold, $48 million.

Oklahoma gives away billions of dollars in tax revenue through hundreds of exemptions, credits and deductions that some lawmakers say the state may no longer be able to afford as it slips deeper into a revenue shortfall.

The bill that could drastically change health care is one step closer to becoming law.

Two state lawmakers from Tulsa are forming a bipartisan caucus to promote the interests of Oklahoma's second largest city.

One of the biggest complaints with President Obama's $787 billion stimulus package is not enough money going toward infrastructure projects.

The state of Wisconsin is offering Mercury Marine Inc. an incentive package worth up to $70 million in order to consolidate manufacturing in Fond du Lac instead of Oklahoma.

Two Oklahoma senators plan to spend the night outside the state Capitol to draw attention to cuts to senior nutrition programs due to a deepening state budget shortfall.

Over the past few months I've visited with thousands of Oklahomans who are concerned about how the health care reform bills moving through Congress will affect their lives and their families' lives.

New unemployment numbers paint a bleak picture about the U.S. economy in crisis.

The Internal Revenue Service is looking for hundreds of people in Oklahoma, but it has some good news for them.

A circus elephant that escaped and was hit by a sport utility vehicle in northwestern Oklahoma is apparently back with its owner.

Oklahoma family members of a 22-year-old soldier stationed at Fort Hood have been notified that he was one of the 13 people killed when an Army psychiatrist went on a shooting rampage at the Texas base.

It's not unusual to see a deer or a cow crossing Oklahoma's rural highways. But an elephant? An Oklahoma couple driving home from church nearly rammed a pachyderm that had escaped from a nearby circus late Wednesday.

Lieutenant Michael Behenna says he killed the suspect Al-Queda terrorist in self-defense. Herbert MacDonnell, the nation's leading expert on blood spatter and crime scene evidence, found evidence that supported Behenna's story.

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' A state lawmaker says he plans to file legislation to protect Oklahomans from encroachments on speech, assembly and religious beliefs.

A federal grand jury has indicted eight Mexican nationals who are accused of plotting to traffic drugs in northeast Oklahoma.

A statewide " Vaccination Blitz" is scheduled this Saturday, November 7, as Oklahoma's county health departments work to vaccinate as many Oklahomans against H1N1 flu as time and vaccine supplies allow.

Hundreds of seniors waved empty paper plates Wednesday to protest cutbacks in nutrition programs for the elderly that could eliminate thousands of meals for some of Oklahoma's most vulnerable citizens.

Hundreds of seniors are at the state Capitol to express their frustration over cuts to nutrition programs for the elderly.

State prison officials have asked for about 15,000 doses of swine flu vaccine, but state health officials say none has been provided and there are no plans to do so yet.

In June, state officials created a statewide fraud hotline to give law enforcement another way to prevent fraud, abuse, or waste of stimulus money.

Higher education officials in the Sooner State are seeking more money. The governing body of Oklahoma's 25 colleges and universities approved a budget request on Tuesday of nearly $1.1 billion for the next fiscal year.

OKLAHOMA CITY a ' Attorney General Drew Edmondson wants the state tobacco trust's board of directors to help fund a cancer research and treatment center at the University of Oklahoma.

A birth date is now required to purchase some common cold medicines from Oklahoma pharmacies.

The director of the non-profit organization Junior Achievement of Oklahoma has been arrested for child pornography.

However, it's becoming more difficult to accomplish this goal due to rising ED volumes, driven by the poor economy and the influx of patients due to the flu season.

Almost 200 pieces of legislation passed by the Oklahoma Legislature last spring becn law Sunday, including measures that change the way Oklahomans file and litigate lawsuits, promote wind energy and make health care more available and affordable for the uninsured.

This time, Carrie Underwood feels as if she has some room to play. She has a healthy string of chart-topping singles under her belt since winning American Idol in 2005.

Records show some Oklahoma tag agents are not following a state law that requires them to ask customers to consider donating $1 for organ donation education.

Fortunately we got to turn our clocks back last night, so we got an extra hour's sleep last night.

BELFAST : Twenty-seven years ago, Frank Wareham directed a production of "Oklahoma!" at Belfast Area High School that has gone down in local history.

Fargo police said a suspect is in custody in Oklahoma in the slaying of a Fargo dentist.

The state Department of Human Services says more than 46,000 grandparents are raising more than 57,000 grandkids in Oklahoma.

Oct. 29--Scientists at Oklahoma City biopharmaceutical company Pure Protein LLC have achieved a breakthrough that could have substantial applications for the $37 billion autoimmune disease market, transplantation, infectious diseases, cancer and other new disease targets, the company said.