A Republican Texas state lawmaker who once proposed banning children from attending drag shows to supposedly shield them from being groomed for abuse has resigned after he was found to have engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct with a 19-year-old intern.
Bryan Slaton, 45, resigned on Monday while facing mounting calls from the state’s Republican party and conservative groups to step down. A state house investigation last week determined that he supplied alcohol to the intern and another young staffer, had sex with the intern after she had become intoxicated, and later showed her a threatening email while saying everything would be fine if she kept quiet about the encounter.
House investigators noted as well that Slaton had asked a fellow lawmaker to keep his behavior secret.
The chairperson of the investigation panel, Texas state representative Andrew Murr, said he still planned to call for a vote to expel Slaton because he remains an officer of the legislature until a successor is elected and sworn in.
Slaton’s resignation letter did not address the allegations against him, which his attorney had previously called “outrageous” and “false”.
Slaton said it had been an honor to serve in the legislature and thanked his colleagues.
“I look forward to spending more time with my young family, and will continue to find ways to serve my community and all citizens across our great state,” he wrote.
State Republican party leaders welcomed his departure and said house members should be held accountable for misconduct.
“The misconduct described … should never be tolerated and is proper grounds for expulsion,” party officials said in a statement. “These actions have betrayed the trust that the people of … Slaton’s district put in him as an elected official, and he has rightly resigned.”
Slaton’s legislative biography describes him as holding values and principles formed by church and family gatherings. It also cites his degrees from a Baptist seminary and work as a youth minister before he was elected to represent his Dallas-area district in 2021.
Slaton’s misconduct investigation began after two 19-year-old legislative aides and a 21-year-old legislative intern filed complaints in April.
Two of the women said they tried to dissuade the intern from spending time with Slaton and suggested his behavior was inappropriate. But the intern, who one complainant described as “naive”, agreed to Slaton’s request to visit his apartment. The other women went with her, and the lawmaker served them alcohol, according to the report.
One of the young women drank enough to vomit, and the others were intoxicated enough to become dizzy and experience “split vision”, investigators said.
Two of them eventually left but the intern stayed, according to investigators. She told her friends Slaton drove her home the next morning, stopping at a drugstore so she could obtain emergency contraception.
Slaton at one point proposed to penalize the use of emergency contraception, including what is known as the Plan B pill. Besides his proposed ban on children attending drag shows, he also drew attention for seeking a vote on whether Texas should secede from the US.
The Associated Press reported that between 2017 and 2021, at least 120 state lawmakers in 41 states faced public allegations of sexual misconduct or harassment. Efforts to remove them are rare, and they often successfully run again for office.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html.
