Free Republic

A devastating loss for a family in Carney after a man died from a rattlesnake bite. Jeremy Knox, 38, was working on a bread truck he wanted to restore when he was bitten by the snake. Initially, he didn't know what bit him. His wife, Jessica Miller-Knox, took him to a nearby hospital. "Went to a hospital and told them it was some sort of bite, we didn't know, but that something was wrong," Jessica said. "They looked at it and sent us home." The pain grew worse and the next day they went to Integris Baptist Medical Center where...

One of the top coaches in college football is retiring.As first reported by the Oklahoman and later confirmed by SoonerScoop.com, Oklahoma head coach Bob Stoops is stepping down from his position with the Sooners after 18 seasons. Both outlets are reporting that offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley will assume the role of head coach.

On 17 May, 2017, SB 35, the recognition of military, guard and reserve members to carry concealed weapons based on a military, reserve, or national guard valid I.D. card, was signed into law by Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin.SB 35 was popular in the legislature. It passed the Senate on 15 March, 2017, 40-2.  It was amended on 11 April in the House. It passed the House  on 19 April, 2017, 85 – 0.The amended version then passed the Senate unanimously, 46-0. It was signed by Governor Fallin on 17 May, 2017.Many states accept military service as meeting the requirement for...

Oklahoma House of Representatives passed a resolution on May 8 declaring abortion to be murder and directing “every public official” in the state to use their authority “to stop the murder of innocent children by abortion.” The resolution does not have the force of law but it does reflect the policy view of the Oklahoma House, which has 101 members — 74 Republicans, 26 Democrats, and 1 vacancy. The resolution, HR 1004, passed by voice vote, and was introduced by Rep. Chuck Strohm, R-Jenks. The resolution, in part, states that “all human life is protected by God’s law and the...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Missouri senators voted early Wednesday to give residents the option of whether to get a driver's license that complies with a federal identification requirement, which would allow people to board airplanes and enter military bases. Missouri is one of only five states that doesn't comply or have an extension to comply with a 2005 federal law that established tougher licensing requirements in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Lawmakers have pushed back on the stringent proof-of-identity requirements under the law, known as the Real ID Act, citing privacy issues. But after hours of debate...

DURANT — WebstaurantStore is adding 160 new jobs and a new point of distribution in Durant, Gov. Mary Fallin said Tuesday. WebstaurantStore is the largest online supplier of food service equipment and supplies. WebstaurantStore will move into an existing 350,000-square-foot facility at 2011 W Arkansas St. The company's Durant distribution center will serve clients in the southwest region of the country. Hiring is expected to begin this spring. “Today's announcement is great news for Durant and southeastern Oklahoma. These new jobs represent the kind of diversity in employment that we are working to bring to the state,” said Fallin.

Citing state budgeting uncertainties, Oklahoma transportation officials announced Monday that they have suspended construction on about a dozen highway projects, including the next phase of the I-240/I-35 interchange project in south Oklahoma City. "That's going to give us a black eye," Oklahoma Transportation Commission Chairman J. David Burrage said, describing the situation as "bad." Burrage made his remark after another commissioner noted that many contractors already have bought materials for projects that are being suspended. Companies that suffer financial losses because of work suspensions likely will file claims with the agency, officials said. The dozen or so suspended contracts may...

The vast majority of defensive firearm uses involve the defensive display of the firearm. In some states, it is illegal to display a gun for defensive purposes without risking a felony. Mere display is considered the use of deadly force. Estimates of defensive gun uses vary form about 100,000 to 3 million each year(CDC pdf). Yet only 1,500 to 3,000 people are justifiably killed each year. About five to ten times that many are shot and end up hospitalized. About five to ten  times as many as are shot, are shot at, but missed.  The number of times when...

Connexions Loyalty, a subsidiary of Connecticut-based customer service company Affinion Group, purchased the assets of an existing Tulsa travel service center in January and hasn’t stopped hiring since. The company said in a news release that its purchase of the existing infrastructure in east Tulsa allowed it to retain 50 existing jobs. It has added 100 jobs in the meantime, bringing the number of employees up to 150. Connexions Loyalty plans on adding another 200-plus to its call-center operations at Corporate Woods business park on 129th East Avenue. Tulsa has become something of a call center hub due to a...

