Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond removed attorneys hired by the governor to intervene in a mental health competency lawsuit on Friday.
Allie Friesen, mental health commissioner, and Gov. Kevin Stitt have disagreed with Drummond on accepting a landmark mental health settlement that was given preliminary approval by a federal judge in September.
A board chaired by Stitt rejected a landmark mental health settlement in October, pushing back against the opinions of Drummond. Prior to the meeting, Friesen’s office announced it would be terminating Drummond as counsel because he was failing to prioritize her or her agency.
The settlement was unveiled in June and is intended to settle a lawsuit alleging the mental health department is failing to provide timely court-ordered competency restoration treatment and violating the rights of defendants, who are mostly indigent, declared incompetent to stand trial, and being held in county jails.
According to court documents, a contract with Friesen’s substitute counsel was authorized by Stitt Monday. Attorneys from Hall Estill law firm appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma on behalf of Friesen Friday.
In response to Drummond’s action, a spokesperson for the mental health department said in a statement they “remain focused on continuing our mission to provide the highest quality of care for all Oklahomans.”
The Governor’s Office did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
Stitt notified Drummond’s office of his approval of the contract with Hall Estill law firm Thursday, citing an “irreconcilable conflict of interest” between the Mental Health Department and the Office of the Attorney General as a reason for needing substitute counsel.
After their initial appearances, Drummond filed in court Friday to strike their appearances and terminate the firm’s contract. Drummond did not authorize the firm to represent Friesen in her official capacity as Commissioner of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, and Debbie Moran, in her official capacity as executive director of the Oklahoma Forensic Center, according to the motion.
Drummond said that Friesen and Moran were sued in their official capacities which “effectively makes this a suit against the State.”
In a letter Drummond sent to Stitt Friday, he referenced a precedent from the Oklahoma Supreme Court that gives the Oklahoma Attorney General “complete dominion over every litigation in which he properly appears in the best interest of the State” without “explicit legislative or constitutional expression to the contrary.”
In the letter to Stitt, Drummond said his client is the State of Oklahoma which includes Friesen and Moran in their official capacities. He said he will continue to represent them in their official capacities.
Drummond said to Friesen in an email Oct. 9 that he recommended she find outside counsel for her deposition not related to her official capacity due to concerns she would perjure herself.
“This office will not represent you and serve your personal interests while being distracted from serving the State’s best interests under these circumstances,” Drummond said in the email.
The governor and attorney general have previously had disagreements over tribal issues, dual office holdings and the creation of a publicly funded Catholic charter school.
Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence.
