Invasion of privacy charge dropped against Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens

Eric Greitens.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

A felony invasion of privacy charge against Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R) was dropped on Monday after a judge ruled that St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner, who had been prosecuting the case, could be called as a witness.

Gardner's office said the order leaves her with "no adequate means of proceeding with this trial," but prosecutors announced they will either name a special prosecutor or have one of Gardner's assistants refile the charge. Gardner's office also said that Greitens' lawyers named her as a possible defense witness in order to "distract people from the defendant's actions."


The dropped charge was in connection with Greitens allegedly taking a photo of a woman he was having an affair with while she was bound and blindfolded, and he still faces another charge of felony computer tampering stemming from his campaign's alleged use of a charity donor list, CNN reports. Greitens says he is innocent and the victim of a "political witch hunt."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Several top Republicans in the state have joined Democrats in calling on Greitens to step down, and a Missouri House committee said it is continuing its investigation into his campaign. On Friday, leaders of the Missouri House and Senate will meet at the start of a special legislative session to consider impeaching Greitens.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.