I'm sure that we all know to be cautious after dark ANYWHERE, but I wanted to offer a quick warning. I tend to be pretty nonchalant in OKC, I feel pretty darn safe (almost) anywhere. However, Friday night, a friend of mine's husband was walking back to his car in Bricktown (alone...after a business meeting late). He was walking down the alley between the parking garage and the Ballpark (just like I have about a THOUSAND times) and he was brutally attacked and beaten. He remembers nothing about the attack, but they did not take his wallet or cell phone...so it wasn't a robbery.

To make a very long story short, multiple facial bones were broken, he had lacerations on his liver, many broken ribs, a broken arm....you get the idea. The police think he was probably left for dead. (and apparently this has happened before in the area) SO....please just be quite careful and aware. Of course, common sense should rule, but when we're in familiar surroundings, sometimes we aren't as vigilant.

I looked up some information on this story, and here's what I will tell you.

1. First, when an assault occurs apart from a robbery, 99% of the time the assaulter knows the victim. Think about it; is a person going to beat the hell out of another person for no reason? Usually not.

2. Second, anytime you're downtown at night, it's not very smart to walk in a dark alley by yourself.

You are incorrect on point #1....This is a gentleman who has 3 small children, rarely goes out and was only out for business...of course, you could blame him if you want. I think the operative word here is "usually". No, usually a person will not be beaten, (not "beat") for no reason, but it does happen.

On point #2, you are certainly correct. That's why I posted this...I feel pretty comfortable in OKC and assume others do as well, so wanted to post this as a warning to be aware.

Thanks for the safety reminder. I'm having my bachelorette party in Bricktown this week, but we have several DD's AND guy friends going along for "protection." No dark alleys. I'll suggest we get there a little early so we can get parking close to where we're going to leave.

I looked up some information on this story, and here's what I will tell you.

1. First, when an assault occurs apart from a robbery, 99% of the time the assaulter knows the victim. Think about it; is a person going to beat the hell out of another person for no reason? Usually not.

2. Second, anytime you're downtown at night, it's not very smart to walk in a dark alley by yourself.

When you began your post, "I looked up some information on this story, and here's what I will tell you," I was waiting for some information on this crime. You told us nothing but basic information that we all probably surmised. Nothing you wrote would have needed to be, "looked up." Do you actually know anything about this crime? If anything like this were happening in Bricktown on a frequent basis, I'd like to think we would all know about it. However, if it could hurt business. (Think Jaws.)

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Oh, sorry I didn't go into more detail. I spoke with one of the officers at the Bricktown station that worked the crime. At this point, they're unsure of a motive, but reason #1 mentioned above is being considered.

I don't understand why a shooting at Crossroads makes the news but something like this doesn't.

Just to clarify the type person we're talking about....he works for a prominent Oklahoman....there were business partners in town and they had dinner and drinks. This is not a gangbanger, etc. He is someone just like you and I (expcept he probably doesn't hit the bars and much as I do) :)

Thanks for checking on it.

Just to clarify the type person we're talking about....he works for a prominent Oklahoman....there were business partners in town and they had dinner and drinks. This is not a gangbanger, etc. He is someone just like you and I (expcept he probably doesn't hit the bars and much as I do) :)

Thanks for checking on it.

Sorry for not mentioning more. You're telling more than I am allowed to release.

I understand....just didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea and think they were immune....(like I sometimes do).

Need to remember that Bricktown is like a city within a city. It's not exempt from problems you'd experience in other parts of the city.

When Im in bricktown I very seldom see a officer,when I do he is standing somewhere crowd watching,These crowds are spending money not commiting crimes.We can only hope this will be fixed when the bricktown substation is complete.Thanks for the warning Hopefully these thugs will be caught

Maybe Adam can comment on this since he used to work at the Bricktown substation. But, I'll make a few pointers here. We typicaly watch crowds, because violence often breaks out in crowds. Anytime you get a large amount of people confined to a small place, without crowd control, violence can break out.

Our officers typically are on bike patrol along the canal and throughout the Bricktown area. Unfortunately, we can't be everywhere at once.

People need to help us out by making smart safety decisions, i.e., walking in groups, staying in lit areas, and carrying a cell phone and/or mace.

Many times you don't see us because we try to stay out of the spot light, quietly monitoring the scene.

On the night of the above mentioned event, there were several officers nearby that responded to the crime in a short amount of time. The presence of officers in the area was not an issue.

I don't understand why a shooting at Crossroads makes the news but something like this doesn't.

Perhaps those who own "the news" have a vested interest in the success of Bricktown or downtown and do not want to do anything to detract from its success? Oklahoma news outlets definitely have a history (see Daily Oklahoman and Bass Pro) of letting their personal ambitions shape the news, or at least decide what to include and exclude from the news.

Let's not criticize the police...I just wanted everyone to be safe.

