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Tim Harris (attorney)

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Tim Harris
Tulsa County District Attorney
In office
January 1998 – December 31, 2014
Preceded byCharles L. "Chuck" Richardson
Succeeded bySteve Kunzweiler
Personal details
Political partyRepublican
EducationOral Roberts University (J.D.)

Tim Harris is an American attorney and politician who served as the District Attorney for Tulsa County from January 1999 to December 31, 2014. Before his election in 1998, Harris had worked as a prosecutor for the Tulsa County District Attorney's office and briefly served as the interim District Attorney for Tulsa County between the death of David L. Moss and the appointment of Bill LaFortune in 1995. In the late 2010s and early 2020s, Harris's tenure received new attention after some of the convictions from his tenure were overturned, including being a subject in an episode of Dateline NBC.

Harris has twice campaigned for another office since leaving the District Attorney's office: first for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district in 2018 and later for Tulsa Public Schools school board in 2022. He his now the chief council for the Tulsa County Sheriff's Office.[1]

Tulsa District Attorney's office

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Harris was the longest serving District Attorney ("DA") in Tulsa History. He first joined the office immediately after graduating from Oral Roberts University from a law program (now defunct, after lasting 7 years[1]) in 1986 and worked in the office for 12 years until his election in 1998.[2][3]

First election

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Harris was first appointed as Interim DA for Tulsa County in 1995 after the death of DA David L. Moss., where he served until Bill LaFortune was appointed to the position by Governor Frank Keating in December of that year.[4] Lafortune held the position until he resigned in May 1998 and Keating appointed Chuck Richardson as his successor in June 1998.[4][5] Richardson's father had donated thousands to Keating's campaign for governor. The Tulsa Police Department thought Richardson had acted "too zealously" as a defense attorney and backed Harris in the November election for a full term against Richardson. Despite Harris only raising $30,000 to Richardson's $117,000, he won the November 1998 election and took office in January 1999.[4]

Tenure as Tulsa County District Attorney

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In 2006, The Oklahoman reported Harris's campaign filings after the 2006 elections had 240 rule violations. Harris stated he'd correct the errors, but it would be "burdensome" because he was there "to do the people's work in prosecuting crime." The Oklahoma State Election Board could have fined him "up to $1,000 per rule violation," but did not issue a fine.[6]

In 2010 the Tulsa Police Department alleged there was a conspiracy in the Tulsa jail by inmates to kill Harris.[7] In 2010, he ran for reelection and was again unopposed.[8]

In 2011, he announced his intention to file charges against James "Whitey" Bulger, who the Tulsa World described as a "mob kingpin," for the 1981 murder of Tulsa businessman Roger Wheeler in Tulsa.[9] One of the victim's family members requested the case be moved to Oklahoma City, describing his interactions with Harris as "difficult and disappointing" and alleging Tulsa County was too "corrupt" to handle the case.[10]

In 2014, Tim Harris and other DAs, such as David Prater and Mike Fields, accused the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board of being mismanaged.[11]

2018 Congressional campaign

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Main article: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Oklahoma § District 1

In April 2017, Harris announced his campaign for the Republican Party's nomination for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district on a platform of protecting the First Amendment, families, and veterans.[12] Incumbent 1st district representative Jim Bridenstine announced his resignation in April 2018, in order to be the Administrator of NASA for the Trump administration.[13] Harris lost the primary runoff against businessman Kevin Hern on August 28, 2018, after advancing from the primary on June 26, 2018.[14][15] Five republicans ran for the seat.[16]

Criticism of tenure as District Attorney

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April Rose Wilkens trial

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Main article: April Rose Wilkens § Case and conviction

Four months after assuming office Tim Harris prosecuted the case against April Rose Wilkens.[17] Wilkens was convicted in July 1999 for killing Terry Carlton.[18] The case's outcome was denounced by advocates for victims of domestic abuse, since Wilkens had been abused and raped by Carlton.[19][20] He later accepted campaign contributions after the trial from Terry Carlton's father, Don Carlton.[21] Don Carlton told the Tulsa World that after the trial he had become a close friend and supporter of Harris.[22] Another Tulsa Attorney, Lynn Worley, who attended the trail, accused Harris of catering to the rich Carlton family.[4][23]

