Oklahoma

Newspaper Sues Newspaper in Spat Over Circulation Claims

An Oklahoma newspaper publisher filed a libel suit against a competitor, after the rival publication refused to retract claims that the Tulsa World had inflated its circulation figures. But the Urban Tulsa Weekly and its editor and publisher will now be dropped from the suit, because the weekly has agreed…

Jan 22, 2009 6:17 PM CST

FBI Appeals Order Allowing Deposition of Okla. Bombing Conspirator

The FBI is asking a federal appeals court to reverse a judge’s order allowing a lawyer to take the videotaped deposition of Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols. The order permits Salt Lake City lawyer Jesse Trentadue to take the deposition of Nichols and death-row inmate David Paul Hammer, who…

Nov 7, 2008 5:24 PM CST

Okla. Law Requiring Ultrasound Before Abortion is Challenged

A suit has been filed challenging an Oklahoma law that bars physicians from performing abortions unless they first conduct an ultrasound and describe the fetus. Oklahoma is the fourth state mandating ultrasounds but the only state requiring the doctor to turn the ultrasound screen toward the patient and to describe…

Oct 13, 2008 12:01 PM CDT

GC of Oklahoma Bar Gets Probation in Groping Case

The general counsel of the Oklahoma Bar Association has entered a reduced plea in connection with allegations he groped and bit a woman in a suite at a racetrack and casino. Dan Murdock entered an Alford plea on Thursday to a reduced misdemeanor charge of outraging public indecency, report the…

Oct 13, 2008 11:26 AM CDT

Okla. Bar GC Resigns, Faces Sexual Battery Charges

The longtime general counsel of the Oklahoma Bar Association has resigned as he fights charges of sexual battery. Dan Murdock’s resignation is effective at the end of the year, the Tulsa World reports. He was accused of groping a woman in a suite at a racetrack and casino and biting…

Oct 7, 2008 11:45 AM CDT

Missing Okla. Lawyer Found Dead in Seeming Suicide

An Oklahoma probate attorney who has been missing since last week was found dead today not far from his Lake Texoma home. Charles Barnes, 57, had a single gunshot wound to the head, and appears to have committed suicide, reports a local ABC News affiliate. He had been charged earlier…

Sep 24, 2008 8:23 PM CDT

Ex-Judge Disbarred for Using Penis Pump During Trials

A former Oklahoma judge convicted for using a penis pump while presiding over trials has been disbarred. The Oklahoma Supreme Court said Judge Donald Thompson brought discredit on the judiciary and the legal profession by his conduct, and a severe sanction was warranted, the Oklahoman reports. Thompson had been convicted…

Sep 24, 2008 3:55 PM CDT

No Sign of Missing Okla. Attorney Accused of Embezzling

An Oklahoma attorney who has been missing since last week apparently walked over to a vehicle at his Lake Texoma home and got in. But from there the trail of the longtime Duncan lawyer grows cold, and authorities think Charles Barnes’ absence has something to do with charge filed against…

Sep 23, 2008 5:54 PM CDT

Federal Judge Axes Ex-DA’s Libel Suit Over John Grisham’s ‘Innocent Man’

A libel suit filed over a true-crime book written by best-selling author and attorney John Grisham has been dismissed by a federal judge. Grisham’s book, The Innocent Man, focuses on the wrongful conviction of two men for the 1982 murder of an Oklahoma cocktail waitress, and U.S. District Judge Ronald…

Sep 18, 2008 10:27 PM CDT

Ex-Okla. Appeals Judge Disbarred for False Expense Reports

A former judge on Oklahoma’s top court for criminal appeals has been disbarred for submitting false expense reports to cover the costs of visiting his jailed son and purchases made by the woman who gave birth to the boy. Steve Lile resigned from the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals in…

Sep 17, 2008 1:42 PM CDT

Disbarred Lawyer Plays Another Disbarred Lawyer in Oliver Stone Movie

An Oklahoma City lawyer who was recently disbarred has a role as I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby in an upcoming movie and is seeking other work as an actor. Mike Gassaway has a “great commercial look,” according to his agent, and is seeking work in commercials and other roles in Texas,…

Jul 7, 2008 2:12 PM CDT

Okla. Bar GC Accused of Groping and Biting Woman

A crime report detailing accusations against the general counsel of the Oklahoma Bar Association alleges he groped a woman in a Remington Park suite and bit her breast, the Oklahoman reports. The Oklahoma City lawyer, Dan Murdock, was arrested shortly before midnight on Saturday while hosting a wedding shower in…

Jul 1, 2008 11:03 AM CDT

Okla. Judge Sues Accusers in Indecent Exposure Case

An Oklahoma judge who has been charged with indecent exposure in a criminal case has filed a civil defamation action against his accusers, one of whom reportedly is his ex-girlfriend. Judge Jesse Harris, who sits in Tulsa County District Court, contends in a suit filed yesterday in the same court…

Jun 26, 2008 9:09 PM CDT

Oklahoma Law Firms Benefit from State’s Oil-and-Gas Economy

Oklahoma’s oil-and-gas driven economy is good news for the state’s law firms, which report they aren’t experiencing the kind of downturn that is hitting lawyers elsewhere. Among the firms reporting healthy work opportunities were McAfee and Taft, Hartzog Conger, Crowe and Dunlevy, and Phillips McFall, the Journal Record reports. Tom…

Jun 18, 2008 1:30 PM CDT

Okla. Attorney Disbarred; Court Cites ‘Unbelievable’ Testimony

An Oklahoma attorney has been disbarred by the state supreme court after allegations that he forged a letter under another lawyer’s letterhead, purporting to sign it with that lawyer’s name, and sought to trade legal services for sexual favors, among other claimed misconduct. The lawyer, Michael Gassaway, “obtain[ed] the signature…

Jun 17, 2008 9:36 PM CDT