Former governor Robert Bentley opens new office in Tuscaloosa
A former Alabama governor who resigned amid a sex scandal has opened a new dermatology office. The Tuscaloosa News reports former Gov. Robert Bentley’s new location opened Friday in Tuscaloosa. He previously practiced in another site. Bentley is a longtime dermatologist who entered politics. He resigned from office in 2017 as part of a deal in which he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor campaign-finance violations, agreed to never hold public office, and had to forfeit about $36,000 from his campaign account. Bentley was accused of having an extramarital affair with a key staffer and using public resources to cover it up. An Alabama House Judiciary Committee report says Bentley texted heart-eye emojis to Rebekah Caldwell Mason using his ex-wife’s iPad and threatened the first lady’s staff to keep the affair secret. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
House committee extends Stand Your Ground law to Alabama churches
An Alabama House committee on Wednesday approved a bill that would extend the state’s Stand Your Ground law to churches. Sponsored by Rogersville-Republican State Rep. Lynn Greer, HB34 was sent to the full House on a voice vote by the House Judiciary Committee sent. Under existing law, a person is justified in using physical force, including deadly force, in self-defense or in the defense of another person under certain conditions. And a person is legally presumed to be justified in using deadly physical force, in self-defense or the defense of another person against a person committing or attempting to commit certain specified crimes. Under Greer’s bill, a person is presumed justified in the use of physical force to defend an employee, volunteer or member of a church from assault, whether on church grounds or in a church-related activity. Greer said he introduced the bill after churches in his district asked him to sponsor the legislation due to church shootings around the country. But not everyone is in favor of the bill. Members of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America opposed the bill in a public hearing last week, putting pressure on lawmakers to reject it. There, Anne Leader, leader of the Alabama Chapter of the group, argued that Stand Your Ground laws allow people to “shoot first and ask questions later.” The bill moves on the full House for consideration.
Alabama lawmakers meeting Tuesday, Wednesday on Robert Bentley impeachment
Alabama lawmakers from both chambers are scheduled to meet this week to discuss the ongoing impeachment investigation of Gov. Robert Bentley. On Tuesday, the Alabama House Judiciary Committee has scheduled a 10:00 a.m. morning meeting to discuss the procedural aspects of the investigation — the first hearing on the issue since September. Committee spokesman Clay Redden declined to comment on further specifics. On Wednesday, the committee’s Senate counterpart is holding a meeting in one of its subcommittees explore the use of subpoena power and as well as what rules are in place to guide a potential impeachment of the embattled Governor. Bentley, 73, last spring admitted making inappropriate remarks to his senior political adviser but denied accusations of an affair with her and of interfering in law enforcement business, accusations both raised by his fired law enforcement secretary. Following the news, twenty-three representatives signed articles of impeachment in April 2016, accusing Bentley of willful neglect of duty and corruption in office. The legislative probe officially began in June 2016, but it has been off to a slow start, as lawmakers find their way through an impeachment process that has not used in a century. In November, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee suspended impeachment hearings per the state’s attorney general’s office, as they are conducting a related investigation. Andalusia-Republican and House Judiciary Committee Chairman state Rep. Mike Jones has since stated he intends to the resume hearings pending approval from the new AG’s office. Jones said he expects to wrap up the investigation during the current legislation sessions, which ends in May.
Robert Bentley impeachment hearings suspended for investigation by AG Luther Strange
The chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has suspended hearings into the Articles of Impeachment filed against Governor Robert Bentley because the attorney general’s office is conducting a related investigation. Andalusia-Republican state Rep. Mike Jones on Wednesday said the committee decided to put the proceedings on hold at the request of Attorney General Luther Strange. “As I said at the first meeting on the Articles of Impeachment, this committee would work cooperatively with other investigating agencies and today’s action testifies to that,” said Jones in a news release. “We are temporarily suspending activity at the attorney general’s request but we are not abdicating our responsibility. Everything the committee has done remains in effect.” In a letter to Jones on Thursday, Strange said it would be “prudent and beneficial” to delay the work of the committee. “I respectfully request that the Committee cease active interviews and investigation until I am able to report to you that the necessary related work of my office has been completed,” wrote Strange. Speaker of the House, Monrovia-Republican Mac McCutcheon says he supports the committee’s decision. “While I have complete confidence in the Judiciary Committee and its special counsel, I believe that moving forward with the impeachment hearings while there is an active criminal investigation would put a number of parties in a difficult position,” McCutcheon said in a news release. “I support pausing the committee investigation and allowing the criminal proceedings to run their course.” Bentley released his own statement in response to the letter from Strange and the decision to suspend the impeachment proceedings. “I respect the position of the Attorney General and the leadership of the House of Representatives. My focus will continue to be on doing the work of the people of Alabama,” said Bentley. The decision to suspend the proceedings comes just days before the committee was scheduled to set a date to take testimony and evidence. The House Judiciary Committee began Bentley’s impeachment hearings in June.
