The United States Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed a lower court ruling from 2021, instead deciding that Oklahoma can prosecute non-Native Oklahomans who commit crimes against tribal members on tribal land.

The court’s decision overturns a previous ruling by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals that vacated the Tulsa County conviction of Victor Manuel Castro-Huerta.

Castro-Huerta, a non-Native American, was convicted in 2017 of child neglect after his 5-year-old stepdaughter, who is Native American, was found in terrible conditions. 

On this episode of Listen Frontier, I speak about the decision with KOSU Indigenous Affairs reporter Allison Herrera, as well as Ryan Leonard, who serves as Special Counsel for Native American Affairs to Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt.

Oklahoma’s primary election day led to a few surprises, a number of runoffs and some big wins that set up a number of fascinating storylines leading into the next few months.

Incumbent governor Kevin Stitt won his party’s nomination, as did Democrat Joy Hofmeister, who will face Stitt in November.

Stitt’s attorney general, John O’Connor, was defeated by Tulsa lawyer Genter Drummond, a vote that will likely reshape the relationship between Stitt’s camp and the attorney general’s office. But Stitt’s pick for state superintendent, Ryan Walters, shook off recent controversies enough to reach the run off in August against fellow republican April Grace.

On today’s Listen Frontier, I talk with Frontier reporters Clifton Adcock, Kayla Branch, and Reese Gorman about those elections, as well as the congressional races and the Oklahoma County jail bond vote.

United States Senator Jim Inhofe has been a fixture in Oklahoma politics since the 1960s. But in February the 87-year-old announced he would be resigning less than two years into his most recent term.

The timing of his announcement is key. Inhofe said he would stay in office until next year, meaning that Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt can’t nominate an interim replacement. Instead, a special election will be held later this year.

The surprise opening of a coveted Senate seat resulted in a number of dominoes falling as candidates started appearing out of thin air. 

Today on Listen Frontier, Frontier reporter Reese Gorman discuss Inhofe’s resignation, how the race is shaping up, and a pending lawsuit that might stop the process just as it’s getting started.

"Critical Race Theory" has become, for some, a blanket term that can encapsulate any number of things. On this edition of the Listen Frontier podcast, Clifton Adcock talks about his most recent story, where he noted that lawmakers here were moving beyond just outlawing Critical Race Theory, and were linking other school teachings to "leftist indoctrination."

When Joy Hofmeister announced last year she would run for governor in 2022, it wasn’t a surprise. Her name had been tossed around for the last couple years as a potential opponent for incumbent Republican Kevin Stitt.

But what did come as a surprise for some was that Hofmeister, a lifelong Republican, was running as a Democrat. Many wondered what that meant … would she govern as a dDemocrat? Was she running as a Democrat merely in order to avoid a costly primary battle with Stitt? And where does she fall on topics like abortion access?

On today’s Listen Frontier podcast, I talk with Hofmeister about these topics and more.

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Monday gave a wide-ranging 45 minute State of the State Address, touching on a number of topics including education, criminal justice, the McGirt decision, medical marijuana but, notably, not the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

On today's Listen Frontier, host Dylan Goforth discusses the speech with Frontier State Government reporter Kayla Branch.

In 2020, former McAlester Public Schools teacher Ryan Walters was appointed as the youngest Secretary of Education in Oklahoma’s history. Earlier this month, with schools ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic and the highly infectious omicron variant, Gov, Kevin Stitt announced the Guest Educator Program. It simplified the ability for schools facing COVID-19 related teacher shortages to bring in substitute teachers from the outside, either from state agencies or from private businesses.

The plan was met with mixed reactions. While many parents are thankful their kids are able to stay in the classroom, some are worried about the quality of education these “guest educators” can provide on such short notice. And many teachers, already dealing with the effects of risking COVID-19 exposure in the classroom, have said the “guest educator” program made them feel devalued and that it makes it seem like anyone can just step into a classroom and teach.

On today’s Listen Frontier podcast, I talk with Walters about the program, about how it will be judged as a success or failure, his relationship with teachers across the state, and how he weighs his responsibility to both teachers and students.

Loopholes in state residency requirements have led to an influx of out-of-state investment through ‘ghost owners.’

On this edition of Listen Frontier, Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt sits down with me to talk about, among other things: Oklahoma City’s voter base, how he labels himself politically, how long he wants to be mayor, his American Indian heritage, and his thought process behind which topics he chooses to weigh in on.

The Omicron variant has not been found in Oklahoma as of this recording, though state health officials are certain it’s already spreading here. 

The variant has the potential to cripple hospitals if health officials are right about its extreme transmissibility, and it is hitting the country right before millions plan to gather for the holidays.

On today’s Listen Frontier Podcast, I talk with Tulsa County Health Department Director Bruce Dart about the Omicron variant – What we know about it and what we don't, and what you can and should do to keep yourselves safe over the holidays.