Local & Regional

The head of an organization that supports same-sex marriage rights is praising a federal appeals court's decision that struck down Oklahoma's ban on gay marriage.

A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals handed down the decision on Friday. The court panel put the ruling on hold pending further appeals.

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. (AP) — Authorities say a 94-year-old Tulsa man has died after a wreck on the Muskogee Turnpike.

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says the collision happened early Friday about 3 miles east of Broken Arrow. According to a preliminary report, 94-year-old Paul Laughlin was driving west when he stopped his vehicle for unknown reasons in the right lane of traffic. According to the report, his vehicle was hit from behind by an oncoming vehicle.

The highway patrol says Laughlin was taken to a Tulsa hospital, where he later died.

DENVER (AP) — A federal appeals court has ruled for the second time that states cannot prevent gay people from getting married.

A three-judge panel of the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver on Friday has found a ban on same-sex marriage in Oklahoma violates the U.S. Constitution. In a Utah case, the court ruled June 25 that gay couples have a constitutional right to wed.

Lower courts struck down Utah and Oklahoma's voter-approved bans in December and January, respectively.

Tulsa Health Department officials confirmed that a sampling of mosquitoes from Tulsa County has tested positive for West Nile virus . It is important for residents to remember to take precautions against WNV. At this time, there have been no confirmed cases of WNV in humans in Tulsa County; however, the months of July through October are typically the highest risk months for exposure to WNV in Oklahoma.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma agriculture officials say ongoing drought during the start of spring followed by a late freeze and untimely late spring rains produced the worst wheat crop in nearly a half century.

Oklahoma Wheat Commission director Mike Schulte says the current projection is for about 51 million bushels of wheat in the state — the lowest total since 43 million bushels were harvested in 1957.

Schulte says the harvest is considered 97 percent complete as of Monday but says he knows of no farmers still trying to collect the crop.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma Water Resources Board is planning in-depth studies to prevent water supply shortages in western Oklahoma.

Planning specialists will study three of the state's twelve "Hot Spot" basins identified in a 2012 water plan as expected to have the most water supply challenges within the next 50 years.

The basins include part of the Beaver-Cache Watershed Planning Region near Duncan, part of the Southwest Watershed Planning Region near Altus and part of the Central Watershed Planning Region located between Yukon and Watonga.

MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) — Bacone College is honoring Muscogee Creek Nation Chief George Tiger during a ceremony dedicating roads after a resurfacing project.

The Muscogee Creek Nation used a grant from the Bureau of Indian Affairs to resurface roads at Bacone College in Muskogee.

The college will honor Tiger during the blessing and dedication ceremony on campus Friday at 10 a.m.

Bacone College is a small liberal arts college founded in 1880.

In the local news:

• A Task Force looks for ways to fund River improvements in Tulsa.
• Construction starts today on a  new Tulsa County law enforcement training center.
• The Eastern Oklahoma Food Bank sets an unfortunate record.

A task force continues to figure out how to pay for dams that would put water in the Arkansas River.

Members support a trust funded by sales or property taxes. Tulsa City Councilor Phil Lakin said operating and maintaining low-water dams needs consistent funding.

"It's tons easier to contribute $100,000 a year for 30 years rather than trying to find $3 million in a budget 30 years from now to replace the gates or paint or replace parts of the dam or do anything else," Lakin said.

Tomorrow ground will be broken for construction of Tulsa County’s new ‘Sheriff Stanley Glanz Law Enforcement Training Center’. Undersheriff     Tim Albin says the concept is for a regional facility to train Tulsa deputies, but also those from smaller jurisdictions.

The facility will include a dispatch center, a shooting range, a driver training track, classrooms, and living quarters. Construction on 66th Street North is expected to take 18 to 24 months.