Court Roundup: Former Logan County Commissioner indicted for embezzlement
Mar. 29—A multicounty grand jury indicted former Logan County Commissioner, Kody Ellis, on an embezzlement charge.
The grand jury determined Ellis, 39, feloniously fueled his personal vehicle with gasoline while receiving a monthly stipend of $700 from Logan County as reimbursement for mileage, according to court documents. He is said to have done this between July 2021 through July 2022.
The crime is punishable by one to 10 years in prison and a fine equal to triple the amount of money embezzled. The total amount Ellis is accused of embezzling was not provided in the official indictment.
The charges against Ellis came after he became the target of an investigation from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, which led to his resignation on Feb. 28.
"I just want to apologize," said Ellis when he announced his resignation on Feb. 13 at that day's commissioner's meeting.
District Attorney Laura Austin Thomas announced she recused her office from the case after reviewing the OSBI investigation. The Oklahoma Attorney General's Office will prosecute the case, which will continue before Special Judge Susan Worthington.
The grand jury heard testimony from OSBI Agent Kevin Woodward and four Guthrie residents. Their connection to the case was not listed.
Ellis posted his $5,000 bond, and his next court hearing is scheduled for April 27 at 9 a.m.
Child abuse, sexual battery charges against Stillwater man dropped
Prosecutors have dropped charges against Mark Douglas Haskins, who was accused of separate child abuse and sexual battery incidents filed in May 2020 and March 2021, respectively.
The probable cause affidavit from the child abuse case showed the victim claimed Haskins punched him or her in the face, chest and side. The responding officer observed a bruise and swelling under the child's eye, blood in the nostrils and a bruise on the hand, according to the affidavit.
He made bail and was accused of sexual battery 10 months later.
The defendant requested a competency hearing for the cases, and it was pushed back six times until Dec. 10, 2021, when he was found to be competent.
The child abuse charge was dropped at the state's request in March of 2022. The sexual battery charge was dropped on Friday — three days before the trial was scheduled to begin.
The News Press contacted Haskins' lawyer, who declined to comment.
