ST. LOUIS (AP) — Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens says a second felony charge filed against him is another effort by St. Louis’ top prosecutor to “smear” his name.
St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner on Friday charged the Republican governor with felony tampering with computer data. That charge is in addition to a felony invasion-of-privacy indictment from February for allegedly taking a nonconsensual photo of a partially nude woman with whom he had an affair in 2015.
The new charge accuses Greitens of obtaining the donor list from The Mission Continues without permission from the St. Louis-based charity that Greitens founded.
The Governor responded in a Facebook post:
Two months ago, a prosecutor brought a case against me.
She claimed she had evidence of a crime—but she’s produced none.
She said her investigator would find the truth. Instead, her investigator lied under oath and created false evidence.
She is wasting thousands and thousands of taxpayer dollars to do all of this.
Her original case is falling apart—so today, she’s brought a new one. By now, everyone knows what this is: this prosecutor will use any charge she can to smear me.
Thank goodness for the Constitution and our court system. In the United States of America, you’re innocent until proven guilty. In the United States of America, you get your day in court.
And when I have my day in court, I will clear my name. People will know the truth.
The latest charge is about my work at the Mission Continues. When I came home from Iraq after service as a Navy SEAL, I started the Mission Continues to help veterans. In the seven years I ran that organization, we helped thousands of veterans, won national awards for excellence, and became one of the finest veteran’s charities in the country.
Those were some of the best years of my life, and I am grateful every day for the chance to help the men and women I served with. I stand by that work.
I will have my day in court. I will clear my name. This prosecutor can come after me with everything she’s got, but as all faithful people know: in time comes the truth. And the time for truth is coming.
