Lawton council directs negotiation with Jerry Askins to serve as interim city attorney; Tim Wilson to return to deputy role

After returning from an executive session, the Lawton City Council voted to direct the city manager to negotiate an interim city attorney contract with Jerry Askins and to have Tim Wilson revert to his prior role as deputy city attorney.

The council cited Title 25 Oklahoma Statutes §307(b)(1) to convene executive session to discuss the vacant position of city attorney. A council member moved to direct the city manager to negotiate with Jerry Askins for employment as the interim city attorney as an independent contractor until a permanent replacement is found, and to return Tim Wilson to his prior position as deputy city attorney.

The motion passed by roll call with affirmative votes recorded from Williams, Weager, Hampton, Gill, Chapman and Hooton.

After the vote, the mayor read a public statement announcing that “the Honorable Jerry Askins will be joining the City of Lawton as interim city attorney.” The mayor summarized Askins’s background in public service — noting prior roles as a lawyer, judge, state representative, lieutenant governor, director of the Administrative Office of the Courts for Oklahoma and most recently as president of Cameron University during a transition — and thanked Tim Wilson for 25 years of service in the city’s legal department.

The council directed the city manager to negotiate terms; the meeting record does not include the contract terms, compensation, or an explicit interim term length. The city will need to return to open session or publish subsequent documents to provide contract specifics and an effective start date for Askins.