Former and Current Oklahoma County District Attorneys to Lead Chapel Jan. 28

OBU's spring chapel series will begin Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 10 a.m. in Raley Chapel's Potter Auditorium on the OBU campus in Shawnee. Wes Lane, former Oklahoma County district attorney, and David Prater, current Oklahoma County district attorney, will lead a message titled, "War and Peace."

Lane received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Oklahoma and served over two decades as an Oklahoma County prosecutor. During his tenure, he accumulated an exceptional trial record, winning about 95 percent of his jury trials. His service to Oklahoma County began in January 1981 as a law student legal intern for the Oklahoma County district attorney's office. In July 2001, Governor Frank Keating appointed him to fill the unexpired term of retiring D.A. Robert H. Macy. He was re-elected in 2002, serving another four years in that capacity.

Honored as "Prosecutor of the Year" in 2003 by the Oklahoma Gang Investigator's Association and for "Courage in the Pursuit of Justice" by his fellow district attorneys across the state, he served as president of the Oklahoma District Attorney's Association in 2005 and as vice president of the National District Attorney's Association.

In January 2008, he became president of the Burbridge Foundation, a Christian foundation dedicated to networking solutions to problems impacting families and culture. In 2009, along with other Oklahoma City leaders, he founded (and now leads) Salt and Light Leadership Training, Inc. (www.SALLT.com), a Christian leadership development program dedicated to helping Christian leaders maximize their service to God and their city.

Prater began his law enforcement career at 19 years of age when he was hired by the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office as a deputy sheriff. At the age of 20, he became the youngest cadet ever to graduate from the Norman Police Academy. In 1988, he left the police department to complete his law enforcement administration degree from the University of Oklahoma. In 1991, he began law school at the University of Oklahoma, graduating in just two and a half years.

From 1993 to 2001, he served Oklahoma County and the state as an assistant district attorney under Bob Macy and as an assistant attorney general, under Attorney General Drew Edmondson. Prior to being elected as Oklahoma County district attorney, he maintained a private law practice in Oklahoma City.

As district attorney, he has been recognized by numerous groups for his public service, including receiving the U.S. Department of Justice Outstanding Local Prosecutor's Office Award, the Oklahoma District Attorney's Association Courageous Prosecutor Award, the Oklahoma District Attorney's Association Outstanding District Attorney Award, and the Oklahoma Black Lawyer's Association Opio Toure Champion of Justice Award. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Law Enforcement Hall of Fame in 2014.