Barton alleges “blatant abuse” by Crandall
Representative Barton filed an ethics complaint against Senator Rich Crandall late last Friday. Barton alleged that Crandall’s “wild allegations against my character” constitute a “blatant abuse” of his authority and is “a violation of my Personal House Privilege and a violation of the Privilege of the Senate.”
Crandall, the Chair of the Senate’s Education Committee threatened Barton in a recorded telephone message after she reported the tampering of Representative John Fillmore’s campaign signs by Crandall’s daughter. Allegedly, Crandall instructed his daughter to replace Fillmore’s signs with his.
Barton’s complaint includes a detailed account of her encounter with Crandall’s daughter at the scene of the sign tampering. It also includes an account of Crandall’s threat. Crandall told Barton that she should never dare to bring a piece of legislation before his Education Committee if she gave evidence against his daughter.
Barton asked the Ethics Committee to “discipline Senator Crandall so that he cannot make good on his threats against my legislation.”
Senator Gould, chair of the Ethics Committee, will most likely recuse himself because he has received Fillmore’s endorsement in his congressional race. The Senate’s president will appoint a replacement.
Crandall has seven days from today to file a written response to Barton’s complaint. Upon receipt, the Ethics Committee chairman may unilaterally dismiss the complaint, or schedule a hearing of the Committee to determine if a full investigation is warranted. The Committee then has 20 days to investigate the matter and hold a hearing. Crandall may request delays in the matter.
Related article:
Crandall pulls all Arizona’s students into “Signgate” scandal (with audio)