Harris's successor, Steve Kunzweiler, would later protest Wilkens's 2022 parole attempt with a letter to the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board stating that the Tulsa County District Attorney's office saw her as a threat to public safety and if she were sentenced with the same conviction today she would not be eligible for parole for another 17 years due to changes in sentencing laws for first-degree murder.[24]

In 2022, a podcast by two attorneys associated with the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice titled Panic Button: The April Wilkens Case discussed Harris's role as prosecutor in the trial of April Rose Wilkens.[25] On September 30, 2022, the podcast hosts filed Post Conviction Relief for April Wilkens, claiming that evidence was suppressed during trial,[26][27][28][29] which would fall under the definition of a brady violation.[30] Before the filing by Briggs and McCarty, Harris was accused of taking campaign contributions from the Brutons and Carltons, family of the man Wilkens killed, and suppressing other evidence not mentioned in the filing.[31]

Corey Atchison case

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In 1991, Harris was the assistant prosecutor who tried the case against Corey Atchison. Atchison had been accused of the murder of James Lane in August 1990 in Tulsa. On June 18 2019, the conviction of Corey Atchison was overturned and he was determined innocent after Tulsa County district Judge Sharon Holmes found the initial trial involved witness coercion and the failure to timely inform his defense counsel of evidence.[32] Harris "denied claims that misconduct had marred the trial, calling claims of witness coercion 'absurd.'" Harris claims that "he had never coerced, forced testimony or presented false testimony in his career." Current Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler defended Harris's tenure as DA. [33][34][35][36] Attorneys for the Oklahoma Innocence Project accused Harris of not wanting to admit the system "made a mistake" and that argued Harris's stance "keeps hundreds of requests pouring into the Oklahoma Innocence Project each year from men and women."[37] In 2020, a Dateline NBC investigative episode aired about Corey Atchison and Malcolm Scott's cases.[38][39][40][41]

Michelle Murphy case

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In 2019, Harris was accused of conspiring against wrongfully convicted Michelle Murphy, whose conviction was later overturned.[42] She served 20 years before exoneration, being sentenced around the same time as April Wilkens.[43] In 2014, arguments were heard on whether Harris should be "held in contempt for what Murphy's attorneys" said were "false statements."[44] Harris had the file sealed by the Judge William Kellough so that the case cannot be reexamined.[45]

The Innocence Project took over Murphy’s case in 2014. A judge then ordered that new DNA testing be conducted on biological evidence. Prosecutor Harris had initially implied at Murphy’s 1995 trial that blood found at the scene of her baby’s murder belonged to Murphy. Twenty years after she was convicted of the crime, testing showed that it was not her blood after all. According to the Tulsa World, Tim Harris all along possessed a 1995 report from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation showing that Murphy’s blood type was different from that found at the scene.[46][47][48] A judge later rejected attempts by Harris detractors to have him found in contempt for having “purposefully and willfully misled the jury” in the Murphy case.[49]

Private practice and teaching

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In 2018, Harris was a law professor at Oral Roberts University for 5 semesters and taught in the Master of Business Administration program at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.[2]

In 2021, Harris helped file "a motion for dismissal of a then-86-year-old indictment" of 56 Black men, including A. J. Smitherman, related to the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.[50]

2022 Tulsa Public Schools school board campaign

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In 2022, incumbent Tulsa Public Schools school board member Suzanne Schreiber decided to run for the Oklahoma House of Representatives instead of for reelection, creating an open seat in Tulsa Public Schools school board district 7.[51] Harris was one of four candidates to file for the open seat, although he had no personal connection to the district.[52][53] Harris campaigned on far-right[54] platform including banning books discussing LBGT relations,[54] banning Critical race theory,[54][52] and reasserting Christianity in schools.[54] Harris placed second in the nonpartisan elections, but no candidate received a majority, so he advanced to a runoff with the front-runner Susan Bryant Lamkin.[55] In the runoff election Harris campaigned on calls for a forensic audit of Tulsa Public Schools and cutting the salaries of the Superintendent, Deborah Gist, and other district administration.[51] Harris out fundraised Lamkin raising about $41,000 compared to her $35,000. The Black Wall Street Times reported a large portions of Harris's donations came from out-of-state donors and conservative political action committees.[56] Harris lost the runoff election to Susan Lamkin.[57]

