Jetton waives appearance, attorney asks for new judge in Scott County assault case

BENTON, Mo. -- Former Missouri House Speaker Rod Jetton sent attorney Stephen Wilson to court on his behalf today to enter a not guilty plea on felony assault charges.

Wilson waived a formal appearance by Jetton and asked for a new judge. Associate Circuit Judge Scott Horman granted the request, which will temporarily delay the setting of a date for a preliminary hearing on the charges.

Jetton, 42, faces a single count of assault for allegedly striking a woman in the face and choking her during sexual intercourse at her Sikeston, Mo., home on the night of Nov. 15.

Rod Jetton

According to the complaint filed with the court, Jetton "recklessly caused serious physical injury" to the victim "by hitting her on the head, and choking her resulting in unconsciousness and the loss of the function of a part of her body."

After the brief appearance before Horman, Wilson said the request for a change of judge "is not a delaying tactic. It has nothing to do with delay."

He declined, when asked by reporters, to give another reason for seeking a change. Criminal defendants are allowed one request to change judges without having to state a reason.

Wilson said he expects a new judge to be assigned this week and a preliminary hearing to occur in 30 to 45 days.

According to a sworn statement filed in support of the charge, Jetton and the woman spoke early in the day, and he arrived with wine that evening. She drank it as they watched a football game, then faded in and out of consciousness.

The two agreed to have sex, and to use a safe word, "green balloons," if either wanted to stop, according to the affidavit signed by Det. Betty McDermott of the Sikeston Department of Public Safety.

An earlier incident report, however, states that the woman told officers Jetton restrained her hands with a belt and performed unwanted sex. She told police she recalled Jetton striking her hard in the face and at one point waking up on the floor as he was choking her.

in the incident report, the woman told police that Jetton stayed the night and told her the next day that she "should have said 'green balloons.'" Jetton is not facing any sex charges.

Jetton, a Republican from Marble Hill, Mo., represented the 156th District Missouri House seat from 2001 to 2009. He was elected speaker in 2005, serving in the post considered the second most powerful job in state government until he was forced out of office by term limits.

While a lawmaker, Jetton began a political consulting business, first called Commonsense Conservative Consulting and later, after he left the legislature, Rod Jetton & Associates. With a client base of fellow lawmakers and an industry-funded group opposing higher electric rates, Jetton's consulting firm was paid $469,743.74 during 2008 and 2009 by committees that report to the Missouri Ethics Commission.

After he was charged with the assault, Jetton announced he would close his consulting firm.

Asked whether Jetton is employed, Wilson declined to answer. "I am more worried about defending him than what he is doing," Wilson said.

Since Jetton has been charged, momentum has gathered in Jefferson City, Mo., to bar lawmakers from working as political consultants for their colleagues. Those pushing for the change include Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, and House Majority Leader Steve Tilley, R-Perryville.

If convicted, Jetton faces up to seven years in state prison or a year in jail.

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent addresses:

131 S. Winchester St., Benton, Mo.