After years of homelessness and addiction, Ernesto Akothe was ready to start over. But more than $25,000 in fines and fees stood in his way until a judge waived the debt. Not every qualifying defendant gets the same opportunity.
The Republican nominee has loaned his campaign more than $12.8 million, accounting for the bulk of the $25.3 million in personal loans that have fueled this year’s gubernatorial race.
Reporter Kayla Branch discusses the desperation that led some Oklahomans to seek addiction treatment in California, the allegations of insurance fraud surrounding some facilities and what she learned when she traveled there herself.
We reviewed claims about the state constitution and the candidates’ track records as a former state lawmaker and a former prosecutor compete to become Oklahoma’s next attorney general.
Staff at an Oklahoma regulatory agency spent over a year building a case against Citation Oil & Gas, a company notorious for oil field pollution. Instead of disciplining the company, agency leaders chose to let it resume operations.
A 2023 state law was intended to help low-income people escape fines and fees they can’t afford. But an Oklahoma County judge argues the law is unconstitutional. A state Supreme Court ruling could affect defendants across Oklahoma.
A sexual assault survivor and state evidence board member is urging lawmakers to establish deadlines for testing rape kits, saying DNA evidence has helped investigators connect cases across the country and internationally.
Republican Brad Boles and Democrat Rhonda Eastman are competing for a seat on the Corporation Commission, where commissioners oversee oil companies and utilities amid pollution problems and rising electricity demand.
Across Oklahoma, oilfield wastewater has continued to surface from the ground — even as regulators failed to contain it. This investigation examines how oversight fell short, how contamination spread and how families were left to navigate the consequences.
Chinese criminal networks have taken over much of the illicit marijuana market in Oklahoma, stoking a wave of crime that includes violence, money laundering and human trafficking. And authorities suspect some of those involved have links to powerful forces in the Chinese state.
There have been at least 25 police shootings in Oklahoma this year, at least 14 of which have been fatal.
Reporter Kayla Branch discusses the desperation that led some Oklahomans to seek addiction treatment in California, the allegations of insurance fraud surrounding some facilities and what she learned when she traveled there herself.