Robert Bentley, others subpoenaed in impeachment investigation
Alabama’s House Judiciary Committee issued subpoenas to Governor Robert Bentley, his former top aide Rebekah Mason, among others as part of an ongoing impeachment investigation against the governor on Thursday. The subpoenas were issued by Alabama House of Representatives Clerk Jeff Woodard after special counsel Jack Sharman claimed he wasn’t getting voluntarily cooperation. “The office of the governor has flatly, adamantly and in every way possible made clear they are not going to cooperate,” Sharman told the committee. “The same thing is true of every other person and entity on that list I provided you.” The following were issued subpoenas: Robert Bentley, individually and as Governor Bentley for Governor, Inc. Michael H. Echols Jonathan Mason Rebekah Mason Alabama Council for Excellent Government JRM Enterprises, Inc. RCM Communications, Inc. The subpoenaed documents also include five years of the governor’s tax returns, bank records, personnel records, cellphone records, text messages and other communications with Rebekah Mason, Jon Mason, Spencer Collier, Stan Stabler, Ray Lewis and Cooper Shattuck, as well as any government payments to companies belonging to Mason and her husband. “These individuals and corporations have until 5:00 p.m. on Monday, October 10, 2016, to deliver the requested documentation to the special counsel,” said Judiciary Committee Chairman and Andalusia-Republican Rep. Mike Jones in a statement. “If they fail to comply, we will take appropriate action.” Bentley still maintains his innocence, claiming he has not broken any laws or done anything that would warrant impeachment.
Alabama House committee to discuss Robert Bentley impeachment probe
The Alabama House Judiciary Committee, charged with investigating the articles of impeachment against Gov. Robert Bentley, will meet Tuesday afternoon. There, they will hear an update from special counsel Jack Sharman. They will also vote on several proposed changes to the committee’s rules of procedures, per Sharman’s suggestions. Bentley, 73, this spring admitted making inappropriate remarks to his senior political adviser but denied accusations of an affair with her and of interfering in law enforcement business, accusations both raised by his fired law enforcement secretary. The legislative probe officially began in June, but it also began slowly, as lawmakers find their way through an impeachment process not used in a century. Twenty-three representatives signed articles of impeachment in April, accusing Bentley of willful neglect of duty and corruption in office. The committee is considering whether or not there are grounds to impeach the embattled governor and will ultimately make a recommendation to the full House. Lawmakers will not meet in regular session until February. However, under a procedure set up by the state constitution, they could call themselves into session to consider impeachment if a majority of House members petition the Alabama secretary of state. From there, it would require 53 of the 105 lawmakers in the House to vote to impeach Bentley. If they voted to impeach him, the Alabama Senate would hold a trial to determine if there are grounds to oust him.
