A federal judge has reopened state Rep. Randy Terrill's 2005 bankruptcy filing after reports surfaced that the lawmaker failed to disclose important information in the case.
Federal Bankruptcy Judge T.M. Weaver reopened the case Thursday in response to a petition from bankruptcy trustee John D. Mashburn.
Mashburn asked that the case be reopened because Terrill, the head of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee, failed to list as an asset money his campaign owed him.
Terrill, the author of sweeping anti-illegal-immigration legislation, declared bankruptcy three years ago over less than $80,000 in debt.
Mashburn said he had expected Weaver to reopen the case. He also expects Weaver to re-appoint him as trustee to oversee the case.
Mashburn said the judge's order allows creditors to try to recover additional funds from Terrill's estate.
Oklahoma Ethics Commission Reports indicate Terrill was reimbursed between $9,800 and about $11,000 for campaign expenses.
"The purpose of this reopening, as far as I'm concerned, is to try and recover assets, or what appears to be assets, of the estate," he said.
Terrill and his wife filed their Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition Oct. 14, 2005, less than a year after he was elected to the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
In July, Terrill downplayed the request to reopen the case, attributing it to his political opponents.
"Neither my wife, nor I have any problem with the court taking a second look," Terrill said. "We don't object at all to the court taking a second look to make sure everything was done properly."
However, Terrill, who is up for re-election, said his political foes in the Hispanic community are using the bankruptcy against him. Terrill sponsored a tough, anti-illegal immigration law last year. That law is being challenged in court.
"I would reiterate that this is a dirty, nasty, sleazy political tactic which causes people not to run for elective office," he said.
