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Oklahoma man serving life sentence uses pandemic funds to prove his innocence in murder case

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Oklahoma man serving life sentence uses pandemic funds to prove his innocence in murder case


An Oklahoma man serving a life sentence in prison used his pandemic relief funds to hire a private investigator to help exonerate him for a 1997 murder he did not commit.

While other inmates cashed in their COVID checks for commissary, Ricky Dority, 65, put his toward proving his innocence, according to reports.

Bobby Staton, who typically investigated insurance fraud, took on the case and realized that it was “riddled with holes,” the Associated Press reported.

He eventually teamed up with law student Abby Brawner from Oklahoma City University’s Innocence Project to dig into the case.

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In 2014, investigators opened up the cold case killing of 28-year-old Mitchell Nixon, who was found beaten to death in Oklahoma in October 1997.

Since his conviction was thrown out in June, Ricky Dority has been able to enjoy life in the sprawling Arkansas River Valley as a free man.
AP

Another man who ended up pleading guilty to manslaughter in the killing implicated Dority, who was in federal prison at the time for a firearms conviction.

During the trial, a police informant said Dority changed out of his bloody clothes at his house the night of the murder. Dority was convicted of first-degree murder and given a sentence of life without parole.

But Staton and Brawner found that the informant didn’t actually live at the house that he said Dority came to that night. When the actual homeowner testified in June, the judge threw out the case.


Oklahoma City University
An investigator and students at the Oklahoma Innocence Project at Oklahoma City University found inconsistencies in the 1997 case and Dority’s conviction was vacated in June.
UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Now, Dority is enjoying life on his son’s 5-acre property near the Arkansas River Valley, were he is spending his time feeding the chickens and playing with his grandchildren.

“After they’ve done what they’ve done to me, I know there are people in that prison who are innocent that need to be out and need help getting out,” Dority told the AP. “If they hadn’t gotten me out, I’d have been in there for the rest of my life.

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Dority is one of nearly 3,400 people who have been exonerated across the country since 1989, at least 46 of them in Oklahoma.

With Post wires



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Oklahoma

Staff predictions: Our picks for No. 7 Alabama at Oklahoma

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Staff predictions: Our picks for No. 7 Alabama at Oklahoma


After falling twice away from home already this season, No. 7 Alabama will look to avoid a potential trap game in its final road trip of the regular season. The Crimson Tide (8-2, 5-2 in the SEC) will visit Oklahoma (5-5, 1-5) for a 6:30 p.m. CT kickoff Saturday inside Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium.

This will be the seventh matchup between Alabama and Oklahoma. The Sooners hold a 3-2-1 advantage in the series, but the Tide won the most recent meeting, recording a 45-34 victory in the 2018 Orange Bowl. Alabama is currently a 14-point favorite for Saturday’s game, according to the Caesars Sportsbook.

Here’s how Tide Illustrated’s staff thinks the game will play out.



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Oklahoma State Offers 2026 Bixby DB Braeden Presley

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Oklahoma State Offers 2026 Bixby DB Braeden Presley


The stark reality of the Cowboys future on the gridiron is up in the air.  Can Oklahoma State bounce back in 2025 following one of the worst football seasons in years?  Will the Pokes return next season and play with a chip on their shoulder?  Only time will tell and the best way to improve the football team is for the coaching staff to hit the recruiting trail hard.

Oklahoma State will say goodbye to one of the greatest statistical wide receivers to ever wear the Cowboy orange.  Senior Brennan Presley has been the cornerstone of the receiving core for the past four seasons.  He is the all-time receptions leader in Oklahoma State history and has caught more than two passes in nearly every game since his sophomore season.

The offense won’t be the same in 2025 with Presley snagging catches across the middle, but the fans of Cowboy football won’t have to wait long as a familiar name will be entering the mix straight out of the class of 2026.

On Thursday, Oklahoma State looked to make it the Presley trifecta when they offered the youngest of the bunch, 2026 Bixby star Braeden Presley.  Older brothers Brennan and Braylin both committed to Oklahoma State out of high school.  Brennan hung around to become the all-time receptions leader in school history while Braylin transferred to Tulsa.

Braeden is the biggest brother of the bunch and measures in at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, according to 247Sports.  He is unranked at the moment but still has a full season of football yet to play.  The interest continues to grow for Braeden who has drawn offers from Tulsa, Boston College and Kansas.

Oklahoma State joined the mix on Thursday and is hoping to use its family ties to lock up their third straight Presley.  Little is known about Presley on the field, and he has proven this season that he is a jack of all trades.  He has logged a rushing touchdown, receiving touchdown and passing touchdown this season for the Spartans of Bixby.

A majority of his highlights have come on the defensive side of the football.  He has 27 tackles, three interceptions and a forced fumble in 2024 for a Bixby team who is searching for yet another Class 5A State Championship.

The fans of Oklahoma State football may not have to wait very long to have a Presley once again under the lights of Boone Pickens Stadium.

Want to join the discussion? Like Oklahoma State Cowboys on SI on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Cowboys news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.





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Miami Basketball: Canes drop second straight game to Oklahoma State 80-74

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Miami Basketball: Canes drop second straight game to Oklahoma State 80-74


CHARLESTON, S.C. – The University of Miami men’s basketball team fell to the Oklahoma State Cowboys (4-1), 80-74, Friday afternoon at TD Arena in the Hurricanes’ (3-2) second game of the 2024 Shriners Children’s Charleston Classic.

Down 17 with five minutes to play in the game, the Hurricanes connected on seven of their final ten shots to pull to within six of the Cowboys, but time ultimately ran out on Miami’s comeback.

Guard Nijel Pack recorded his second 20-point game of the season, totaling 20 points to lead the Hurricanes in scoring.

Forward Brandon Johnson tallied his first double-double of the season with 12 points and ten rebounds, pacing the Hurricanes’ on the glass.

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Oklahoma State took control early, opening the game on a 9-0 run. Miami cut the lead to three thanks to a pair of 3-pointers from Blackmon and Pack, but the Cowboys responded with a 7-0 run to extend their lead to double-digits, 20-10, with 10 minutes to play in the first half.

The Cowboys shot 53.3 percent from 3-point range in the first half, increasing their lead to 16, 43-37, at the halftime break.

Oklahoma State took its largest lead of the game, 51-31, at the 14:35 mark in the second half, but Miami responded with an 11-4 run to cut the deficit to 13 at the midway point of the frame.

The Hurricanes shot 58.1 percent from the field in the second half, and four Miami players scored eight-plus points in the final 20 minutes of play, but they could not complete the comeback.

On Sunday, Miami will play VCU or Nevada at 12:30 p.m. ET at TD Arena in Charleston, S.C.

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Courtesy of Miami Athletics



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