Local & Regional

By Associated Press

Oklahoma City, OK – Askins, Fallin don't talk motherhood at forum

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) The two women running to be Oklahoma's first female governor stayed away from the issue of whether motherhood makes one candidate better than the other.

By KWGS News

Tulsa, OK – The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety is trying a new pilot program at its Eastgate Driving Testing Facility. Trooper Lt- George Brown says it is designed to speed up people wanting to drive with an examiner.

The wait to take the driving portion of a license exam is being cut in half with a new pilot program. Rather than wait in a long line, DPS Driver License Division Director Karen Gentry says you can now schedule that portion of the exam.

By Associated Press

Oklahoma City, OK – Corrections expert to meet with Okla. lawmakers

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) An expert on corrections policy will meet with Oklahoma lawmakers to discuss possible criminal justice legislation.

Michael Thompson, director of The Justice Center with the Council of State Governments, will meet with lawmakers at the state Capitol on Tuesday.

House Speaker-designate Kris Steele of Shawnee says lawmakers should meet with Thompson prior to the 2011 legislative session that begins in February.

By KWGS News

Tulsa, OK – Tulsa Fire fighters rushed to the Silver Springs Apartments shortly after three this morning. Two women were reported trapped on a second floor balcony with visible flames on the lower floor.

Fire fighters got the women down and quickly put out the blaze. The fire was apparently started by candles too close to plastic furniture.

No one was injured.

By KWGS News

Tulsa, OK – Tulsa Police says a lone bandit robbed the Fiesta Mart at 15th and South Harvard early this morning with a camping shovel. Police says the man entered the store and held the shovel in a threatening manner. He demanded cash and cigarettes. After getting both, he fled the store. The clerk was not injured.

By Marshall Stewart

Tulsa, OK – Tulsa will copy New York City in an effort to help the unemployed and under-employed struggling in this down' economy. Tulsa is one of eight cities to receive funding under the Serve America Act. The Tulsa Community Foundation will help coordinate the three anti-poverty programs, which have already proven successful in New York City.

By KWGS News

Tulsa, OK – A man walked into the Mid-First Bank near 21st and Lewis and asked about opening an account. He apparently quickly changed his mind.

He told the clerk he had a gun and demanded cash. He then fled into a neighborhood. No one was injured.

By Associated Press

Stillwater, Oklahoma – Former soldier Shawn Dunbar of Stillwater says a case of mistaken identity that resulted in his arrest for an assault in Junction City, Kan., has interrupted his VA benefits for an ailment stemming from his war service in Iraq.

By Associated Press

Norman, Oklahoma – Members of the Oklahoma National Guard's 1-45th Agri-Business Development Team are home after deployment to Afghanistan. The 60 soldiers were welcomed home yesterday afternoon by family and friends at the Norman Armed Forces Reserve Center. The soldiers spent 10 months in Afghanistan training Afghans on agricultural techniques.

By Denise Brewer

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Republican gubernatorial candidate Mary Fallin has said she believes her experience as a wife and mother of six children is a key distinction between her and her opponent. Some thought the comment was an inappropriate dig at Democrat Jari Askins, who's single. Askins said she always assumed she would marry, but believes she's still best qualified even though she didn't.