![]() ![]() Combined with more than $10 million in penalties assessed by OSDE in April and a handful of other fines, the state stands to recover about $20 million from Epic.Īt a meeting of the Oklahoma House of Representatives’ common education committee and Appropriations and Budget education subcommittee on Feb. In December, the Oklahoma State Board of Education voted to withhold $9.1 million in state funding from Epic over 12 months. Byrd’s audit said Epic, Harris, Chaney and their Epic Youth Services corporation owed the state millions of dollars for having excessive administration costs and co-mingling public funds with Epic’s endeavors in California. In October 2020, State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd released her investigative audit of the charter schools. ![]() (Tres Savage) Epic already repaying state funds Terry and Teresa O’Donnell on Friday, Dec. Flanked by prosecutor Charles Rogers, rear, and Oklahoma County Court Clerk Rick Warren, Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater files a copy of a grand jury indictment of Rep. It was also reported that Hunter had received campaign contributions from the charter schools’ co-founders, Chaney and Harris, who are no longer associated with Epic after wholesale changes to the schools’ board and management structure. ![]() At the time, OSBI’s investigation was ongoing, and the multi-county grand jury report noted that the investigation had not concluded. Houston presented witnesses and testimony to the state’s multi-county grand jury, which only produced a controversial May 2021 “ interim report” that encouraged legislative reform of charter school governance laws. Prater has maintained that his wife’s position does not pose a conflict, and his request to be placed in charge of the Epic investigation could indicate lingering frustration over Hunter’s prior appointment of Melissa Houston as a special prosecutor to examine the matter in late 2020. ![]() Prater had stepped away from his role in the Epic saga in mid-2020 after Andrea Eger of the Tulsa World reported conflict of interest questions surrounding Prater’s wife’s employment at Rose State College, which sponsors one of the two Epic charters. “After reviewing the report, I will determine what appropriate action will follow.” “I look forward to meeting with the OSBI agents next week where they will disclose their final investigative report to me,” Prater told NonDoc. Prater said he intends to meet with investigators in the coming days to learn what they have discovered. I appreciate the years of hard work on this investigation by the OSBI and have full confidence in the leadership of District Attorney Prater to take it back and conclude this investigation.” “Our office has been waiting on the OSBI to complete its full investigation and provide its findings. “Prosecutions must be based on final and thorough investigations by law enforcement agencies,” O’Connor said in a press release. EYS was receiving $0.10 of every taxpayer dollar paid to the public charter schools in order to manage the controversial learning fund. O’Connor confirmed that the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation completed its final report on Epic, a pair of charter schools that came under investigation more than eight years ago owing to alleged mismanagement of public dollars by Epic Youth Services, a private management company owned by Epic co-founder Ben Harris and David Chaney. Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor announced late this afternoon that he has granted Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater’s request to reclaim the investigation - and potential prosecution decisions - of Epic Charter Schools nearly two years after he stepped aside and let O’Connor’s predecessor, Mike Hunter, take the lead. ![]()
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