Post-Dispatch coverage of Greitens' affair scandal
From Greitens' initial statement to calls for his resignation, read the Post-Dispatch coverage of the governor's affair scandal.
For coverage of the Confide app, campaign issues and The Mission Continues fundraising, go here.
(188) updates to this series since
Still outstanding are bills related to Gardner’s battle against the appointment of a special prosecutor to investigate perjury allegations. Th…
Attorneys declined to say how much the defense cost, but $588,000 had been spent as of July on legal fees just to defend the campaign against …
Will Greitens, who resigned in June after being accused of sexual coercion and campaign finance violations, one day commission a painting of h…
Former Gov. Eric Greitens spent more than $588,000 on legal fees in the final months of his scandal-plagued administration.
Eugene G. Bernat is not an accidental tourist. The 33-year-old attorney from Boardman, Ohio, inserted himself into Missouri’s story of the yea…
With a statute of limitations set to expire over the weekend, Baker said corroborating evidence for an invasion of privacy case stemming from …
With significant questions still looming over the status of investigations into soon-to-resign Gov. Eric Greitens, legislative leaders turned …
Political and National Editor Christopher Ave joins Political Reporter Kevin McDermott to discuss the resignation of Missouri Gov. Eric Greite…
In hindsight, though, Greitens’ spectacular flame-out over the past five months, ending with his edge-of-tears announcement Tuesday that he is…
So, from any woman who has been belittled, threatened, sexually coerced, humiliated or abused by a powerful man: Good riddance, governor.
“The last few months have been incredibly difficult for me, for my family, for my team, for my friends, and many, many people that I love,” he…
"The Court further finds and believes that time is of the essence and production should begin immediately and, absent good cause shown, said p…
Hanaway, a former speaker of the Missouri House and a former U.S. attorney — one who was previously involved in the conviction of a Missouri s…
Barnes said the subpoena asks Greitens to testify on June 4, a Monday.
But Madison County Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Brian Koberna told the special House committee investigating whether to impeach the governor that …
An attorney said the questions were designed to find out if her affair was consensual and see whether pornographic pictures of her existed.
The Imperial representative met with Greitens for more than an hour in Kimmswick to discuss the allegations.
Catherine Hanaway, attorney for Greitens, blasted the committee chair, saying he wanted to “divert attention” from revelations he received rec…
Scott Faughn publishes The Missouri Times, a small newspaper and online service that caters to the state's political class said the money was …
The implication, as outlined in testimony presented to a special House investigative committee on Tuesday, is that the affair that has brought…
Gov. Eric Greitens is spending an estimated $185,000 on television ads that are expected to run across the state for the next two weeks.
"In the other jurisdictions in which I have handled impeachments, the governor's office has never been shut out of the process like this," Gre…
“I have no ill intentions other than not to be made out to be a liar,” the accuser said Monday in an interview with KSDK’s Casey Nolen. “I’m n…
Baker has less than a month to make her decision under the statute of limitations, lawyers on both sides have said.
The seven-member committee’s membership will expand to 10, because there’s “a whole lot of work to be done,” House Speaker Todd Richardson, R-…
The treasurer's office is seeking "clarification" on the taxpayer-paid attorneys from the state Office of Administration, which is in charge o…
Some questions and answers about impeachment...
"And for those few that may promote rumors and ‘fake news’, I have never donated, nor deposited, nor distributed, nor given any money whatsoev…
In an online falling-out with an old friend, Sheena Greitens chides her for writing a British magazine article that appears to “equate my husb…
Following their 6 p.m. adjournment, the House and Senate quickly pivoted to the special session, but they took no action before sending lawmak…
“The Office of the Governor lacks authority to retain private counsel to participate in connection with any adversarial proceeding without the…
"Sir, sir, I so appreciate you taking the time to come out," he told a Post-Dispatch reporter as he stopped to hug a supporter.
Forces outside her control — including her ex-husband — conspired to bring the story forward regardless of what it would do to her life.
