To expel or not to expel Matt Shea, that may be the question
OLYMPIA — Nelson G. Robinson holds the ignoble distinction of being the first lawmaker expelled from the state House of Representatives.
Matt Shea could be the second — if he doesn’t walk away on his own.
Robinson, a Seattle Democrat elected in November 1932, received the historically unceremonious boot Jan. 17, 1933 on a 93-5 vote after House leaders corralled every member then ordered the doors of the chambers locked.
He had been convicted in December of “carnally knowing and abusing” a 12-year-old girl. But Gov. Roland Hartley, in one of his last acts before leaving office and returning home to Everett, pardoned Robinson on the eve of the session thus enabling him to be sworn in.
His tenure didn’t last long. A five-member House investigating committee reviewed the criminal case, heard from Robinson, and recommended he be kicked out. The debate and vote took less than two hours, according to the Journal of the House.
Shea, a Spokane Republican, has not been charged with any crime. At least not yet. Still, he could face ouster next year for, to put it politely, conduct unbecoming a citizen legislator.
Private investigators hired by the Democrat-controlled House are assessing the extent to which Shea’s efforts to reshape the world in line with his views pose a threat to his political foes, fellow lawmakers and the institution in which he’s served since 2009.
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A preliminary report is due Sept. 30 and a final one by Dec. 1.
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