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Oklahoma county leaders caught on audio talking about killing reporters, complaining they can no longer lynch Black people
NBC News ^ | April 17, 2023 | Corky Siemaszko

Posted on 04/17/2023 6:15:19 PM PDT by Coronal

The governor of Oklahoma has called for the resignations of the sheriff and other top officials in a rural county after they were recorded talking about "beating, killing and burying" a father/son team of local reporters — and lamenting that they could no longer hang Black people with a “damned rope.”

Gov. Kevin Stitt called for McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy, county Commissioner Mark Jennings, sheriff's investigator Alicia Manning, and Jail Administrator Larry Hendrix to step down after the McCurtain County Gazette-News published an article over the weekend about what was captured on the recording.

“I am both appalled and disheartened to hear of the horrid comments made by officials in McCurtain County,” Stitt said in a statement released Sunday. “There is simply no place for such hateful rhetoric in the state of Oklahoma, especially by those that serve to represent the community through their respective office.”

Stitt, a Republican, said he has ordered the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation to “initiate an investigation to determine whether any illegal conduct has occurred.”

Bruce Willingham, who works for his family-owned newspaper, has turned the full audio over to the FBI and the Oklahoma Attorney General’s office, his lawyers said.

Meanwhile, dozens of county residents angered by the officials' comments picketed Monday outside the headquarters of the McCurtain County Commissioners in the town of Idabel, which is about 200 miles southwest of Oklahoma City.

None of the four officials named by Stitt could be reached for comment.

The Willinghams also did not respond to inquiries from NBC News. But Kilpatrick Townsend, the law firm representing the Willingham family, said they appreciated the expressions of support.

"For nearly a year, they have suffered intimidation, ridicule and harassment based solely on their efforts to report the news for McCurtain County," the statement said.

(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; US: Oklahoma
KEYWORDS: ai; fakenews
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To: ryderann

I know.


21 posted on 04/17/2023 6:45:44 PM PDT by No name given (Anonymous is who you’ll know me as.)
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To: Coronal

The comments by the county officials are horrible, but...

that’s not as bad as what the democrats, aka: communists, would do if they ever got total control of the country.

Cleansing of their ideological opponents, namely republicans and conservatives and libertarians, and even Catholics.

Communism does not tolerate dissension, which is what happens every time communists take over a country. Dissent is handled by cleansing of the population, and if democrats could do it, they would have done it long ago, so, they need to become a completely communist party to get it done. But first, they need to get rid of guns, and the 1st amendment and any other laws/regulations/rules that get in their way. They’ve been trying to do just that for many decades.


22 posted on 04/17/2023 6:50:34 PM PDT by adorno
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To: OKC Patriot

“ it’s a whole different world down in that part of the state..”

Yes it’s been know for being another world since I went to college with kids from that county at SE

Even still this is appalling and there are hours and hours of this including where to bury the bodies


23 posted on 04/17/2023 6:52:52 PM PDT by NWFree (Sigma male 🤪)
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To: libertylover

The father worked at a local news outlet, a newspaper I think. It was not clear from my Twitter feed that the son worked there also.

Anyhow the father was recording a meeting to do a story and forgot his recording device when he left.

Then when he got back to his recording he heard officials about killing him and his son, talking about digging graves to hide the bodies.


24 posted on 04/17/2023 6:53:11 PM PDT by packagingguy
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To: Coronal
I listened to the audio. I didn't hear once they say "black" or anything like that. Did I miss it?

For all I know, the context of the often used word "they" could have been murderers, not a race.

25 posted on 04/17/2023 6:57:02 PM PDT by Tell It Right (1st Thessalonians 5:21 -- Put everything to the test, hold fast to that which is true.)
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To: Coronal

Who can really understand any of that crap? I couldn’t get around the deep drawl they had. WTH? I heard nothing about a reporter. I did hear them allude to a rope and they got more rights. But the narrative has now been spun. That’s now set in stone.


