Robert Bentley was the governor of Alabama when a scandal broke about him having an affair with a married woman. While hypocritical and not nice, it is not necessarily predatory, since they were consenting adults. Except she worked for him so the relationship becomes problematic and not one of equals. In addition, he bullied his other staff who were privy to the affair as they carried on in his office. He also threatened his now ex-wife’s staff when he sent text messages to his lover that linked to his wife’s iPad to ensure she did not find out. Adding to his problems he illegally used public funds to carry on the affair and used campaign funds for personal use.
He also fired the head of state law enforcement who warned him that using state resources to facilitate his affair is illegal and he could get into trouble. He ordered state police to aid him in covering up the affair and to threaten those who knew of it, particularly his wife’s chief of staff.
He fought to keep his position, but he resigned after an investigative report was released and the legislature was moving to impeach him. He also pled guilty in a plea deal that allowed him to avoid jail time.
- Washington Post: Alabama governor resigns, pleads guilty to charges tied to allegations he tried to cover up affair with a top aide
- VOX: The affair and cover-up that just landed Alabama’s governor in jail, explained
27 Mar 2016
08 April 2016
