Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater speaks at the OCDP Friday Luncheon

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater
Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater talked about how he has worked to expand Drug and Mental Health Courts as well as relating a moving narration of his work to end gang violence in the county during his talk on August 8th at the Oklahoma County Democratic Party Luncheon. The luncheon is a regular function of the OCDP held at the Boulevard Cafeteria in midtown Oklahoma City.

DA Prater told the over 50 people gathered that his predecessor only had a little over 200 participants in the OK County Drug Court program, a program created by the legislature to provide alternatives to incarceration for drug offenders. "My office expanded the Drug Court to over 600 participants," Prater stated. "We hope to soon have 720 participants in the near future." He challenged those present to visit a "Drug Court Graduation" sometime. "Graduates talk about getting and holding jobs, reconciling marriages, and healing families with the help of Drug Court." He also hopes to expand the Mental Health Court noting that the Oklahoma County jail currently houses more of the mentally ill than any institution in Oklahoma.

Prater also discussed his work dealng with gang violence in Oklahoma County through his work with a former gang lord turned pastor whose ministry works with those in Oklahoma City gangs. The pastor arranged for Prater to meet with gang leaders in at his church. David Prater came to the meeting alone and unarmed. "The gang members had posted 'look-outs' around the building who sent text messages to the leaders inside the church when I drove up. The look-outs were alerting the leaders about whether or not I had come with police to arrest them." The gang leaders, the pastor, and David talked for over 2 hours together. "At first, the talk was very confrontational, but it gradually changed. I talked with them about how we can end the gang violence that has plagued the county." Prater was moved try this unusual and personally risky step after an 8 year old child was shot and permanently impaired due to a gang revenge attack.

DA Prater credits his approach as being instrumental in preventing some gang "turf wars" and revenge killings that threatened to break out in the county. He plans to work with schools to try to deal with the problem of school drop outs, a prime source of new members for the gangs. "When I asked the gang leaders at the meeting how can we best work to curb gang participation, the answer one gave was, 'Keep the kids in school.' "

District Attorney David Prater Reports on Porter Investigation

David Prater, Oklahoma County District Attorney
District Attorney David Prater's office released the results of his investigation into the allegations made by the Oklahoma City School Board against Dr. John Q. Porter. The DA's investigation cleared Dr. Porter of all allegations of criminal wrongdoing by Dr. Porter. DA Prater's statement reads,

"The evidence uncovered during the investigation failed to prove that Dr. John Q. Porter committed any crimnal act. In fact, an number of documents discovered in possession of the school district tended to exculpate or explain away most of the allegations made against Dr. Porter."

While this statement would give support to those who feel that Dr. Porter has been exhonorated and the victim of a "palace coup" as I have alledged elsewhere in the blog, a report on interviews done with 19 administration employees and board members, including former board president Cliff Hudson, paint a picture of a superintendent who acted as a "bully" and tended towards paranoid behavior. One example of this is a report by school board member Gail Vines who said that Porter told him that people in the school administration offices were "ratting on" him. Porter also, some claimed, instructed his employees never to use e-mail or written notes to communicate with him insisting on phone or personal conversations. Porter, himself, claimed that there were "moles" in the administration who reported on him to Cliff Hudson among others.

In the end, the Dr. Porter's supporters and detractors will probably read into this report what they want to read. I am more inclined to feel that Dr. Porter's resignation was a "necessary evil" due to the fact that any hope of a good working relationship between him and the board was impossible.

I also think this strengthens my claim, one shared by many in the district, that the next superintendent should be an "insider" whom we know and whom we feel has credibility. At the least it can be said that Dr. Porter felt isolated having come from a far different environment, and it would seem that his management style in the administration building did not allow him to build kind of ethos he needed to lead the district and make the changes we all know need to be made to lift our district to a higher level.

Dr. Porter and Bill

The famous Chandos portrait assumed to be of William Shakespeare

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater Continues Investigation of John Porter

I guess it comes from being an English teacher, but, as I read the article I linked above, I kept hearing the lines from William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, "The evil that men do lives after them;/The Good is oft interred with their bones."

Nice to be able to show how the Bard still lives.

OKCPS School Board Under Investigation

Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater
The twisting and turning saga of Dr. Porter has taken a new twist. Now the school board is being investigated for possibly violating the Oklahoma state Open Meetings Law. Our DA David Porter was made aware of the possible violation by The Oklahoman.

I know David. He is a good, fair man. He will handle this fairly. It once again shows me that there has been enough mistakes on both sides that they should try to come together in a spirit of reconciliation and humility. For the kids' sake!

City board faces test