Maybe Adam can comment on this since he used to work at the Bricktown substation. But, I'll make a few pointers here. We typicaly watch crowds, because violence often breaks out in crowds. Anytime you get a large amount of people confined to a small place, without crowd control, violence can break out.

Our officers typically are on bike patrol along the canal and throughout the Bricktown area. Unfortunately, we can't be everywhere at once.

People need to help us out by making smart safety decisions, i.e., walking in groups, staying in lit areas, and carrying a cell phone and/or mace.

Many times you don't see us because we try to stay out of the spot light, quietly monitoring the scene.

On the night of the above mentioned event, there were several officers nearby that responded to the crime in a short amount of time. The presence of officers in the area was not an issue.

I am really glad to see OKCPD patrolling in Bricktown. At some point, about 10 years ago, they were contracting with out of town officers. Those guys were incredibly unprofessional.

In playing gigs up there, it was not uncommon to see these clowns drinking while on duty, using cheesey pickup lines on women (I actually heard one saying something like "I shoot first, ask questions later" to a female patron while having a drink). I thought at the time that these were OKC Police officers. Glad to hear that's not the case!

At any rate, I consider myself lucky to never have been attacked as I have on occasion had to walk accross some of the more seedy parts of downtown at night. It goes without saying that when alone in situations like this, at the very least, we should stay off of our cell phones and be extremely wary of our surroundings.

Thanx for the advise,if the officers were not close this could have been worse.We have an exellent police dept and Im sure these people will be caught

Thanks escan, I'm like you.. I always feel so comfortable in Bricktown and you are so right that maybe we need to be more vigilant.

I'm sorry about your friend. It is a big deal for this to happen and it takes some time to recover emotionally and physically. I wish him well.

Your post will probably help prevent something similar happening to others.. thanks for taking the time to write it.

Im not criticizing the police that was what I observed.okcpd backed that up by saying thats what they do,crowd watch.Please allow people to voice their opinion.OKC ROCKS

Sorry about your friend escan and thanks for the friendly reminder.

I definitely think Bricktown is a safe place and there are several areas of the city in which I would feel much more apprehensive walking alone, but it is easy to get lulled into a sense of false security and the reminder helps prevent it from happening to anyone else. Things like this so often occur in areas that we do feel the safest.

In addition, I do think the police do a great job of keeping bricktown safe. We all need to make sure that we help them out and the people around us.

Take care and I hope your friend has a speedy recover.

I had a friend who was mugged after a Redhawks game a couple years ago (not as bad as this recent one sounds though). No robbery, just a beat-down. My friend got a good look at the guy and didn't have any idea who the mugger was, but he seemed to know my friend, saying "that's what you get when you mess with me." My guess is that it was the boyfriend of one of his "conquests". He was a pretty promiscuous guy. ;)

Perhaps those who own "the news" have a vested interest in the success of Bricktown or downtown and do not want to do anything to detract from its success? Oklahoma news outlets definitely have a history (see Daily Oklahoman and Bass Pro) of letting their personal ambitions shape the news, or at least decide what to include and exclude from the news.

Bingo!

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I don't understand why a shooting at Crossroads makes the news but something like this doesn't.
Just to clarify I saw one of the local television stations cover it this evening (I think it was channel 5) they even had crew at the scene live. I don't think there is any plotting in the media to make Bricktown look good, at least not in this case. Television stations just covered whatever the producer grab from a list of crimes for the day, and just hasn't been much official information released about this assault; from what Ive seen, the management really doesn't have much input unless it is a major story.

A top staffer to Senator Inhofe. He's in charge of the staff in Oklahoma. Sounds like a pretty bad beating. Could this possibly have been targeted because of Inhofe's strong statements of late relating to immigration? Maybe more importantly, the success of the Inhofe Amendment on English as the official language? (http://inhofe.senate.gov/pressapp/record.cfm?id=255847) Anybody know the ethnicity of the attackers? By the way, was this in The Oklahoman? I have only seen coverage on Channel 5.

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From the Oklahoman:

Inhofe aide healing from injuries

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The top Oklahoma aide to U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe was recovering in a city hospital Tuesday after an apparent weekend beating.


John Collison, 32, of Edmond has fractures to his face, pelvis, ribs and wrist, along with a jaw injury and a liver contusion, Oklahoma City police Sgt. Paco Balderrama said. Collison was in fair condition Tuesday.

About 4 a.m. Sunday, paramedics found Collison lying on a loading dock outside the Bricktown Ballpark, Balderrama said. At the hospital, Collison told police he couldn't remember anything that happened after 10:30 p.m. Saturday -- not even the apparent attack.

Collison was not robbed, said Ryan Thompson, Inhofe's spokesman.

Collison is Inhofe's state director, responsible for managing Inhofe's Oklahoma staff and day-to-day operations, Thompson said.

There was a reason for this assault, although the information is not being released. It wasn't just random.

