ETHICS/GOP/LEGAL: “A Kentucky lawmaker died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound on Wednesday [12-13-17] evening after facing allegations that he molested a 17-year-old girl in 2012.
Dan Johnson, a Republican state representative, shot himself on the Greenwell Ford Road bridge in Mt. Washington, Kentucky, according to the Bullitt County coroner. The apparent suicide came after his Republican colleagues called for him to step down following reports that he assaulted a young woman on New Year’s Eve of 2012.
The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting on Monday released a seven-months-long investigation outlining claims by Maranda Richmond that Johnson assaulted her in the basement of his home.
According to local media, Richmond reported the incident to police in 2013. But investigators closed the case without filing charges. Since the reporting by KyCIR, the case has been reopened…
Johnson denied the sexual assault allegations in a Tuesday press conference, and again on Wednesday in a Facebook post just hours before he took his life.”
-Akela Lacy, “Following molestation allegations, Kentucky lawmaker dies in apparent suicide,” Politico, Dec. 13, 2017 10:45pm