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Ex-worker says Oklahoma prosecutor ordered illegal probe
Source: Associated Press
Ex-worker says Oklahoma prosecutor ordered illegal probe
By KEN MILLER
October 26, 2019
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A former investigator for an Oklahoma prosecutor has accused his ex-boss of ordering an illegal investigation into supporters of criminal justice reform, then firing him when he failed to find any wrongdoing.
The investigator, William Muller, has filed a “notice of claim” with the state and county against Oklahoma County District Attorney Prater, a first step toward a possible wrongful termination lawsuit.
In the claim, Muller alleges that Prater targeted the group Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform because of his opposition to its proposals. The claim alleges Prater improperly obtained a grand jury subpoena without probable cause and used it to obtain financial records for the group, its chairman, and for donations made by the American Civil Liberties Union.
Prater didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press, but in a statement to KFOR-TV, which first reported the claim, he called the allegations “ridiculous” and said Muller has “a personal vendetta” against him.
Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, led by Republican former state House Speaker Kris Steele, has pushed proposals that include reducing criminal penalties for several nonviolent crimes and retroactively applying a state question approved by voters in 2016 that made drug possession and some property crimes misdemeanors. Prosecutors around the state have resisted such changes.
-snip-
By KEN MILLER
October 26, 2019
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A former investigator for an Oklahoma prosecutor has accused his ex-boss of ordering an illegal investigation into supporters of criminal justice reform, then firing him when he failed to find any wrongdoing.
The investigator, William Muller, has filed a “notice of claim” with the state and county against Oklahoma County District Attorney Prater, a first step toward a possible wrongful termination lawsuit.
In the claim, Muller alleges that Prater targeted the group Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform because of his opposition to its proposals. The claim alleges Prater improperly obtained a grand jury subpoena without probable cause and used it to obtain financial records for the group, its chairman, and for donations made by the American Civil Liberties Union.
Prater didn’t respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press, but in a statement to KFOR-TV, which first reported the claim, he called the allegations “ridiculous” and said Muller has “a personal vendetta” against him.
Oklahomans for Criminal Justice Reform, led by Republican former state House Speaker Kris Steele, has pushed proposals that include reducing criminal penalties for several nonviolent crimes and retroactively applying a state question approved by voters in 2016 that made drug possession and some property crimes misdemeanors. Prosecutors around the state have resisted such changes.
-snip-
Read more: https://apnews.com/d98312c079bc43a1bcd6c3c0a5c2f6c8