{"id":752137,"date":"2025-10-24T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/?p=752137"},"modified":"2025-10-22T15:18:33","modified_gmt":"2025-10-22T20:18:33","slug":"okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/","title":{"rendered":"OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-custom-everlit-iframe-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Everlit Audio Player\" src=\"https:\/\/everlit.audio\/embeds\/artl_7PABni3VlDQ?client=wp&amp;client_version=2.6.0\" width=\"100%\" height=\"80px\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n\n\n<p>A 2023 policy change is allowing Oklahoma City police to shield some police reports from public view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In February, Oklahoma Watch filed a public records request with the Oklahoma City Police Department to gather information about a Yukon teacher confronted by vigilante predator-catchers at his home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The interaction was livestreamed on social media. The video concluded as officers led the man out of his home and placed him in a police car. But he wasn\u2019t arrested, and that\u2019s where the Oklahoma City Police Department dug in.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The public information officer refused to provide police reports involving people who were not arrested or charged with a crime, even though incident reports have long been considered public records, regardless of arrest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The department\u2019s own policy manual makes it clear: \u201cArrest and crime incident reports may be reviewed by the news media, as long as such review is conducted during the time period reasonably contemporaneous with the arrest or incident,\u201d the manual reads.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles is-style-borders wpnbha show-image image-alignright ts-4 is-1 is-landscape is-style-borders\" style=\"\">\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"753674\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>the latest<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"754196\" class=\"tag-attorney-general tag-cdc tag-covid-19 tag-george-monks tag-measles tag-oklahoma-news tag-oklahoma-state-department-of-health tag-oklahoma-state-medical-association tag-whooping-cough category-health category-publichealth type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2026\/01\/05\/oklahoma-health-department-refuses-to-share-county-level-measles-data\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Oklahoma Health Department Refuses to Share County-Level Measles Data\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Monks_15-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 782px) 600px, (min-width: 600px) 42.5vw, 90vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2026\/01\/05\/oklahoma-health-department-refuses-to-share-county-level-measles-data\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Oklahoma Health Department Refuses to Share County-Level Measles Data<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/author\/paulmonies\/\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" alt=\"Avatar photo\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Paul-Monies.jpg?resize=48%2C48&amp;ssl=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Paul-Monies-96x96.jpg 2x\" class=\"avatar avatar-48 photo\" height=\"48\" width=\"48\"><\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/author\/paulmonies\/\">Paul Monies<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-01-05T06:01:00-06:00\">January 5, 2026<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2026-01-05T11:05:42-06:00\">January 5, 2026<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n<p>Oklahoma Watch filed a complaint with the Attorney General\u2019s public access counselor, Anthony Sykes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Legislature addressed the issue in 2009 when it removed the word \u201carrest,\u201d added four years earlier, from a section of the state\u2019s open records law guaranteeing public access to incident reports. Lawmakers were inspired to fix the law after police refused to release information about an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oklahoman.com\/story\/news\/2008\/02\/19\/labor-commissioner-spends-time-in-detox\/61631904007\/\">incident<\/a> with a drunk public official who swiped a bull rider\u2019s guitar; no one had been arrested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Then a legislator, it was Sykes who signed the 2009 bill as the presiding officer of the Senate. It passed unanimously. In 2012, Scott Pruitt, then the attorney general, wrote an advisory letter clarifying that incident reports were public records regardless of whether an arrest was made.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet, in this case, Sykes sided with the police, slamming shut access to information about routine police work in a decision that could spread to other law enforcement agencies. Public access counselor decisions aren\u2019t binding, and this week, Oklahoma Watch notified the city that it intends to file a lawsuit.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"133\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sykes_bio.jpg?resize=133%2C200&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-752141\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/4;object-fit:cover;width:150px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sykes_bio.jpg?w=133&amp;ssl=1 133w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sykes_bio.jpg?