Senate Ethics Committee gets complaints on arrested lawmakers

The complaints were filed by Clarksville resident Barry Schmittou, a frequent filer of complaints on everybody from the governor on down.

The Senate Ethics Committee has already said, based on advice from the state attorney general, that it won’t be investigating the lawmakers while federal charges are pending. The committee, and its counterpart in the House, have the authority to recommend that a lawmaker be removed from office.

Sens. Kathryn Bowers and Ward Crutchfield, along with Rep. Chris Newton, were all charged in a federal corruption sting called “Tennessee Waltz.”

In his complaints, Schmittou says the committee should ask the lawmakers if they took bribes alleged in a federal complaint, and throw them out of office if they say they did.

Schmittou also filed complaints with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance on Lt. Gov. and Senate Speaker John Wilder, D-Somerville, and Sen. Michael Williams, R-Maynardville, over their campaign spending.