A police spokeswoman said in an email Tuesday that the department would open an investigation after officers met with Greitens' defense lawyer…
“If the governor refuses to testify, and I hope that’s not the case, are you going to accuse the committee of being unfair?” Barnes asked the …
It was largely Gardner’s choice of Tisaby — who was recommended to the office by a former FBI investigator, Gardner’s spokeswoman said — her m…
An attorney said in a statement that the defense planned to file a police report that private investigator William Don Tisaby lied under oath …
A spokeswoman for Gardner said the case would be refiled.
video via Post-Dispatch reporter Nassim Benchaabane
Gov. Greitens addresses the media after his charge was dropped.
A lawyer for Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens said Monday morning that prosecutors had ended their efforts to find a photo of the woman at the cent…
During the two months between signing the reserve agreement and backing out of it, Greitens embarked on his extramarital affair.
It’s a high-stakes criminal trial that may hold even greater political consequences for the governor and the elected St. Louis prosecutor, reg…
Investigators found no evidence that a picture was deleted on the day that Greitens and the woman had their sexual encounter, according to cou…
“The notion of disciplining a governor is an extraordinarily significant and rare thing and any process that is used to evaluate that has to b…
Greitens is in the courtroom, for the first time after months of hearings to discuss pre-trial motions.
The rulings came during a hearing considering last-minute filings in the trial on a felony invasion of privacy charge.
Political and National Editor Christopher Ave and courts reporter Joel Currier discuss Gov. Eric Greitens' trial on an invasion of privacy cha…
The phone and email data, as well as information associated with another phone number, were being examined as part of Greitens’ felony invasio…
A spokesman for the embattled Republican said his absence from the capital city will be little different than when the governor is out of town…
Burlison also rejected a second defense motion to dismiss the case.
The panel of judges charged with deciding whether to formally remove him from office could take several weeks longer to conduct a trial, accor…
In response to serious questions about his actions, the governor has surrounded himself with some of the very people he formerly claimed to loathe
“The front page of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has consistently presented an overwhelmingly one-sided, negative portrayal of this case ...” th…
In the House, 16 Republicans and seven Democrats, including several from the St. Louis area, were holdouts.
The timing of those two acts — a move to impeach a governor who ran on a platform to fix the culture of corruption in Jefferson City that turn…
A count was underway in the Senate Thursday afternoon. Senators were meeting behind closed doors to discuss the matter.
The judge said he would consider a request for audio equipment and still photography after a lawyer for the media asked him to reconsider.
Attorneys for Gov. Eric Greitens have filed a wide-ranging series of motions seeking to exclude witnesses and evidence from his upcoming trial…
Several lawmakers declined to comment on their silence Monday and Tuesday. A few said that they wanted to hear more evidence before passing ju…
Last fall, Faughn went ballistic over Greitens' plan to reform the tax-credit handout scheme. He was standing up for his funders, including St…
Watkins' lawyer said in court Monday that Watkins doesn't know the original source or sources of the money, only that Faughn delivered the fir…
“The committee does not find anything in the Circuit Attorney interview that causes it to change its statement regarding Witness 1’s credibili…
Faughn, in a 16-minute broadcast on social media Monday, said that he had hired Watkins while he was conducting "research" on Greitens for a b…
Greitens' defense lawyer Jim Martin said the defense intends to ask that all testimony the woman and her friend, who were interviewed by forme…
The governor has many enemies — most of his own making — and they are celebrating his demise. Some of them, the evidence suggests, are just re…
The high court's decision Saturday follows the woman's request Friday to block an order requiring her phone to be examined by a court-appointe…
Attorneys representing the House said lawyers for the woman and St. Louis prosecutor's office have agreed to comply with the subpoena but Grei…
"I think that's a relevant inquiry," Burlison told lawyers toward the end of an hour-long hearing Friday. "The answer to that question needs t…
A special session can be called if three-fourths of the members in each chamber sign a petition calling them back to the capital city.
Rosenblum accused Tisaby of a series of violations that affected the criminal case against Greitens.
