Plocher ethics complaint dismissed; Ethics chair Kelly blasts decision

The ethics investigation that targeted Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher is officially over. 

The House Ethics Committee on Monday voted to dismiss a complaint of ethical misconduct against the Republican lawmaker from St. Louis County. 

He’d been accused of seeking an outside company he had connections with to handle constituent information and of accepting reimbursements on travel that had already been paid for by his campaign. 

Fellow Republican Hannah Kelly, who chairs the Ethics Committee, blasted the complaint’s dismissal, saying that she’s “appalled” that her colleagues “turned a blind eye to the obstruction, intimidation, and retaliation” uncovered during the committee’s investigation. 

At a press conference Monday, Plocher praised the committee, saying it found “no merit” in the accusations against him and accused “bureaucrats” of attempting “a coup” in order to “overthrow duly elected officials for control of the legislature.”