Oklahoma Governor unlikely to stay execution
From the Associated Press
A spokesman for Gov. Mary Fallin said the governor is unlikely to stay the execution of Timothy Stemple, who is scheduled to die on Thursday.
He said Tuesday that Fallin reviewed the case and said it would be “very unlikely” a stay would be granted.
The Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty met with Fallin’s deputy general counsel Rebecca Frazier to plead for a stay of execution.
Coalition co-chair Lydia Polley said Stemple’s family has compiled evidence that was never presented in court.
Stemple was sentenced to death for the 1996 murder of his 30-year-old wife, Trisha Stemple, who was beaten with a baseball bat and run over with a pickup truck in Tulsa.
Pittsburg County man convicted of child molestation
A Pittsburg County man accused of inappropriately touching a 5-year-old girl was convicted Thursday of child molestation.
The McAlester News-Capital reports:
Leslie D. Wolfenbarger Sr., age 62, faced a jury Wednesday and Thursday after being accused of inappropriately touching the private areas of a five-year-old girl.
After deliberating for less than three hours, the jury came back with the guilty verdict.
Read the full story here.
Parent makes bomb threat at Stroud Elementary School
Stroud police said an angry parent made a bomb threat at an elementary school Thursday morning.
Police Chief Clint Gaylord said an employee told officers a parent made a threat about 8 a.m. Thursday at Stroud Elementary School, located at 220 West 2 Street. He said the woman made the comment that “she would just bomb the school,” prompting officers to investigate the situation. (more…)
Broken Arrow police look for robber
Broken Arrow police are asking for the public’s help in finding a man involved in an armed robbery Sunday.
Officers were called out about 7:45 p.m. Sunday to a reported armed robbery at the Mighty Mart convenience store at 23806 E 71 in Broken Arrow.
Police said a man entered the store, produced a handgun and demanded cash. The gunman then fled with an undisclosed amount of money.
He is described as a white male about 6-feet tall and weighs 180 pounds.
Anyone with any information about this robbery is encouraged to contact the Broken Arrow Police Department at (918) 259-8400.
Local race car driver shot to death during domestic dispute
A local race car driver was shot to death Saturday morning during a domestic dispute, the Tulsa World reports.
According to the Wagoner County Sheriff Bob Colbert, Donald Ray Crawford III, 24, is dead after his maternal grandfather, Daniel J. Garcia, 74, entered the residence and began shooting about 9 a.m. at the residence just outside of Broken Arrow.
Garcia shot his daughter (Crawford’s mother), Jodie Lynn Crawford, in the hip while she was trying to protect her son, Colbert said. Garcia also died at the scene, and the state medical examiner has not determined the cause of death.
Crawford III was known as a hero in 2008 for saving the life of a driver whose car caught on fire after a race in Oklahoma City.
Photo by Tulsa World Photographer Cory Young: Local racer Donnie Ray Crawford, 24, shown in this 2008 photo after he saved a 12-year-old driver from a burning car, was shot to death on Saturday, Wagoner County police said.
Broken Arrow police officer suspended amid rape allegation
The Tulsa World reports that a Broken Arrow police officer has been suspended due to an investigation into a rape allegation.
Staff Writer David Harper reports:
The name of the officer was not released, but Broken Arrow Police Maj. Mark Irwin described him as a six-year veteran of the force. He said the officer was suspended with pay on Friday. (more…)
Okmulgee County Courthouse evacuated after bomb threat
Officials are following up on leads after a bomb threat at the Okmulgee County Courthouse Wednesday.
Okmulgee County Undersheriff Fred McGuire Jr. wrote in a news release Thursday that deputies responded shortly before 8:30 a.m. Wednesday to the courthouse at 314 W 7. He said the bomb threat was called into the clerk’s office. (more…)
Reward offered in Tulsa arson fire
A $3,500 reward is being offered for information about an arsonist who set a house fire Saturday that led to the injury of a Tulsa firefighter.
Tulsa World reporter Amanda Bland reports:
James P. O’Neal is being treated for complications of smoke inhalation. Other firefighters pulled him from a burning home in north Tulsa on Saturday.
(more…)
Tulsa duplex fire that killed toddler may be meth related
Tulsa World reports police arrested a Tulsa man Thursday for his involvement in a duplex fire that killed a toddler. Authorities say the fire may be meth related.
Jacob Ancen Bell, 35, was booked into the Tulsa Jail with $62,500 bail on two complaints of child endangerment and three drug-related complaints after investigators found meth lab components in the duplex, records show.
The Tulsa Fire Department said in a release that fire investigators arrested Bell about 3:30 p.m. in connection with the 6 a.m. fire in the 1400 block of West Admiral Boulevard.
Investigators found methamphetamine, drug manufacturing components and drug paraphernalia in the duplex, according to his arrest report.
The World reports the 15-month-old toddler was found in a back bedroom where the fire was concentrated. Read more about this story by visiting the Tulsa World’s website.
Body found after house fire in Tulsa
Tulsa World reports that a body was found in a home after a house fire early Thursday.
The house in the 200 block of West Tecumseh Street was consumed by a blaze when firefighters arrived about 5:30 a.m., District Chief Andy Teeter said. The roof collapsed minutes later.
Read more about the fire and investigation by clicking here.
Photo taken by Tulsa World–Story by reporter Zack Stoycoff.
