Those stories are, as follows:
Four murder trials took place over the course of the year in Sequoyah County.
A man convicted of first-degree murder for the shooting deaths of two women in an Oct. 26, 2002, shooting spree that began in Sallisaw was sentenced to two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole Dec. 9.
Daniel Hawke Fears, 20, was also sentenced to nine concurrent life terms, which will follow the non-parole life sentences. Fears will face a combined 28 years and two days in prison, which will follow the life terms. A jury found Fears, who was 18 at the time of the shootings, guilty of 17 felony counts in September and recommended the maximum punishment for each count.
Patsy Sue Wells of Sallisaw and Reba Spangler of Fort Smith, Ark., were killed during the shooting spree that began in a residential neighborhood in Sallisaw and ended in Roland.
Rob Nigh of Tulsa, Fears' attorney, immediately filed a notice of intent to appeal Fears' conviction after Fears was formally sentenced.
Throughout the trial, Jeff Sheridan and Doug Kirkley, assistant district attorneys, stressed the considerable evidence in the case and the dozens of witness testimony. The prosecution argued that Fears was not insane at the time of the shootings, but showed acts of self-preservation throughout the shooting spree, including at the end of the police pursuit when he threw his gun and ammunition out of the truck he drove during the shootings.
Nigh argued Fears was schizophrenic and was suffering from delusions that aliens were controlling him, which caused him to go on the shooting spree, a defense the jury rejected.
Nigh pointed to expert testimony, which agreed Fears was mentally ill at the time of the shooting. State and defense experts disagreed about whether Fears knew what he was doing was wrong.
Schuyler "Woody" Scarborough, 41, of Vian was convicted of the stabbing death of his father and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in district court in November.
Scarborough was convicted in September of the May 21, 2003, first-degree murder of his father, Chester, at the elder Scarborough's home in Vian.
Chester Scarborough, 69, was found in his home bleeding to death from 13 stab wounds.
Woody Scarborough was arrested early on June 2 in a friend's apartment in Vian where he had sought refuge the day before.
The jury only took 15 minutes on Sept. 22 to find Scarborough guilty and recommend life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Scarborough acted as his own attorney throughout the trial.
Henshaw read Scarborough's long criminal history, which included a previous second-degree murder conviction, as well as several burglary counts, an assault and battery charge, and uttering a forged instrument.
Scarborough was convicted of shooting his wife to death in 1988, but was released after serving less than 10 years in prison.
The three-day trial of Daniel Allen Moore, accused of the 2003 shooting death of his niece, ended in November when jurors returned a verdict of guilty to first-degree murder.
Moore, 48, who, along with his wife, Rosella Sue Moore, 47, was arrested on first-degree murder charges in June 2003 following the fatal shooting of Garade Jean "Dee Dee" Girsback, 24, of Gore.
The six-woman, six-man jury recommended a punishment of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Moore waived his right to a pre-sentencing investigation, and Associate District Judge A.J. Henshaw immediately sentenced Moore to the recommended sentence. Moore is planning his appeal.
According to court records, the shooting occurred at about 9 p.m. June 10 when Girsback, the mother of two young daughters, was babysitting at a home on Golden Pond Road northeast of Moonshine Road near Vian.
Daniel and Sue Moore allegedly went to the residence to speak to Girsback about her two children when the shooting occurred. The defense claimed the Moores went to the home to invite Girsback to a barbecue at their home. The Moores, Girsback's aunt and uncle, were often allowed to take care of Girsback's children for lengthy periods of time, according to court records.
The defense claimed that the shooting was an accident. Defense attorneys said that Moore slammed his gun down on the hood of his vehicle, a bullet discharged and ricocheted off the hood of the truck and struck Girsback in the chest, killing her.
The prosecution argued that Moore went to look for Girsback with the intent to kill her. Prosecutors said Danny Moore drank alcohol, shot firearms, and made statements about what he was going do to Girsback on the night of the shooting. They argued that a ricochet mark found on the hood of Moore's truck was done after the shooting in an attempted cover-up.
Moore's wife, Rosella Sue Moore, is also charged with first-degree murder, and her trial is expected to be placed on the spring jury docket.
Trials may not be over for a man already convicted by the state in February for the 1999 shooting death of an Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) trooper.
Defense attorneys and federal prosecutors together asked a federal judge in December to delay the federal trial of Kenneth Eugene Barrett, 43. Barrett was set to go to trial Jan. 3.