Electoral history

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2018 Oklahoma's 1st congressional district Republican primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Harris 28,392 27.5
Republican Kevin Hern 23,425 22.7
Republican Andy Coleman 22,584 21.9
Republican Nathan Dahm 20,843 20.2
Republican Danny Stockstill 8,086 7.8
Total votes 103,330 100.0
2018 Oklahoma's 1st congressional district Republican runoff results
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Kevin Hern 40,373 54.9
Republican Tim Harris 33,138 45.1
Total votes 73,511 100.0

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "BONUS: Panic Button LIVE September 24th". 2022.
  2. ^ a b Fisher, Rich (July 24, 2018). "A Talk with Tim Harris (R), Who Is Running to Represent the 1st Congressional District of Oklahoma". Public Radio Tulsa.
  3. ^ "Tulsa District Attorney Tim Harris Will Not Seek Re-Election". News9. November 18, 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d "Panic Button: Setting the Tone | 4". July 19, 2022.
  5. ^ "New DA unbending to critics' allegations". Tulsa World. June 17, 1998.
  6. ^ "Lag time Too many campaign reports incomplete". November 22, 2006. Archived from the original on March 25, 2022.
  7. ^ "Plot to kill Harris Alleged". Tulsa World. December 2, 2010.
  8. ^ "Half of Oklahoma's district attorney incumbents go unchallenged". The Oklahoman & NewsOK. June 10, 2010. Archived from the original on April 6, 2022.
  9. ^ "DA Stands Pat on Prosecution: A Son of a Slain Tulsa Businessman Says Authorities are 'Too Corrupt' to Prosecute Whitey Bulger". Tulsa World. July 19, 2011.
  10. ^ "Family of mob hit victim wants trial to stay out of Tulsa". KRMG.
  11. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (July 17, 2014). "Prosecutors criticize Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board". Tulsa World.
  12. ^ "Former Tulsa County D.A. Tim Harris Declares For U.S. Congress District 1". News on 6. April 24, 2017. Archived from the original on May 14, 2021.
  13. ^ Miller, Ken (June 27, 2018). "Harris, Hern in runoff for NASA chief's ex-House seat". Norman Transcript. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022.
  14. ^ Ballotpedia. "Tim Harris (Oklahoma)". Archived from the original on March 24, 2022.
  15. ^ Shapard, Bill (July 31, 2018). "Former Tulsa DA Tim Harris leads businessman Kevin Hern in first congressional district GOP run-off".
  16. ^ Miller, Ken (June 27, 2018). "Harris, Hern in runoff for NASA chief's ex-House seat". Norman Transcript. Archived from the original on March 24, 2022.
  17. ^ "Defendant wanted to leave town, her neighbor testifies". Tulsa World. April 23, 1999. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021.
  18. ^ "Woman Gets Life Sentence". The Oklahoman. April 27, 1999.
  19. ^ Parrish, Ashley (July 8, 1999). "Abused woman gets life sentence". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021.
  20. ^ "Woman Gets Life Sentence". The Oklahoman. April 27, 1999.
  21. ^ "DA's Race Among Most Monied". Tulsa World. June 21, 2006.
  22. ^ "DA's Race Among Most Monied". Tulsa World. June 21, 2006.
  23. ^ Panic Button: The April Wilkens Case (2022). "Manipulating the Truth".
  24. ^ "#AprilsStory The Lone Crusaders". VNN. March 22, 2022.
  25. ^ Briggs, Leslie; McCarty, Colleen. "Panic Button: The April Wilkens Case". panicbuttontheaprilwilkenscase.podbean.com. Pod Bean. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  26. ^ Rose, Brenna (October 4, 2022). "Court documents claim prosecution failed to turn over evidence in Oklahoma murder trial". KTUL.
  27. ^ Harlow, Brittany (October 2, 2022). "Attorneys demand 25-year-old murder sentence be tossed out or granted new trial". VNN.
  28. ^ de Vera, Abbie (October 3, 2022). "Okla. woman sentenced to life for murder in a 1999 domestic violence case may get new trial". FOX23.
  29. ^ OK Appleseed (September 30, 2022). "Post Conviction Relief Application Filed in April Wilkens Case".
  30. ^ April Wilkens Post Conviction Relief Application