ARDMORE, Okla. (KXII)-- The hope of anywhere from 4-7,000 new jobs, and economic growth, follows a certification given to a Texoma Industrial park. The Ardmore Airpark is 1,700 acres of land, with the potential to house 5,000,000 square-feet of development, and create 4-7,000 jobs. And now its certified by the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, which uses nine different metrics to grade and certify land. There's only 10 certified sites in the whole country. "It's a big deal for Southern Oklahoma, its a big deal for Ardmore, and its a game changer." Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin said. B.N.S.F looks at...

The Texas attorney general led a 15-state coalition Monday defending President Trump’s revised immigration order, amid lawsuits opposing the plan to halt immigration from six countries. In a friend-of-the-court amicus brief to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, 13 other state attorneys general and Republican Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, laid out constitutional and federal statutory provisions defending Trump’s authority. The attorneys general also defended Trump’s “lawful actions” to revise the executive order, which was blocked last month by a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit. “The president’s revised immigration order is constitutional, lawful, addresses the 9th Circuit’s concerns and...

A former University of Oklahoma football player has been arrested for allegedly 'pimping out' an ex-cheerleader. Lawrence 'LJ' Moore, a 22-year-old former defensive back who played two games with the Sooners in 2013, was arrested after Micah Madison Parker was caught offering sex in exchange for $200 to an undercover cop in a hotel room. The former cheerleader was arrested after a vice officer responded to an advertisement she had placed on the website, Backpage.com.

No charges to be filed against Mr. AR15.

hree teens are dead after an alleged home invasion attempt reportedly ended in a shooting Monday. It happened near 91st and 241st East Avenue in the Wagoner County part of Broken Arrow. According to officials with the Wagoner County Sheriff's Office, three masked people broke into the house through the back door with the intent of burglarizing the home. Officials say the homeowner's young adult son killed all three with an AR-15. Though they initially believed the son was 19, they now say he was 23-year-old Zach Peters. The homeowner was also home, but officials say he was not involved....

Homeowner’s son kills three would-be burglars with AR-15 Three would-be robbers were shot and killed Monday when an Oklahoma homeowner’s son opened fire on them with an AR-15, authorities said. Wagoner County sheriff’s deputies were called to the home in Broken Arrow, southeast of Tulsa at around 12:30 p.m. local time. When they arrived, they found the three dead suspects and two uninjured residents. Sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Nick Mahoney said the suspects enetered the home through a glass back door with the intent to burglarize it. It was not immediately clear why they picked that home. Mahoney said the suspects...

<p>Gunfire rang out Monday afternoon in a home in Broken Arrow, an Oklahoma city 15 miles southeast of Tulsa. Three intruders were killed after the son of the homeowner fired a semiautomatic rifle in what local law enforcement officers later described as an act of self-defense, though their investigation remains open.</p>

Representatives from 13 states including 12 state attorneys general and one governor filed a motion in support of President Trump’s temporary travel ban. From the Dallas Morning News: Attorney General Ken Paxton on Monday led a coalition of 13 states in filing a brief with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals defending President Donald Trump’s revised immigration order.In the brief, Paxton and representatives from 12 other states argue that the Trump administration’s new order is legal and falls under the president’s power over foreign affairs and national security. Those joining the brief included Paxton plus AG’s in the...

Three would-be robbers were shot and killed Monday when an Oklahoma homeowner's son opened fire on them with an AR-15, authorities said. Wagoner County sheriff's deputies were called to the home in Broken Arrow, southeast of Tulsa at around 12:30 p.m. local time. When they arrived, they found the three dead suspects and two uninjured residents.

A 22-year-old Oklahoma officer died Monday after a shootout during a traffic stop, police said. Tecumseh Assistant Police Chief J.R. Kidney said officer Justin Terney died after undergoing surgery overnight.

A city councilwoman is asking homeowners in an Oklahoma college town to rename a street honoring a prominent former university professor and Ku Klux Klan member. Norman Councilwoman Breea Clark has posted an online petition asking residents to help change the name of DeBarr Avenue. If at least three-fourths of Norman homeowners agree, the city — home to the University of Oklahoma — would be among several cities nationwide renaming monuments and streets named after prominent KKK members. […] The block-long street honors Edwin DeBarr, one of the university’s first professors and founder of its chemistry department. DeBarr became a...