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/sykes_bio.jpg?w=400&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 133px) 100vw, 133px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Anthony Sykes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>The purpose of the Open Records Act is \u201cto ensure and facilitate the public\u2019s right of access to and review of government records so they may efficiently and intelligently exercise their inherent political power.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Public interest isn\u2019t limited to incidents that result in arrest or charges. When <a href=\"https:\/\/okcfox.com\/news\/local\/governor-kevin-stitt-son-logan-county-guthrie-haunts-halloween-beer-alcohol-guns-oklahoma-highway-patrol-ohp-stillwater-payne-county-john-drew-october-31-2022-twisted-tea-naturday-truck-inventory\">troopers found <\/a>Gov. Kevin Stitt\u2019s underage son intoxicated with a box of guns, the public was informed through an incident report. When investigators determined an obscure Jackie Chan movie was the source of nude images on a television in Ryan Walters\u2019 education department office, again, the public was informed through a police report.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An <a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2023\/07\/05\/729259\/\">Oklahoma Watch investigation<\/a> into the death of Ernest Antwine relied on a sheriff\u2019s department incident report. Antwine suffered from schizophrenia and drug addiction. In 2021,\u00a0 police took him from his mother\u2019s house and dropped him off in a sparsely populated area on the side of the road, where he was struck by a pickup truck and killed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>None of those examples involved an arrest or charges.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of all the branches of government, law enforcement should be the most transparent, said Dave Cuillier, who has studied access to public records for 20 years and is the director of the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhat other department in the city can detain you on the sidewalk?\u201d Cuillier said. \u201cAnd take away your children? Can you make you pay money? Can throw you in a cell? And can even have you killed, either on the street or later after a trial? Parks department? No, they can\u2019t. The sewer department doesn\u2019t have any of that power.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Transparency promotes better relationships with communities, and the converse is true, too \u2014\u00a0withholding information trends to further strain those relationships, said Cameron McEllhiney, executive director of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement, a nonprofit organization that advocates for transparency, accountability and responsibility.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cBy withholding information like that, they do themselves no favors,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>\u201cI\u2019m not sure the public supports a secret police.\u201d<\/p><cite>Oklahoma Press Association Executive Vice President Mark Thomas<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Openness is one of the Oklahoma City Police Department\u2019s driving values, according to its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.okc.gov\/files\/assets\/city\/v\/1\/police\/documents\/operations-manual-6th-edition-october-1-2025.pdf\">operations manual<\/a>, which reads: \u201cLaw enforcement operations in a free society must not be shrouded in secrecy. It is necessary that there be full public disclosure of policies and openness in matters of public interest.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet, on this issue, the city relied on an Oklahoma City municipal counselor\u2019s definition of the word \u201clist.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to information on arrests, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oscn.net\/applications\/oscn\/DeliverDocument.asp?CiteID=80295\">Oklahoma Open Records Act<\/a> requires law enforcement agencies to make public, if kept: \u201ca chronological list of all incidents, including initial offense report information showing the offense, date, time, general location, officer, and a brief summary of what occurred.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The police department, in its response to the public access counselor\u2019s inquiry, claimed it doesn\u2019t keep a list of all incidents.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTheir conceptualization of the word \u2018list\u2019 is bonkers,\u201d Cuillier said. \u201cThey\u2019re thinking of Santa Claus writing down all the good boys and girls on parchment.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Any database of reports is a chronological list, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The city\u2019s attorneys said an interactive community crime map posted online is sufficient to fulfill their obligation of a list of incidents. The map shows crimes reported by date and general location. But it doesn\u2019t include other data points required under the law,\u00a0such as a brief summary or the officer\u2019s name, vital information to the public.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The community crime map is produced by LexisNexis and users agree to its terms of use, which prohibit modifying or reproducing the data.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The police also claimed a citizen\u2019s right to determine if a public law enforcement agency is conducting itself properly is limited to arrests and incarceration, and that by withholding these reports they are protecting the privacy of victims, witnesses, reporting parties, mental health consumers and suspects who aren\u2019t arrested \u201cby keeping their names and stories out of public view.