On Thursday afternoon, a grand jury indicted Republican Gov. Eric Greitens of Missouri on charges of first-degree felony invasion of privacy, stemming from an explosive story that Greitens had engaged in an extra-marital affair with a woman whom he then blackmailed into silence by taking a photo of her nude, bound, and blindfolded. Greitens had previously admitted to the affair but has denied any wrongdoing. In a statement released after his arrest, he once again said he had committed no crime and also accused St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner of being "a reckless liberal prosecutor who uses her office to score political points."
A judge released Greitens on a "personal recognizance bond," which would in theory permit him to attend this weekend's meeting of the National Governors Association in DC, but does he really want to go? His next court appearance is set for March 16, and of course his lawyers have filed a motion seeking to dismiss the indictment, though such efforts are seldom successful.
And in any event, Greitens' woes are only growing. In response to the indictment, Republican state House Speaker Todd Richardson said legislators will start investigating the charges, a possible prelude to impeachment proceedings. Given Greitens' atrocious relationship with state lawmakers, that's a particularly ominous development. News outlets have also previously reported that the FBI is investigating Greitens, though apparently on a different matter entirely: campaign finance violations.
The least-unhappy ending for Greitens now requires his immediate resignation, which may yet come. Other besieged governors have insisted to the bitter end that they would never leave office early, only to finally yank the ripcord moments before smashing into the ground. (Alabama's Robert Bentley played this same game of chicken just last year.) If he doesn't see sense soon, though, Greitens could very well find himself forcibly removed from office, which would make him the first governor to face such a fate since Illinois' notorious Rod Blagojevich was expelled in 2009. How sure is Greitens that he wants to join that particular dishonor roll?