Robert Bentley blasts release of secretly recorded private call
In a surreptitiously recorded phone call from last year, Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley discourages a state lawmaker from asking for an investigation of his use of state property amid rumors of an affair with a top staffer. Bentley and his attorney lashed out at the sudden release of the call Thursday, with Bentley saying it was an orchestrated distraction ahead of a next week’s special session on a proposed state lottery. The governor’s lawyer also said the call’s release proves that the lawmaker who recorded the conversation shouldn’t serve on a committee investigating Bentley’s possible impeachment. The embattled governor has struggled to shake off the lingering effects of scandal since he admitted in March to making inappropriate remarks to a senior political adviser, who has since resigned. He is facing an impeachment effort in the Legislature and calls for him to step down. Bentley has said he did nothing wrong and he will fight any effort to remove him from office. The release of the recording comes as the governor’s lawyers seek a halt to a potentially wide-ranging impeachment investigation unless lawmakers can better define what they think he has done wrong. In the August 2015 phone call, recorded several days after Dianne Bentley filed for divorce from the governor, he tells state Rep. Allen Farley that he blames casino gambling interests for churning the affair rumors, denies having an affair and discourages Farley’s plans to ask Attorney General Luther Strange to review whether he had misused the state jet and security personnel. On the call, Farley says he wants to get the attorney general to “clear up” that no wrongdoing had occurred. “Allen, I’ve explained things to you. I don’t think you need to get Luther involved with it, personally. There is nothing we are trying to hide,” Bentley says on the recording obtained by The Associated Press. Bentley on Thursday confirmed the conversation and Farley acknowledged recording the governor without his knowledge. Farley said he released the recording after the governor called a special session on a proposed state lottery because of his remarks about gambling interests. “This for me is putting every piece of the puzzle out there for people to see,” Farley said. Bentley said he called Farley last year because he wanted to, “assure him we had not used state funds for any reason improperly.” Farley eventually did send a letter to the attorney general asking him to investigate whether there had been any misuse of property. The governor sharply criticized the release of the recording days before he calls lawmakers back to Montgomery to start a special session on a proposed state lottery. “That needs to be seen for what it is. That is a smoke screen to try to keep us from getting a vote of the people on a lottery. …. They say, ‘Look over here. Look at what the governor said a year ago’ which is not anything bad,” Bentley said. The governor’s administration seized on the recording’s release as they seek Farley’s recusal — along with two other lawmakers —from a House Judiciary Committee investigation on whether Bentley committed any impeachable offenses. Twenty-three lawmakers in April signed impeachment articles after Bentley’s former law enforcement secretary accused him of having an affair with a staffer and interfering with law enforcement business. “It would be outrageous, and in my experience unprecedented, for a member of a legislative committee conducting an investigation to have surreptitiously recorded and then released a private telephone conversation with the subject of that inquiry. If this occurred, it clearly requires Rep. Farley’s recusal,” said Ross Garber, an attorney representing Bentley in the impeachment probe. Farley said he has no plans to leave the committee. “My job in the House Judiciary Committee is to make sure all the information is brought out on the table,” Farley said. The governor’s office, in a separate motion, also asked the House Judiciary Committee to hit the pause button on impeachment proceedings until the full House of Representatives defines the area of the inquiry and what they think Bentley did wrong. The loosely worded impeachment articles accuse the governor of corruption and neglect of duties but do not lay out specific allegations. “The current impeachment resolution appears to sanction the deployment of governmental power to conduct a roving investigation that is unbounded by time or subject matter, and to then compel the governor to defend himself against amorphous allegations that almost certainly have no bearing on a lawful impeachment process. This the Alabama Constitution does not permit,” the governor’s lawyers wrote. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Robert Bentley’s lawyers: Only most serious charges merit impeachment
Lawyers for Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley are telling an impeachment committee that only the most egregious offenses merit removal from office. The governor’s office submitted the filing on impeachment standards to the House Judiciary Committee last week as the committee begins a probe on if there are grounds to impeach Bentley. The attorneys wrote that impeachment is reserved for situations where the misconduct is so grave that no lesser remedy will do. They said only two governors have been removed from office in modern times, and both had been charged with criminal offenses. Twenty-three House members signed impeachment articles after Bentley’s former law enforcement secretary accused him of having an affair with a staffer and interfering with law enforcement business. The governor admitted inappropriate conversations but denied the other accusations. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Jim Zeigler asks House committee to meet, present impeachment article to Robert Bentley
State Auditor Jim Zeigler has asked the Alabama House Judiciary Committee to report at least one impeachment article against Gov. Robert Bentley when the Alabama Legislature returns Aug. 15 for a special session. Zeigler will release a copy of the request to the committee in a speech and news conference noon, Tuesday, Aug. 9 at the Wetumpka Rotary Club. Read Zeigler’s official request below: I ask that you schedule a meeting of the House Judiciary Committee before or during the early stage of the August 15th special session. The purpose would be to consider at least one article of impeachment against Gov. Bentley. This would allow the full House to take up impeachment in the special session. There is widespread discouragement among Alabama citizens about the impeachment proceedings. Many believe that the impeachment proceedings are not moving ahead. The people want the air cleared on the Bentley administration sooner rather than later. If an impeachment resolution is not reported out of your committee in time for consideration in the special session, it would likely mean that the full House would not take up impeachment until the February 7 regular session. That is simply too long to let this sore fester. I do not buy the notion that a committee consideration of impeachment at all deliberate speed is not doing it right. Nor do I buy that a slow process like the one now being done is a correct and deliberate process. Slowness does not mean doing it right and a speedy hearing does not mean doing it wrong. Please let me know if you will schedule a meeting of the judiciary committee to consider one or more impeachment articles. Thank you. Jim Zeigler, Citizen