26 posted on 04/17/2023 7:02:29 PM PDT by LibertyWoman (America, the Handwriting is on the Wall. )
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To: Coronal

Let’s recount:

Four pecker woods lament not being able to kill blacks while blacks are actually rampaging across the nation, killing,craping and looting.

This is my nonplussed face.


27 posted on 04/17/2023 7:09:48 PM PDT by RedMonqey ("A republic, if you can keep it" Benjamin Franklin.)
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To: Coronal; OSHA; RitaOK; bitt

It’s been quite a while since this McCurtain County newspaper made big news for it’s reporting by JD Cash on Murrah. (Anniverary coming up in 2 days)

I’m sure a lot of their reporting could be found in the FR archives.

Excerpt from the piece:

“In the wake of the 1995 bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, Willingham hired a freelancer named J.D. Cash who produced a number of scoops about the investigation into the deadly terror attack and who was later derided as a “conspiracy theorist” by some of the newspaper’s competitors. Cash died in 2007.“


28 posted on 04/17/2023 7:12:49 PM PDT by thinden (buckle up ....)
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To: Coronal

Freedom of speech includes all speech.


29 posted on 04/17/2023 7:24:11 PM PDT by bray (Dr Fauxi killed millions)
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To: OKC Patriot

What’s wrong with ending media?


30 posted on 04/17/2023 7:25:17 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: LibertyWoman

I don’t see a whole lot of problems given the right context.


31 posted on 04/17/2023 7:27:07 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: ryderann

It’s SW Oklahoma. They don’t have no ding danged AI. Don’t need that to be throw backs of 100 years ago.


32 posted on 04/17/2023 7:32:54 PM PDT by DariusBane (Liberty and Risk. Flip sides of the same coin. So how much risk will YOU accept? Vive Deo et Vives)
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To: Carriage Hill
"Much worse is just down the road."

Yep.

33 posted on 04/17/2023 7:36:30 PM PDT by The Duke
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To: Coronal

The 2nd Statement is discisting


34 posted on 04/17/2023 7:45:11 PM PDT by cowboyusa (IT'S TIME TO PLAY COWBOYS AND MARXISTS!)
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To: Coronal

If these men really hated black people they’d hold a bake sale for Planned Parenthood.

FACT: Planned Parenthood killed more black people last month than the KKK killed in its entire existence.


35 posted on 04/17/2023 8:11:05 PM PDT by MeganC (There is nothing feminine about feminism. )
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To: ryderann

Exactly- a few years ago- i woudl see ‘photos’ of soemthign and in them somethign just owuldn’t look right, and id notice the photo was photoshopped- and i wondered about videos and such on youtube- and how folks can fake them- i wondered then how folks woudl know hte difference between real and fake videos and photos- now we learn AI is faking stuff too-

pretty soon it will be darn near impossible to know what is true or fake-


36 posted on 04/17/2023 8:11:17 PM PDT by Bob434 (question )
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To: ryderann

Can AI replicate the back and forth verbal flow of a human conversation? I don’t think it’s there just yet.


37 posted on 04/17/2023 8:13:11 PM PDT by Coronal
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To: Coronal

They are not talking about blacks.


38 posted on 04/17/2023 8:14:36 PM PDT by nwrep
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To: nwrep

From the recording:

“If it was back in the day, when that when Alan Marshton would take a damn black guy and whoop their ass and throw him in the cell? I’d run for f***king sheriff.

Sheriff: Yeah. Well, It’s not like that no more.

Jennings: I know. Take them down to Mud Creek and hang them up with a damn rope. But you can’t do that anymore. They got more rights than we got. “

https://kfor.com/news/local/calls-for-resignation-after-mccurtain-county-officials-are-allegedly-caught-on-recording-making-disturbing-comments/


39 posted on 04/17/2023 8:22:15 PM PDT by Coronal
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To: nwrep

Probably covers everyone who breaks the law. My ignorant question is: Where is the first amendment in this conversation?


40 posted on 04/17/2023 8:37:42 PM PDT by WVNan
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