Barrett was found guilty of manslaughter in February in a state trial for the death of OHP Trooper David "Rocky" Eales. Eales was shot during a drug raid at Barrett's home just off Dwight Mission Road northwest of Sallisaw. Another trooper was also injured.
Barrett received a 20-year prison sentence for the charge of first-degree manslaughter and a 10-year sentence for an assault and battery with a dangerous weapon charge, to run consecutively for a total of 30 years.
District Judge John Garrett went along with the jury-recommended prison terms, and ordered them to run one after another, instead of concurrent. If the jury had found Barrett guilty of first-degree murder, he could have faced the death penalty.
Barrett was taken into custody at the time of the shooting and was held without bond in the county jail for about four and a half years.
Given credit for four and a half years, Barrett could receive a parole hearing in a little over two years for the manslaughter conviction. But the federal charges could change that.
Barrett is currently charged with federal weapons and drugs counts and with intentionally killing a police officer in the line of duty.
Barrett was indicted last month and pleaded innocent to Eales' death. Barrett's attorneys have said Barrett has already received his day in court and punishment for the shooting death of Eales.
State prosecutors had tried to get a first-degree murder conviction and death penalty during that trial. Barrett's attorney will again be John Echols of Tulsa, who represented Barrett during his first two state trials, the first of which deadlocked at 11 to 1 for a first-degree murder conviction in October 2002.
During the five-week state trial, Barrett's attorneys, Echols and Jack Gordon, argued Barrett was acting in self-defense, after he was shot first by law enforcement officers, when he fired his rifle at troopers as they attempted to serve a no-knock day or night search warrant for drugs at his rural home. Echols claimed Barrett did not know he was firing at officers when unmarked vehicles drove across his property toward his home.
The prosecuting attorney, Darrell Dowty, argued that members of the OHP tactical team activated their emergency lights on the approach to Barrett's home, and that Barrett shot at the officers first, and the officers returned fire.
Sequoyah County residents swarmed the polls to cast their ballots in the Nov. 2 general election, possibly producing one of the highest voter turnouts in recent years.
Election results indicated a total voter turnout of 71.58 percent in the county. Of the 20,866 registered voters eligible to vote in the general election, 14,936 turned up at the polls.
Your TIMES reported in the 2000 general election that there was a 53.66 percent voter turnout. Of the 23,037 registered voters in the county in 2000, 12,361 cast ballots.
Sequoyah County residents overwhelmingly passed the state lottery, tribal gaming, and an amendment to the constitution declaring marriage between a man and a woman. President George W. Bush received 8,865 votes in the county, while John F. Kerry received 5,910 votes. Kerry conceded the election.
State Question 711, which defines marriage between a man and a woman, passed with 80.73 percent of the vote in the county, and passed statewide.
County residents voted against State Question 713, which calls for a four cent tax per cigarette, but the majority ruled across the state, and the measure passed with 53 percent of the vote. Beginning Jan. 1, smokers will pay about 55 cents more for a pack of cigarettes.
County voters showed their support for U.S. Rep. Brad Carson (D-Claremore) who was running for the U.S. Senate seat, but the support he received in the 2nd Congressional District wasn't strong enough to overcome former U.S. Rep. Tom Coburn, Republican from Muskogee. Carson received 7,700 voters in the county, while Coburn received 6,468. Sheila Bilyeu, an Independent candidate, received 413 votes. Across the state, Coburn received 736,189 votes, Carson received 572,732 votes, and Bilyeu received 84,227 votes.
For the 2nd Congressional District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, State Rep. Dan Boren (D-Paden) was overwhelmingly the victor. Boren was up against Wayland Smalley, Republican, of Chelsea, for the seat being vacated by Congressman Brad Carson. Boren received 65.04 percent of the county vote, while Smalley received 34.96 percent.
Kathy Webb, election board secretary, said after the election that over 830 in-house absentee voters cast their ballots the weekend prior to the election. She said they saw an increase from every election they've ever had, according to other election board employees.
The largest voter turnout was reported to be in Akins, with 76 percent of their voters going to the polls. Cindy Hyde, election board assistant secretary, said of the 402 voters in Akins, 307 turned out for the election.
Election board employees speculated that the interest in the election was high because of the presidential election, the lottery, tribal gaming, and definition of marriage.
Four schools attempted bond elections over the past year, with two passing and two being struck down by voters.
The most recent bond election occurred this month in Vian.
Voters in the Vian School District passed two bonds totaling $600,000 intended for new school buses and building improvements during a special election Dec. 14.
