FRANKFORT, Ky., May 11 (UPI) -- A grand jury indicted Kentucky Gov. Ernie Fletcher Thursday on misdemeanor charges in connection with an alleged scheme to base state hiring on politics.
Fletcher -- the first Kentucky governor to be indicted -- was charged with criminal conspiracy, official misconduct in the first degree and violating the prohibition against political discrimination.
The special Franklin County grand jury that indicted Fletcher also handed up an indictment charging former state highway engineer Sam Beverage with felony perjury. The panel also returned 14 sealed indictments, the Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal reported.
Fletcher has acknowledged his administration made mistakes, but he has denied doing anything wrong -- and claimed the investigation by Attorney General Greg Stumbo, a Democrat, is a politically motivated attack.
Fletcher's lawyers said in a court filing that Stumbo -- and the office of the attorney general -- should be disqualified from further involvement in the case because Stumbo has said he wants to run against Fletcher in the upcoming election.
"It's a sad day for Kentucky," said House Speaker Jody Richards, a Democrat. "It does give us a black eye."
