Area lawmakers weigh in on speaker’s handling of allegations against disgraced representative

PEORIA (25News Now) - A Democratic state lawmaker representing Central Illinois said she still has confidence in Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch about his handling of sexual harassment allegations against disgraced former State Rep. Harry Benton (D-Plainfield).

A Republican lawmaker who also represents the area said he hopes the speaker did not sweep anything under the rug.

State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria) and State Rep. Dennis Tipsword, (R-Metamora) expressed hope Welch was transparent and addressed concerns in a timely manner.

Lawmakers may soon have their answers as the Illinois Legislative Ethics Commission decided to publish a report outlining details of the case against Benton.

The documents will be made public at the end of July after Benton and his accuser are given a chance to review them. The committee, made up of four Democrats and four Republicans, voted unanimously to release the documents.

“Obviously [Benton’s] behavior was of such that he is no longer a member of the General Assembly, but just having all of the details on who, what, when, is a critical piece to all of this,” said Gordon-Booth.

The representative’s comments come as the Chicago Tribune reported that Welch and his office allegedly knew for years of allegations that Benton sexual harassed a former intern.

As for Speaker Welch, Gordon-Booth said information she’s received explains why the speaker did not take action sooner.

“What I have found- the information I have without having read the report - is that the victim did not want to come forward. The victim asked that information not be shared,” said Gordon-Booth, adding that she still has confidence in Welch’s leadership “at the moment.”

Tipsword said Benton’s resignation was a good first move as the investigation continues.

As for Welch’s handling of the allegations, Tipsword said that he hopes any mistakes were corrected promptly by the speaker, that concerns about Benton’s conduct were not swept under the rug, that Benton acted alone, and “everyone did their job correctly.”

“If what we’re hearing turns out to be true, that Speaker Welch has had a couple years notice on this since the first incident, and it looks like virtually nothing was done, I mean that’s a huge problem,” said Tipsword.

“So, that’s why we need to pull the curtains back on this, we need to know the facts. And I do hope that when we see the facts, the speaker acted appropriately,” said Tipsword. “Be transparent for our citizens of Illinois, that’s what they send us to Springfield for- is to represent them, and we do that in an honorable way.”

Tipsword noted everything is speculation until the report comes out, but he called for more checks and balances for people in power.

Benton resigned from his position July 3, after facing growing pressure from the governor and legislative leaders.

Benton’s name will also be removed from November election ballots, as he was seeking re-election. Last week, Democrat Jessica Dixon Heitman was appointed to fill Benton’s seat.

Dixon Hetiman is the granddaughter of late U.S. Illinois Sen. Alan Dixon.

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