The school needed 60 percent of the vote to pass the bonds, and received 64.5 percent. There were 249 citizens who voted in favor of the proposition, and 137 who voted against the bonds. One of the bonds, for $200,000, will provide four new school buses, one of which would be equipped for handicapped students. The buses will replace older, high-mileage buses currently being used.
Vian School Superintendent Lawrence Barnes said the school hopes to move forward by lease-purchasing the buses and then paying them off when the bonds are sold in June.
Another bond for $400,000, classified as a construction bond, would provide replacements for outdated walk-in coolers and freezers in the school cafeteria, resurface a parking lot, replace the floor and folding bleachers in the high school gym, and provide lights for Vian's baseball field, Barnes said.
Bonds are paid for through property taxes of voters who live within the Vian School District. The tax impact for property owners amounted to about $3.12 annually if a property owner's previous tax amount was $25, and about $12.48 annually if a property owner's previous tax amount was $100.
The dreams of a new middle school for teachers, school officials, and many others were shattered in May after a $7.8 million bond election in Sallisaw failed.
According to the Sequoyah County Election Board, of the 1,314 Sallisaw residents who cast their votes, 652 were in favor of the proposition and 662 were against it. A school bond requires 60 percent approval to pass.
If the bond had passed, the $7,855,000 would have been used to build a new middle school with cafeteria, gymnasium and other amenities on the high school campus. The present middle school was constructed in the 1950s and the gymnasium was built in 1949. A southwest wing of classrooms was added in 1962.
Superintendent Ron Wyrick said after the election that he understood why the voters didn't pass the bond. He said everyone supported the idea of a new middle school, but they didn't like the tax increase, which would have been about 34 percent.
Voters in the Gore School District struck down two $150,000 school bond propositions during a special school election in March.
Over 390 voters went to the polls to cast their votes on transportation and building bonds that would have been used to purchase new buses and portable classrooms for the school, according to election results from the Sequoyah County Election Board.
The first proposition on the ballot for the building bond was voted down with 212 against the proposition and 179 voters in favor of it.
The second proposition for the transportation equipment bond received 183 votes in favor of the bond and 207 against it.
Dennis Fields, school board president, said the school was in need of more classroom space since the school had to shut down the Gum Springs School campus last year because of the cut in state school funding. Gum Springs housed the fifth and sixth grades and had about 60 to 80 students enrolled. Once the school was shut down, the students moved to the Gore campus, and the shift caused a shortage of space, Fields said.
Prior to the election, Fields said that the old buses the school uses have more than 100,000 miles and while they are not unsafe, the buses constantly need repairs.
It only took 13 voters to spend $65,000 of Moffett's ad valorem tax during the annual school board election Feb. 24. Of the votes cast, there were 13 votes in favor of the bond measure and no votes against it. The bond was approved by 100 percent.
The bond money was earmarked to remodel the old rock building that currently houses the fifth through eighth grades. The bond will be used to repair problems with the building that was built in 1939.
The bond will run seven years and will mean $1.04 per $100 of ad valorem tax to property owners.
The search for a Northeastern State University student, originally of Webbers Falls, continues.
Investigators with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) are searching for a man who may help them in the disappearance of Stephen Adams, according to a recent OSBI press release.
Adams, 26, disappeared the morning of Dec. 13 after taking an exam at NSU. Adams' cousin, Tiffany Haney of Sallisaw, said Adams' girlfriend called him at 11:07 a.m., and he told her he was giving someone a ride to Keys south of Tahlequah.
Adams was supposed to go to his mother's house in Webbers Falls that day, but failed to arrive at her home. He also failed to show up for work that evening.
After extensive interviews with Adams' neighbors and others who work in the area, OSBI agents believe a man who was parked in the Dollar General store on East Downing Street in Tahlequah the morning of Adams' disappearance may help with the investigation, the OSBI reported Tuesday.
The man sought is described as a white male, with a thin build, between 40 and 50 years old with brown hair and a mustache. He was driving an older model dark colored or black Ford Ranger pickup truck with a silver toolbox in the back.
OSBI is considering Adams' disappearance suspicious since he missed his other final exams and never showed up for work. The OSBI is also offering a $1,000 reward for information leading authorities to Adams' whereabouts.
Adams is described as 5 feet, 7 inches tall, weighing about 200 pounds, and with brown hair and brown eyes. Adams was driving a white, 1995 GMC truck, with an Oklahoma license tag reading SCQ 714.
The OSBI is urging anyone who can help identify the man sought or Adams to call the Tahlequah Police Department at (918) 456-8801 or the OSBI hotline at (800) 522-8017.