Gov. Greitens met with some of the Republican lawmakers who hold his fate in their hands.
"There is a strong, silent majority of people throughout the state" who support police even in controversial circumstances, the Republican gov…
"Chiefs, Are you sure you want a guy currently charged with a felony as your guest speaker?" wrote a spokesman for the county prosector. "That…
The spokeswoman said Pence now must be in Washington on May 9 for a cabinet meeting and Latin America Policy Lunch with the Council of the Ame…
Al Watkins said that he had received a subpoena from the House committee requesting him to appear during the first week of May.
One of Greitens' lawyers claimed the source of the fund was a “political operative,” but provided no evidence. Watkins said his office receive…
Greitens said the conservative agenda he brought to Jefferson City had been met with opposition.
Behind the veneer of goodness was something else: an astounding sense of hubris and hypocrisy.
Burlison said the prosecutor's office had committed "sanctionable" violations of rules that defendants have "procedural justice."
The regular session ends May 18. Richardson said he wouldn't push for a vote on any disciplinary action until the committee's work was complete.
The two-page filing offers no support for the assertion
“It doesn’t surprise me, and in some ways it is depressing that we have gotten to this point that there is so much chaos in the White House th…
“So they’re really just trying to get information about how much support the governor has in the Legislature, and how much he has, kind of, st…
“When leaders lose the ability to effectively lead our state, the right thing to do is step aside. In our view, the time has come for the gove…
The state Constitution requires that three-fourths of the members in each chamber sign on in order for a special session to be called.
By embracing the worst of the ethical failings of Missouri’s political system, Greitens brought those who are often diametrically opposed toge…
Missouri lawmakers considering whether to impeach Republican Gov. Eric Greitens may first have to wrestle with an unprecedented question: Does…
Then-Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder wrote of concerns and perceived hypocrisy.
The governor's spokesman says the dark cloud over the Republican’s administration is not affecting day-to-day oversight of state government.
After new complaints by defense lawyers that prosecutors had been withholding information, a St. Louis judge said he would rule Thursday on th…
“Events like the #MeToo movement have sensitized all of us to issues of violence against women,” says Penny Weiss, a political science profess…
“It is certainly something that is very concerning and something that we are taking very seriously,” Sanders said at the daily White House briefing.
Cornered politically on salacious allegations, Trump and Greitens have fallen back to the same “witch hunt” defense.
Greitens’ problems are threatening to derail action in the House and the Senate in the final weeks of the legislative session.
Gardner also says his error, along with defense claims he perjured himself or that she withheld evidence, doesn’t undermine the crux of the fe…
It’s a common way abusers try to discredit and tear down a sexual assault victim: Why did she return after suffering an attack?
In a statement issued Thursday, Joplin businessman David Humphreys said he was deeply disappointed by the actions of the governor described in…
Members of the Senate Appropriations Committee moved to strip money out of the embattled governor’s office budget, in part, because of an atto…
The defense accused Gardner of withholding evidence and said it would ask for sanctions against Gardner, seek to depose her and her ex-husband…
Did a mysterious benefactor anonymously put up $15,000 to cover the legal fees of the man who exposed Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens' extramarita…
Reactions to the Missouri House committee report on Gov. Eric Greitens
The Republican House speaker has announced the investigative committee will recommend whether to take disciplinary action against the governor.
Tony Messenger writes of the governor: "He is a predator. He hit a woman. He called her a whore."
Greitens noted risk of an affair on his political future; had clothes, tape and a blindfold ready, she believes a picture was taken, but has n…
Several witnesses testified under oath before the committee, but not Gov. Eric Greitens.
Read the report from the Missouri House investigation committee.
The claims add disturbing new layers to the single criminal allegation Greitens faces — a felony invasion-of-privacy charge, for allegedly tak…
The investigative report will not be the most important document filed in the various cases involving the governor in the past week.
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner had filed a motion Tuesday seeking the order.
