HOUSE ETHICS PANEL UNANIMOUSLY VOTES TO CLEAR BAUDLER

An ethics review has cleared a state lawmaker who admitted he lied
about having hemorrhoids to obtain a medical marijuana prescription
in California.

Rep. Clel Baudler, R-Greenfield, said his actions were meant to show
that legalization of the drug for medical purposes is unwise there
and would be in Iowa, too.

He revealed the stunt in a newsletter to supporters this past fall.
To demonstrate what he believes are abuses of California's medical
marijuana laws, he said he lied to a doctor to obtain a prescription
in May 2010. He never had the prescription filled, he said.

In a bipartisan, unanimous vote, the House Ethics Committee decided
the complaint didn't establish any violation of either Iowa Code
Section 68b or House ethics.

The committee's jurisdiction is limited, said Rep. Scott Raecker,
R-Urbandale. Members can ascertain only whether there was a violation
of those rules and code section. Neither the rules nor code addresses
a lawmaker who allegedly broke a law in another state or told a lie, he said.

Des Moines resident Mike Pesce, an advocate of medical marijuana who
filed the ethics complaint on Jan. 31, said he was disappointed by
the decision.

California law states that a person who fraudulently represents a
medical condition to a doctor is subject to a $1,000 fine or six
months in jail for a first offense. Authorities there have declined
to pursue charges against Baudler.

Pesce said the Iowa Constitution clearly allows for impeachment of a
state legislator who commits malfeasance, and Pesce said he believes
this was malfeasance.

Baudler, a former state trooper, didn't attend the hearing at the Capitol.

In a written response to the House Ethics Committee on Feb. 8,
Baudler said he believes the complaint failed to establish a
violation of any statute or rule under the committee's jurisdiction.

After the meeting, Raecker said it's important for elected officials
to follow the law. Raecker is executive director of Character Counts
in Iowa, which seeks to promote civility through character development.

Asked whether he would lie to find out information, Raecker said the
issue is trustworthiness.

"If Anne Frank were in my attic and the Nazis were at my door asking,
that's a tough question, but I believe I would lie to them for the
greater good," he said. "I think to be honest, to be forthright,
those are issues each of us have to address on our own," he said.