From KRMG News:

Tulsa Police made a carjacking arrest. Police arrested 25-year old Brandon Brixey Thursday after a citizen gave them information. Brixey is suspected of kidnapping and sexually assaulting an eight-year old girl after he allegedly carjacked a van near 61st and South Memorial early Thursday then led lawmen on a chase.

With so many high-profile crimes remaining unsolved in recent times here in Green Country (Weleetka murders, home invasion murder, BA 5-year-old that was abducted), it is pleasing to see this suspect being taken off the streets so quickly.

Good job TPD.

Speaking of which, I was comparing the police sketch artists rendering of the suspect and the actually booking photo when he was apprehended.

Very close resemblance, I'd say:

We got the first crackle of news this morning at 4:00am on our police scanners - a home invasion robbery in Tulsa.

That quickly became a home invasion murder.

From our KRMG 24-Hour NewsCenter:

Tulsa police are investigating a home invasion homicide. Police say a man broke into a couple's home near 38-hundred South Union about four Wednesday morning and demanded money.

Police say there was a struggle with a gun that belonged to the homeowner. During the struggle, the woman was reportedly shot and killed. The resident was shot in the hand. Police say the suspect got away in an off-white 90's mid-size S-U-V.

Police are looking for a dark-complected white male about 20 who was wearing a dark beanie. Police are investigating if the man who entered the home knew the victims.

This is the latest in a series of home invasion crimes in recent months in Tulsa. As with any crime of this type, it routinely takes the investigators days/weeks/months to sort out the facts.

Answers that are always important to me:

• Is this crime random or did the victims know the suspect?
• If this crime is random, what weakness did the suspects exploit to commit this crime?
• What can we all do to make sure we mitigate the same weakness in our homes to prevent ourselves from being victimized in the same manner?

The greater likelihood is that there is familiarity in this crime - that somehow, someway, the victims knew the intruder(s). Crime statistics have long supported the greater likelihood of familiar crime versus truly random crimes.

Of course, it's very important to note that a familiarity with the criminal does not in any way diminish the magnitude of the crime or the loss of a family member. Nor does it decrease the vigor for which the police will hunt down the suspect and the DA should prosecute.

But it does telegraph to the rest of the community whether or not we have a cold-blooded murder in our community and that our lives can be largely impacted by the relationships in which we engage.  

Big Splash owner Loretta Murphy hit the media circuit on Monday will a full PR assault on the reports that there are rotted timbers on some of the rides at Tulsa's water park.

From KRMG News:

Big Splash owner Loretta Murphy says the rotten beams, noted back in December by labor department inspectors, should have been replaced.  In an interview with KRMG news Murphy said, "I make no excuses for it.  I don't like to mess up and do anything wrong but it was my responsibility to change those out and those were not done before opening."

KRMG's Nicole Burgin and I talked to Loretta yesterday (Monday) just after lunchtime. You can here the full interview here.

Clearly Big Splash is seeking to manage the story ... retroactively.

Local media that all have the Big Splash story:

KOTV

KTUL

Tulsa World

Not only did I ask Murphy about why the beams were not replaced in a timely fashion, but about the PR challenge posed by this story being out since late last week and not being addressed until Monday.  

It would appear that Democratic candidate Barack Obama, in his first TV ad for the general campaign (an ad we're not likely to see much here in Oklahoma, except on national cable TV), seeks to combat the Michelle Obama "first time I've been proud of my country" issue with his twice professed (in sixty seconds) "love of country" and "country I love."

See for yourself and share your thoughts:

Thursday night at Driller Stadium, I was excited to join other Tulsa-area media members for a charity softball game for the Tulsa Day Center for the Homeless.

It was radio/print versus TV.

I hadn't swung a bat since last year's event and hadn't used my glove or cleats either.

Yet, I managed to get hits on both at-bats (thrown out both times at first base) and did OK as the catcher for the whole game. Since our opponents (TV) had no runs, there was very little action at home plate during my tenure there.

Tim Russert's son, Luke, speaks to his memorial service Wednesday.

Today's Tulsa World Editorial Board fires with both barrels at Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Michael Zolkoski.

Until Monday, most of the voices making the accusations in the Tulsa Academic Center scandal were people directly involved in the situation: students, parents and teachers. Because of that, the Tulsa World suspended final judgment on the problem and on Tulsa Superintendent Michael Zolkoski.

All that changed Monday night when the school board released a summary of the school district's internal investigation of how the district's alternative school so quickly got to be in such a mess.

...

In short, the summary describes the school as violent, overcrowded and out of control. It wasn't a school. It wasn't even a zoo. It was a madhouse, and no one behaved as if it was his job to stop the madness.

That's a failing grade from an objective source, and an immediate, severe response is needed.

It's time for the district to fire Zolkoski.

He either knew, or should have known, that the school was in chaos. Either possibility is unacceptable.

Dr. Z's salary clocks in around the $200,000 mark.

Many will argue for that level of compensation, Dr. Z should not be allowed to be rewarded for sub-standard performance with a contract payout. Make him fix this problem.

It is also worth examining the performance of the other schools in TPS. If TAC is a disaster but the rest of the schools are improving, it might seem unwise to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Either way, people who pay taxes into the TPS system have every reason to be chafed by the seemingly endless flow of troubling news that comes from them.