  31. ^ Rose, Brenna (October 1, 2022). "Lawyers claim evidence was 'suppressed' in 1998 Oklahoma murder trial". KTUL.
  32. ^ "A 'fundamental miscarriage of justice': Man set free after 28 years in prison for crime he didn't commit now adjusts to life outside". Tulsa World. June 22, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021.
  33. ^ Rosenberg, Eli (July 16, 2019). "Two brothers were wrongly convicted of separate murders. Now they are reunited as free men". Washington Post.
  34. ^ "Tulsa man sues state after wrongful murder conviction resulting in imprisonment for 28 years". Tulsa World. September 24, 2020. Archived from the original on October 24, 2020.
  35. ^ "Malcolm Scott, wrongfully convicted of murder, hopes to see shift in wake of George Floyd protests". NBC News.
  36. ^ "'I can't hold no grudge. Life's too short:' Corey Atchison found actually innocent after 1991 murder conviction". Tulsa World. June 17, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021.
  37. ^ CHRISTIAN, TANYA A. (December 6, 2020). "Two Tulsa Brothers Speak Out After Being Wrongfully Convicted Of Separate Crimes". Essence.
  38. ^ McDonnell, Brandy (June 18, 2020). "'Dateline NBC' special 'The Long Road to Freedom' to focus on wrongfully convicted Tulsa brothers". The Oklahoman.
  39. ^ "Dateline NBC episode on Friday features two Tulsa brothers wrongfully convicted for murders". Tulsa World. June 19, 2019. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021.
  40. ^ "Dateline NBC to Air Friday Special on Decades-Long Fight By Two Brothers to Overturn Their Wrongful Convictions in Tulsa, Oklahoma". June 17, 2020.
  41. ^ "Two brothers fight to prove their innocence on tonight's 'Dateline NBC: The Long Road to Freedom'". KARD. June 19, 2020.
  42. ^ "Judge: DA Tim Harris not in contempt for actions in Michelle Murphy". Tulsa World. February 18, 2019.
  43. ^ "Oklahoma Woman Who Wrongly Served 20 Years for the Murder of Her Infant Son Exonerated Based on DNA and Other Previously Undisclosed Evidence". Innocence Project.
  44. ^ Aspinwall, Cary; Branstetter, Ziva (October 12, 2014). "Shadow of Doubt: The Conviction and Exoneration of Michelle Murphy part 1 of 2". Tulsa World.
  45. ^ "DA gets judge to seal murder file". Tulsa World.
  46. ^ Aspinwall, Cary; Branstetter, Ziva. "Records show mistakes, questionable evidence in woman's overturned murder case". www.tulsaworld.com. Tulsa World. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  47. ^ Possley, Maurice. "Michelle Murphy". National Registry of Exonerations. National Registry of Exonerations. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  48. ^ Aspinwall, Cary. "District attorney gets judge to seal murder file in case of exonerated woman". www.tulsaworld.com. Tulsa World. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  49. ^ Bland, Amanda. "Judge: DA Tim Harris not in contempt for actions in Michelle Murphy case". www.tulsaworld.com. Tulsa World. Retrieved January 14, 2024.
  50. ^ "A New York professor and Tulsa DA helped clear records of Black men accused of wrongdoing in Race Massacre". June 2, 2021.
  51. ^ a b Krehbiel-Burton, Lenzy (March 30, 2022). "Former DA, Memorial PTA president vie for school board seat". Tulsa World.
  52. ^ a b Mummolo, Burt (December 9, 2021). "Four candidates vying for Tulsa Public Schools board seat, including former Tulsa DA". KTUL.
  53. ^ Slanchik, Amy (February 7, 2022). "Tulsa School Board Seat On The Line For Tuesday Ballot". KWTV-DT.
  54. ^ a b c d DuBose, Erika (January 26, 2022). "School Board Candidate Lashes Out at LGBTQ Books, Critical Race Theory". The Black Wall Street Times.
  55. ^ "Susan Lamkin will face Tim Harris again on April 5". Tulsa Beacon. February 17, 2022.
  56. ^ "Big Money Floods Local Tulsa School Board Races". The Black Wall Street Times. April 4, 2022.
  57. ^ Krehbiel-Burton, Lenzy (April 6, 2022). "Tulsa school board to get two newcomers". Tulsa World. Retrieved August 12, 2022.
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