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?resize=360%2C480&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-752142\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/4;object-fit:cover;width:150px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?w=360&amp;ssl=1 360w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?resize=225%2C300&amp;ssl=1 225w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?resize=300%2C400&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?resize=150%2C200&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ROn-Bacy.jpg?w=400&amp;ssl=1 400w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Ron Bacy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>Oklahoma City Police Chief Ron Bacy, through a public information officer, declined to answer questions about the policy.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe policy has been in place for years, so there isn\u2019t anything new to discuss,\u201d police department spokeswoman Capt. Valerie Littlejohn said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A Nov. 28, 2023, revision to the department\u2019s policy manual appears to have added a statement claiming that the Open Records Act does not define incident reports as open records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Oklahoma Association of Chiefs of Police neither agrees nor disagrees with the Oklahoma City police department\u2019s legal interpretation of the open records law and defers to the public access counselor, President Todd Gibson said.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"480\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn.jpg?resize=480%2C600&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-752143\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/4;object-fit:cover;width:150px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn.jpg?resize=480%2C600&amp;ssl=1 480w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn.jpg?resize=240%2C300&amp;ssl=1 240w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn.jpg?resize=400%2C500&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn.jpg?w=640&amp;ssl=1 640w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/capt.-valerie-littlejohn-480x600.jpg?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 100vw, 480px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Valerie Littlejohn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>\u201cPolice departments should comply with the Open Records Act,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Legislature this year approved the creation of the public access counselor to safeguard the public\u2019s right to transparency and openness in government, overriding the governor\u2019s veto to get it passed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While Sykes\u2019 decision is specific to the report Oklahoma Watch requested, it accepts the police department\u2019s argument that they don\u2019t have a list of incidents and that incident reports aren\u2019t public records.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s ridiculous,\u201d said Mark Thomas, executive vice president of the Oklahoma Press Association, which advocated for the public access counselor bill for years. \u201cI\u2019m not sure the public supports a secret police.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"771\" height=\"771\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=771%2C771&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-700097\" style=\"width:193px;height:193px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=771%2C771&amp;ssl=1 771w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=336%2C336&amp;ssl=1 336w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=140%2C140&amp;ssl=1 140w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=768%2C768&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=400%2C400&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=200%2C200&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=300%2C300&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=706%2C706&amp;ssl=1 706w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?resize=100%2C100&amp;ssl=1 100w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194.jpg?w=800&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/StaffHeadshots2022_5194-771x771.jpg?w=370&amp;ssl=1 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p><em>Jennifer Palmer has been a reporter with Oklahoma Watch since 2016 and covers education. Contact her at <a href=\"tel:4057610093\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">(405) 761-0093<\/a> or <a href=\"mailto:jpalmer@oklahomawatch.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">jpalmer@oklahomawatch.org<\/a>. Follow her on Twitter <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/jpalmerOKC\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">@jpalmerOKC<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\t<div class=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles is-style-default wpnbha is-grid columns-3 colgap-1 show-image image-aligntop ts-3 is-3 is-landscape is-style-default\" style=\"\">\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"752137\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>MORE FROM Jennifer Palmer<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"753221\" class=\"tag-brandon-pasley tag-domestic-violence-fatality-review-board tag-jacquelyn-campbell tag-laura-thomas tag-scott-hawkins category-criminaljustice category-domestic-violence type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/24\/domestic-violence-board-chairman-resigns-in-protest\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Domestic Violence Board Chairman Resigns in Protest\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/In-the-office-1-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/24\/domestic-violence-board-chairman-resigns-in-protest\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Domestic