Committee recommends censure for South Dakota senator
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(AP) - A special Senate committee has recommended that state Sen. Dan Sutton of Flandreau be censured for allegedly fondling a legislative page last February.
The committee voted 6-3 Friday for censure of the Democratic lawmaker.
The vote, however, is only a recommendation. It'll be taken up next week by the full state Senate.
Committee members say they don't know what the truth is, but it wasn't proper for Sutton to be in the same motel room with the page.
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Sen. Kenneth McNenny of Sturgis is one of the three who opposed censure. McNenny says Sutton should be expelled from the Legislature simply for sharing a bed with the student -- no matter if anything happened or not.
The page stayed with Sutton as a friend of the family for two nights at a Fort Pierre motel.
Sutton has denied that anything improper took place.
Censure is a public reprimand. It would not bar Sutton from any of his Senate duties. (Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