Is there any solid info on this beating that cant be remembered,or are we jumping to conclusions.No robbery,no suspects,no witnesses.What if this guy fell very hard to the ground,stumbling falling into something.Wheres this guys friends,If he was that drunk, how did he leave the bar,restraunt whatever.Surely he was heading for a cab and not his car.please tell me an employee of a prominent Oklahoman would not be allowed to drive himself home after this meeting,drunk.This sounds like a public intox charge at least.I think the public would agree.He could have killed someone for crying out loud.Hopefully some inocent person is not accused of this crime or what might be just an accident.

Just to clarify the type person we're talking about....he works for a prominent Oklahoman....there were business partners in town and they had dinner and drinks. This is not a gangbanger, etc. He is someone just like you and I (expcept he probably doesn't hit the bars and much as I do) :)

Thanks for checking on it.


Did anyone else catch this besides me? Just because they are a white collar person, doesn't mean they are exempt, in fact white collar crimes are common. Money can buy hitmen and may have been in this case, sounds like a possibility after finding out more about the man and whom he works for, etc.

Wow, that's a horrible thing to have happen to anyone.

And in the bigger picture, things like this happening in OKC's major gathering place is disturbing.

Public safety in such areas is very important, as Crossroads Mall is now learning the hard way.

It seems there are a lot of missing details to this story. I'm not buying the "random attack" theory. My guess is the victim knows more that he's not telling.

Hmm. Looks like okcpd was right. This was more than just a random act.
Check this out:


Inhofe aide speculates on injuries

From Staff Reports
The Oklahoman

The top Oklahoma aide to U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe on Wednesday offered investigators numerous potential causes for his injuries, a police spokesman said.


John Collison, 32, of Edmond told investigators he still couldn't remember what happened to him between 10:30 p.m. Saturday and 4 a.m. Sunday, when he was found on a loading dock at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark.

Collison has fractures to his face, pelvis, ribs and wrist, along with a jaw injury and a liver contusion. A condition report could not be obtained Wednesday night.

Police Capt. Jeffrey Becker said Collison offered these possible explanations for his injuries. They were that he:

Stepped into traffic and was hit by a car.
Climbed a fence to get to his vehicle and fell.
Climbed something else and fell or jumped.
Had been thrown from something.
Was beaten up by a man for looking at a woman.


Collison is Inhofe's state director, responsible for managing Inhofe's Oklahoma staff and day-to-day operations, said Ryan Thompson, the senator's spokesman.

Although this is very disturbing and I feel very sorry for Mr. Collison, I think this had to have been related to his political connections. I'm not saying Collison knew his attacker or anything like that, but like has been mentioned it could have been someone who just doesn't like Inhofe.

If that were true guys would get beat up every day!!

The guy was drunk and had a stupid, drunk accident. There is nothing sinister to the story. :cheersmf:

Also a very likely explanation. Much more likely than a random thug just beating him up because he felt like it. But what drunken accident could cause those injuries?

Patrick,you could be a comedian,it doesent pay as much but man you got jokes.

As much as I'd like to believe this was a simple drunken accident, how the heck did the guy end up on a loading dock?

That doesn't make any sense at all.

OK, OK, to make this go away I am going to tell you all what some experts believe happened.

The gentleman attended the baseball games and parked in VIP parking, the fenced and gated "player parking" behind the ballpark. After the game it is believed that he celebrated heavily in Bricktown. When all of the joints closed at 2 am he went to the fenced parking area to get his car (yikes). But guess what? The lot is no longer attended that late at night and the car was trapped inside. It is theorized that he climbed up on the wall above the loading dock to make his climb over the fence easier. He fell from there, smacking his face on the wall, then fell approximately 25 feet to the dock below, smacking the rest of his body (ouch).

So, Bricktown is as safe as it was last week. Be careful there as you would be anywhere you are out in any city.

The End

Thanks for the update, ksearls. I'd heard on the radio yesterday morning that the gentleman said he hadn't been beaten, but that he "didn't know what had happened". Sounded a little fishy.

The really good news is that this fella didn't end up behind the wheel of his car...if he's so drunk that he'll attempt to climb over the fence, then he CERTAINLY didn't need to be driving.

Agreed. There's more to this than originally came out. Let's all use this as a reminder to a) always be aware of your surroundings and b) know your limits....and the phone number to a cab company!

Patrick,you could be a comedian,it doesent pay as much but man you got jokes. Thanks, I guess! :)

Even if this case turns out to be a drunken accident, it is still very worthwhile to have a strategy to avoid dangerous situations and keep your car & home locked. I see nothing to gain in gambling that things will just be automatically okay on either front.

The steps are obvious on what one should do to stay safe in urban settings at night. I also vary my daytime routine commuting back and forth between home and work. I don't always take the same routes or travel at the same times. Often I'll go run some errands after work rather than just going straight home.