The 2014 Pevely alderman election was quite contentious, and the aftermath has spilled over to the Missouri Ethics Commission (MEC), which polices campaign finance laws. No fewer than five of the six candidates in that election have been subject to MEC complaints and subsequent fines for failures to adequately complete the required “paid for by” statements correctly. The sanctioned candidates, the dates of the rulings, and their fines are as follows:
- David Young, May 22, $100
- Ed Walters, June 10, $100
- Dave Bewig, June 24, $100
- Don Menkhus, September 3, $100
- Steve Markus (and his committee), September 30, $700 ($160 if paid within 45 days). This complaint includes a count of “failure to timely report.”
The first three people on the list above won the election and now sit on the board of aldermen. Given the recent dates on the last two complaints, I would not rule out the existence of a complaint against the sixth candidate in the Pevely election, Russ Shackelford. He is mentioned in the latter two candidates’ rulings, because they all shared the costs of some candy and door hangers.
I don’t get too riled up about these fines. Campaign finance law can be difficult for newbies and non-politicians (although some of the above candidates have more experience than others). And campaigns often watch closely for, and report, violations on the other side to score points. Which is not to say that the violations did not occur – hence the MEC rulings. I just think this is a measure of the bitterness of Pevely politics, and it would be an interesting exacta if every candidate in the election received an MEC fine. Maybe it would be some sort of record.
Jefferson County Penknife 
What’s different about Pevely than Arnold?
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OK JC P, so what about it that Doris Borgelt gets an ongoing pass from you on Campaign Finance fraud and you are all about reporting on anyone else? Wrong is wrong and Doris shouts that from the mountaintops. Doris played games with her meager funds and had help and coaching from her campaign treasurer – who is that guy again – and got tagged for it. Discarding her “I am learning about how this works” BS for what it was, she got caught cheating. Not a single word from you about her antics. You are a hypocrite and it is so obvious you are her staunch supporter. Have the stones to post it now.
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There there, Bill. Like I said in the post, I don’t care about most MEC campaign violations. That’s why I didn’t write about Phil Amato’s MEC violation, either. Like I also said in the post, this is significant only because of the number of candidates who were hit with MEC sanctions.
There are other topics I am sure to write about. One is when people get caught drunkenly hanging up illegal campaign signs (that could have been an MEC violation, by the way). Another is when some candidates are removed from the ballot for not paying personal property taxes, but other crony candidates get a pass. Talk about hypocrisy.
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My goodness. Can the pot call the kettle any blacker, Moritz? Aren’t you the one that fled to Saudi Arabia to avoid being served in a lawsuit for your wrong doing?
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