NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A former state representative from East Tennessee filed a lawsuit against the state's Office of Legislative Administration saying he was forced to resign after he was threatened with expulsion by another lawmaker. The lawsuit also accuses Rep. Jeremy Faison (R - Knoxville) of conspiring to keep a separate complaint against him secret.
Scotty Campbell suddenly resigned from the House in April 2023, after an internal investigation by the Workplace Discrimination and Harassment Subcommittee of the House. It found that he violated a discrimination and harassment policy, specifically Rule 82 of the Permanent Rules of Order of the House of Representatives.
"Before his forced resignation, there was a 'complaint' filed against him by a legislative intern who had been flirting with him and spending time with him after work (Mr. Campbell has text messages that prove this). He asserts that the conversations he had with the intern were consensual, after work, and not at work," the lawsuit says.
It also said the complaint against him was a surprise and claimed the director of the Office of Legislative Administration refused to look a text messages between Campbell and the intern while investigating him.
According to his lawsuit, Campbell asked the office on Jan. 22 for records surrounding the House's investigation. It said the office refused to disclose the records. According to the lawsuit, the office listed three reasons to refuse the release of the records. The reasons as shared in the lawsuit are below.
- First, the requested records are confidential under the Tennessee General Assembly Policy on Workplace Discrimination and Harassment. Because the Policy qualifies as state law for purposes of the [Act], the records are exempt from disclosure under the catch-all exemption of the [Act]. See Tenn. Code Ann. §10-7-503(a)(2)(A).
- Second, pursuant to its constitutional authority, the Workplace Discrimination and Harassment Subcommittee of the Ethics Committee has determined that, in accordance with the Policy and Rule 82 of the Permanent Rules of Order, no further information concerning this complaint will be released. See Mar. 29, 2023 Memorandum of the Workplace Discrimination & Harassment Subcommittee of the Ethics Committee. Compelling the release of records that have been determined to be confidential under the Policy and Rule 82 would violate the Tennessee Constitution, including the separation of powers, the political question doctrine, and the doctrine of legislative immunity.
Third, the TPRA does not apply to the Legislature and cannot constitutionally be applied to the Legislature.
The office said the records were confidential under the Tennessee General Assembly Policy on Workplace Discrimination and Harassment. It also said the Tennessee Public Records Act did not apply to the legislature.
"The legal complaint is meritless," said House Speaker Cameron Sexton's office, in an emailed statement to 10News.
According to evidence in the lawsuit, a separate request was made in May 2023 to see records on alleged payments to a Nashville hotel regarding a legislative intern, as well as alleged payments to a moving company. It also asked for records regarding an alleged $935 payment to the intern.
That request also asked for "a second blue letter-sized file folder dated 4/5/23 with an alleged victim's first name containing two pages of notes pertaining to a complaint against Representative Faison" as well as "the redacted and non-redacted personnel files of Representative Faison."
A chancellor ruled against releasing those records in January 2024, according to evidence submitted in Campbell's lawsuit.
Soon after the investigation ended, Campbell said Faison forced him to resign or else be expelled, which could have led to him losing benefits like health insurance, the lawsuit says. It also alleges that Faison conspired to keep a complaint against him secret.
In January, a Chancery Court in Davidson County claimed it received documents over an April 2023 complaint naming Faison. Both Speaker Cameron Sexton (R - Crossville) and Faison said then that there was no complaint filed against him.
A statement from Campbell's attorney is available below.
"It was the honor of my life to serve the people of my former district in the Tennessee House of Representatives. And I did that to the best of my ability and with all my heart.
Unfortunately, earlier in this recent session, I was unnecessarily and unfairly forced to resign from the House. As a result of that forced resignation, and due to the Office of Legislative Administration’s recent rejection of my request for certain state records related to me during my time in the House, I have filed a petition in the Davidson County Circuit Court under the Tennessee Public Records Act to obtain the requested records, which I am entitled to receive as a matter of law.
I look forward to obtaining those records, reviewing them, and to what may come from that review. I also look forward to what lies ahead for this great state and for me.
Until further notice, due to this pending litigation, I will not comment further on this matter. Please direct all inquiries to my attorney. Thank you."