Rep. Gina Mitten, a Democrat who sits on the committee, said it could release more findings after members voted last Thursday to extend the co…
The filing claims the woman testified that she previously told prosecutors that her recollections may have been from a dream but that the stat…
The story says that Sheena Greitens accused the ex-husband of an "escalating campaign of harassment and spying" on the Greitens family.
The letter said, in part, that the report "will almost certainly contain information that will — in the course of the coming days and weeks — …
The deposition gave the opportunity for defense lawyers to ask a wide array of questions of the alleged victim in the case — even questions th…
Greitens and his attorneys have alleged from the start that the whole criminal case is politically motivated, but there has been no previous a…
“If you … don’t use the counsel provided for you, you want different counsel, then I think you should probably be responsible for paying the b…
The chairman of the committee, Rep. Jay Barnes, R-Jefferson City, said in an email: “Our committee will issue a report next week.”
The filing is the most recent of a series attacking the criminal case against Greitens, and those involved in the investigation and prosecution.
“The committee is on track,” said Barnes, R-Jefferson City.
With a jury trial set to begin May 14, the lawyers say the information contained in the legislative report could taint the potential jury pool.
“Even Satan’s own lawyers from The Satanic Temple are suing Greitens,” the ad’s narrator says.
It’s funny, isn’t it? Everybody in our little drama can dream of the White House. Except Kim Gardner. And it’s really her show. How very odd.
"I've soft pedaled nothing. … We do have an active investigation underway," said Hawley, adding that the issue is "bad for the state, there's …
Greitens is spending an estimated $50,000 on a statewide radio ad buy this week to tell voters he’s not backing down.
A look at major players in the criminal case against Gov. Eric Greitens.
The judge said he would rule "shortly" on those other issues, including whether the indictment against Greitens would be dismissed and whether…
Burlison was appointed to the bench by then-Gov. Jay Nixon in 2011. They were so close that Burlison was the judge who swore Nixon in to his s…
The motion filed Friday alleges a conflict of interest in the law firm’s representation of Greitens and other “state actors” in a lawsuit over…
Columnist Tony Messenger imagines how George Soros may have come to be involved in the decision to prosecute the governor.
“The governor is fully engaged in all of this stuff here,” said Drew Erdmann, whom Greitens hired from the private sector to oversee state ope…
“I will not change the trial setting based on an advantage or disadvantage,” Burlison said at a hearing Wednesday. “That’s going to happen reg…
Transmission is a key element of the indictment because that makes the crime a felony instead of a misdemeanor.
Meanwhile, Greitens filed a motion Sunday night seeking the disqualification of a Harvard law professor hired to help prosecute an invasion of…
One of the woman’s lawyers, said that she was trying to maintain her privacy as much as possible.
“In any case, you’re looking for material for cross examination on any witness,” said an attorney. But a judge would have to rule that the inf…
“In this particular situation,” said Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield, “I think it is very unwise and it violates all principals of checks and ba…
"You guys are going to be disappointed," the committee chair told reporters, "because there aren't going to be any details of substance."
City taxpayers could spend up to $120,000 for the legal expertise of a Harvard University law professor to prosecute Missouri Gov. Eric Greite…
At the core of both criminal cases that engulfed the two former military men is a single word. Consent.
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is in some disturbing company as a defendant charged under the state’s felony invasion-of-privacy law.
Defense lawyers asked a judge to order prosecutors to disclose any threats or promises made to get Greitens' former lover to cooperate with a …
St. Louis attorney Albert Watkins said his client would turn over recordings and offer the committee his recollection of the dates and times t…
Asked who had testified and whether the testimony would be released publicly, Barnes would not say.
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner said in a hearing Tuesday she thinks jurors should be sequestered for the May 14 trial that both sides expect to …
The newspapers were told that the use of nondisclosure agreements, or NDAs, on the Greitens campaign was widespread — and workers as low-ranki…
“It is hard to see how he can be an effective governor, or leader of the Missouri Republican Party, while fighting a criminal case in court,” …
Employees in Gov. Eric Greitens’ office have been called to testify in St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner's ongoing investigation of the g…
At the court hearing, a lawyer defending Greitens said that the photo of the alleged victim described in the indictment "does not exist."
