Missouri House Ethics Committee

He was arguably the most powerful politician in Missouri until he faced allegations of corruption and sexual assault. Now it’s Rod Jetton’s job to help another speaker navigate accusations of misconduct.

After 5 hours in a closed-door meeting, members say they accept Dean Plocher’s explanation of reimbursement, personnel issues and await a Missouri House Ethics Committee report.

Missouri House Speaker Dean Plocher, R-Des Peres, is accused of pressuring staff to buy expensive software and seeking state reimbursement of campaign-paid expenses.

Patterson is slated to become speaker of the Missouri House in 2025 — though the current speaker’s woes are putting a brighter spotlight on the Lee’s Summit Republican.

A second hearing is set in November to continue review of actions by the embattled speaker, who also is facing questions about seeking reimbursement for campaign-paid expenses.

For the first time in more than a century, the Missouri House overwhelmingly agreed to censure one of its representatives on Wednesday.

Kansas City Democrat DaRon McGee resigned from his seat in the Missouri House on Monday night following allegations that he sought an unwanted...