By Dionte Coleman
TheStatehouseFile.com

INDIANAPOLIS—State Rep. Linda Lawson is calling for an investigation of whether House Speaker Brian Bosma broke ethics rules when he spent $40,000 of his campaign funds to investigate a woman who said she had a sexual encounter with him more than two decades ago.

Lawson, D-Hammond, sent a letter Tuesday to state Rep. Greg Steuerwald, R-Avon, who chairs of House Statutory Committee on Ethics and urged an investigation of the Indianapolis Republican’s conduct. She questioned whether Bosma violated House Ethics Rule 166 which states:

“Every candidate for election to the House of Representatives shall campaign and if elected, shall serve with a personal commitment to integrity and dedicated public service focused on the best interest of the citizens of the state.”

Lawson said in the letter that Hoosiers deserve transparent, accountable government that holds elected officials to the highest standard. That is why she said she is requesting the ethics committee to meet publicly to decide if Bosma violated House ethics rules and whether his re-election campaign acted with the best interest of the citizens of the state.

Steuerwald was unavailable to comment but released a statement with the vice-chairman of the House committee, Rep. Clyde Kersey, D-Terre Haute: “We have received a copy of State Rep. Linda Lawson’s letter.  We are sharing her letter with other members of the House Ethics Committee to review like any other issue that comes before us.”

The Indianapolis Star reported that the former intern, Kandy Green, went public with her story about her early 1990s encounter with Bosma after her friends and family reported that they had been contacted by investigators working on behalf of the speaker. Green worked as an intern for House Democrats at the time.

Bosma was unavailable for a comment.

Lawson said in her letter that in order to maintain Hoosiers’ faith in state government it is important that transparency and accountability is never applied selectively. No matter the ranking of the official, they are not above the law.

“I believe it is the Ethics Committee’s duty to issue a ruling,” Lawson said in the letter.

FOOTNOTE: Dionte Coleman is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.