"The reason is they are afraid of retribution," Rep. Shamed Dogan, R-Ballwin, said of some of the members who signed the letter.
Also Tuesday, Robert Steele of the Circuit Attorney's office filed a letter to Greitens’ defense team listing evidence in the case.
The probe, which is not likely to get underway until next week, could lead to the impeachment of Greitens, but it also could result in no acti…
That news, delivered in a contentious hearing Monday in St. Louis Circuit Court, brought sharp complaints from Greitens’ legal team, who accus…
“Our focus is going to be on the underlying facts of the indictment and the circumstances surrounding them,” said the legislator who chairs th…
The Missouri Constitution now sets the stage for Barnes to rattle partisan cages again.
Days after Gov. Eric Greitens was indicted for felony invasion of privacy, the Republican leaders of the Missouri House on Monday formed a com…
The pardon request, sent by lawyer Albert Watkins, is on behalf of Paul Henreid, of Walnut Creek, Calif., who is a documentary filmmaker and l…
The big question going forward is whether what Greitens allegedly did — photographing a semi-nude paramour without her permission during an ot…
Greitens, the first sitting governor indicted in state history, was led into a courtroom outside the public view, released on his own recogniz…
The current governor is a city boy who billed himself as an outsider. The man positioned to take his place hails from a farm and is very much …
The process of deciding whether to impeach scandal-plagued Gov. Eric Greitens will begin as early as Monday in the Missouri House of Representatives.
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, under felony indictment, has resigned his position on the executive committee of the Republican Governors Association.
Indeed, Greitens’ best hope to stay in office now is that a man he once considered the epitome of corruption — powerful GOP consultant Jeff Ro…
State lawmakers, mostly Democrats, reacted Thursday to the felony indictment of Gov. Eric Greitens by calling on him to resign. Top Republican…
Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens was indicted and taken into custody Thursday for felony invasion of privacy, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly M…
As Missouri lawmakers considered on Tuesday whether threatening the release of "private sexual images" should be a felony, one Kansas City Dem…
House Speaker Todd Richardson said Thursday that investigators with the St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office met with him on Wednesday, but he …
A big part of the state’s problem is that Missouri’s governor is treating “her” like a flirtation meant to be tucked away in a quiet corner wh…
Gov. Eric Greitens on Thursday reiterated that law enforcement has not contacted him or his associates regarding an ongoing criminal investiga…
A St. Louis grand jury has issued a subpoena compelling the man who released stunning audio last month concerning Gov. Eric Greitens to testif…
Missouri’s top elected Republicans gathered here this weekend for their annual show of party unity, gamely smiling through in-party fissures t…
The Missouri Democratic Party wants Greitens to sign an affidavit, under penalty of perjury, certifying that he never took any "compromising p…
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, just one year into her first term, has tasked her office with investigating claims that Missouri Gov. Eric Greit…
As Republican Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner heads into what could be a tough re-election fight this year, national Democrats are turning a newly …
The attorney, Albert Watkins, didn't specify that the FBI requested the tapes, but he said there was an "expression of interest" by the federa…
Five GOP lawmakers publicly called on Greitens to step aside or said the governor should consider doing so. Other Republicans said it was too …
A staff attorney paid by taxpayers probed a lawyer about allegations involving Greitens, recording reveals.
Since his admission he cheated on his wife, the Missouri governor has shuttled between the mansion, the Capitol and the offices of his dark-mo…
There are snakes, Eric Greitens said. “You have to live with that.”
He could weather the affair revelation, observers say, but proof of blackmail would finish him.
"He said he wanted to apologize," the lawmaker said. "He started to lash at the liberal media and Democrats, and I cut him off and I said, 'Th…
Covering such a complex story raises many ethical questions for news organizations. Post-Dispatch political editor Christopher Ave and reporte…
The St. Louis circuit attorney will investigate the growing allegations. The governor's attorney denies any violence or blackmail.