Violence Board Chairman Resigns in Protest<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>A decision by the state\u2019s domestic violence board exposed a rift over how a mandatory protective tool is to be used and led chairman and domestic violence advocate Brandon Pasley to resign. <\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published updated\" datetime=\"2025-11-24T06:00:00-06:00\">November 24, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"752624\" class=\"tag-charles-rust tag-deaths tag-guns tag-savannah-phillips tag-suicide category-health category-mental-health category-vulnerable-populations type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/2025_1106_5D4B8204-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/11\/07\/isolation-illness-and-guns-why-more-older-oklahomans-are-dying-by-suicide\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Isolation, Illness and Guns: Why More Older Oklahomans Are Dying by Suicide<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>More older Americans are dying by gun suicide. The rate is particularly high in Oklahoma, and especially in rural counties.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-11-07T06:00:00-06:00\">November 7, 2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-11-07T10:33:35-06:00\">November 7, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"752137\" class=\"tag-anthony-sykes tag-cameron-mcellhiney tag-dave-cuillier tag-gary-knight tag-incident-reports tag-lawsuit tag-mark-thomas tag-oklahoma-city tag-police tag-public-records tag-ron-bacy tag-valerie-littlejohn category-democracy category-democracy-democracy category-government category-transparency type-post post-has-image\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-newspack-article-block-landscape-large size-newspack-article-block-landscape-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1 800w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=600%2C450&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=400%2C300&amp;ssl=1 400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=200%2C150&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?zoom=2&amp;resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1 2400w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/oklahomawatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/TED_2490-scaled.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&amp;ssl=1&amp;w=370 370w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\">\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>OKC police are withholding police reports unless there was an arrest, charges or a warrant, alarming transparency advocates. The public access counselor sided with police, allowing the practice to continue and, potentially, spread.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published updated\" datetime=\"2025-10-24T06:00:00-05:00\">October 24, 2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>OKC police are withholding police reports unless there was an arrest, charges or a warrant, alarming transparency advocates. The public access counselor sided with police, allowing the practice to continue and, potentially, spread.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2622484,"featured_media":752138,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"gigafact_has_fact_brief":false,"gigafact_remote_fact_brief_post_id":0,"gigafact_remote_sync_timestamp":"","gigafact_remote_sync_status":"","gigafact_remote_sync_response":"","gigafact_has_been_published":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"everlit_article_id":"artl_7PABni3VlDQ","everlit_hide_embed":false,"everlit_embed_size":"","everlit_generation_settings":{"primary_voice":"29","guest_voice":"48","default_sonic_optimization":false,"default_conversation_mode":false,"default_read_alt_text":false,"default_read_urls":false,"default_read_author_byline":false,"default_publication":"pblc_lV8RK9ULW4x","language":"en-US","intro_mixable":3,"outro_mixable":3,"intro_duration":15,"outro_duration":15,"intro_padding":3,"outro_padding":4,"default_skip_article_image":false,"skip_auto_generation":false,"disable_music":false,"disclaimer":"","disclaimer_voice":"","is_for_subscriber":false,"embed_ui_cover_art":true,"embed_ui_title_intro":"","embed_ui_title_icon":""},"_everlit_article_id":"","_everlit_hide_embed":false,"_everlit_embed_size":"","_everlit_generation_settings":[],"_everlit_content_hash":"","_everlit_metadata_hash":"0bb7535b79979d0158056d7c1397076e","_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"Oklahoma Watch Notifies City of its Intent to File Lawsuit","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[16074,16075,46,17712],"tags":[21351,21354,21352,21353,21349,18781,17840,6587,278,17987,21355,21350],"series":[],"coauthors":[401],"class_list":["post-752137","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-democracy","category-democracy-democracy","category-government","category-transparency","tag-anthony-sykes","tag-cameron-mcellhiney","tag-dave-cuillier","tag-gary-knight","tag-incident-reports","tag-lawsuit","tag-mark-thomas","tag-oklahoma-city","tag-police","tag-public-records","tag-ron-bacy","tag-valerie-littlejohn","entry"],"fact_brief":null,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates - Oklahoma Watch<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/oklahomawatch.org\/2025\/10\/24\/okc-police-are-withholding-reports-alarming-transparency-advocates\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"OKC Police Are Withholding Reports, Alarming Transparency Advocates - Oklahoma Watch\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"OKC police are withholding police reports unless there was an arrest, charges or a warrant, alarming transparency advocates. 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