Editorial: Ethical lapse at Statehouse

State Rep. Eric Turner put the House ethics committee in a no-win situation when he was called out over questions about how he lobbied against a bill that would have put a hold on construction of nursing homes in the state.

The Cicero Republican didn’t intend to vote on the bill, given that his son was involved in a company that built nursing homes. But according to some of his colleagues, Turner pressed House Republicans during closed-door caucus meetings to reject the moratorium. And according to newspaper investigations, Turner — and not just his son — had money riding on deals that would have gone under if they bill passed.

Turner’s defense, leaning comfortably on the no-tell society of the caucus, is that he was offering his expertise on a bill from his life as a nursing home developer — just as an attorney in our citizen legislature might offer a critical eye on a sentencing bill or a doctor might give an examining room perspective on a health care matter.