Articles written by Sean Murphy
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GOP Oklahoma lawmaker criticized for transgender comments
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Oklahoma lawmaker who helped revive a bill to ban transgender athletes from participating in women's sports is coming under fire for saying transgender people "have a mental illness." Rep. Justin Humphrey, a Republican from...
Oklahoma Legislature OKs bill to crack down on protesters
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A Republican-backed bill aimed at cracking down on protests by increasing penalties for blocking roadways and granting immunity to motorists who kill or injure rioters received final legislative approval on Wednesday. The state...
EXPLAINER: How does an officer use a gun instead of a Taser?
A suburban Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot a Black man during a weekend traffic stop accidentally drew her firearm instead of a stun gun, the city's police chief said Monday. Although rare, a string of similar incidents has happened in...
Oklahoma court tosses 5 more first-degree murder convictions
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma’s highest criminal appeals court tossed out five more first-degree murder convictions on Thursday based on a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision about criminal jurisdiction in Indian Country. Two of the rulings by...
Police: Oklahoma jail worker beaten, stabbed by inmates
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — An Oklahoma County Detention Center employee who was taken hostage over the weekend was beaten and stabbed by inmates during the ordeal, police said Monday. The Oklahoma City Police Department released additional details about...
Stitt gets vaccinated as Oklahoma expands eligibility
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt received a COVID-19 vaccine on Monday as state health officials opened vaccine eligibility to everyone in the state over age 16. Stitt, a Republican who in July became the first U.S. governor to...
Flood of Capitol riot, tribal cases swamps US prosecutors
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department's to-do list was already daunting, especially with this year's flood of pandemic-delayed federal cases. And now two very different legal concerns — insurrection cases in Washington and tribal land... Full story
Oklahoma panel advances convicted killer's commutation
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma's Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-1 on Monday to advance death row inmate Julius Jones' request for a reduced sentence, setting up the possibility that he could avoid lethal injection. The board's approval moves Jones'...
Oklahoma prosecutor urges panel to reject inmate's claims
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The evidence implicating an Oklahoma death row inmate whose case has drawn national attention is overwhelming and his application for a commutation is filled with "demonstrable falsehoods," Oklahoma County's top prosecutor wrot...
10 death row inmates in Oklahoma could get new trials
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — As many as 10 death row inmates in Oklahoma, more than one-fifth of the state's prisoners condemned to die, could escape execution because of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling concerning criminal jurisdiction in Indian...
New legislation would protect drivers who hit protestors
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — When massive demonstrations against racial injustice erupted across the nation last summer, protesters used an increasingly common tactic to draw attention to their cause: swarming out onto major roads to temporarily paralyze...
Oklahoma governor seeks improved relations in third session
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is hopeful for an improved relationship with his fellow Republicans in the Legislature when the 2021 session begins Monday after an acrimonious split last year over a breakdown in budget negotiations....
Oklahoma governor delivers third State of the State speech
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt delivered his third State of the State speech to lawmakers Monday, painting a rosy picture of the state's economic rebound and vowing to take advantage of the reopened economy to help lure more...
Oklahoma seeking to return $2M worth of hydroxychloroquine
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma attorney general's office is attempting to return $2 million worth of a malaria drug once touted by former President Donald Trump as an effective treatment for COVID-19, a spokesman said Wednesday. Alex...
Oklahoma Supreme Court rejects Stitt's gambling compacts
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma Supreme Court has rejected gambling compacts that Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt negotiated with two Oklahoma-based Native American tribes, delivering the first-term governor another setback in his attempt to...
Capitol attack stirs memories of Oklahoma bombing
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The attack on the U.S. Capitol by an angry mob of President Donald Trump's supporters shocked many Americans who thought such a violent assault by their fellow countrymen wasn't possible. But for Oklahoma City bombing survivor... Full story
Oklahoma House rejects proposed coronavirus safety measures
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Republican-led Oklahoma House on Tuesday rejected an attempt by Democrats to require members to wear masks on the House floor and take other steps to minimize the spread of the coronavirus. The House and Senate each convene...
Oklahoma moves to vaccine's Phase 2, plans to release app
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahomans age 65 and older will begin receiving their vaccinations this week, and health officials announced Monday they plan to release a mobile phone application as early as Thursday that will allow residents to schedule an...
Curfew reprieve extended for Oklahoma bars, restaurants
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Bars and restaurants across Oklahoma will be able to stay open past Gov. Kevin Stitt's ordered 11 p.m. curfew well into the new year while a lawsuit brought by a group of bar owners is litigated. An Oklahoma County judge was...
Health leader expects 175,000 vaccinations by year's end
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma health officials could begin vaccinating people in the second phase of the state's distribution plan as early as next week and expect nearly 175,000 high-risk Oklahomans to be vaccinated by the end of the year, the...
Oklahoma official: Second vaccine helps expedite delivery
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The arrival of doses of the newly approved Moderna vaccine in Oklahoma week will expedite the state's effort to quickly deliver vaccinations because it doesn't require the same ultra-cold storage as the Pfizer shot, health...
AP: Oklahoma spent $87M on medical gear in early virus wave
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — In the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, Oklahoma spent about $87 million on personal protective gear and medical equipment, much of it going to companies that were quickly formed as states scrambled to buy items such...
Oklahoma governor's holiday plans flout CDC, virus surge
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma's Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt said Thursday he planned to attend a college football game over the weekend and spend Thanksgiving with his parents, even as coroanvirus cases in the state continued to surge this week and...
2 Oklahoma lawmakers confirm positive tests for coronavirus
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Two members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives confirmed Friday they have tested positive for the coronavirus, just days after a swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol in which many lawmakers and their families weren't...
Veterans Day in 2020: quiet parades, somber virtual events
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Celebrations marking Veterans Day gave way to somber virtual gatherings Wednesday, with many of the nation's veterans homes barring visitors to protect their residents from the surging coronavirus that has killed thousands of...