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Politicians in Trouble or Disgrace

Politicians in Trouble or Disgrace: Idaho

in chronological order   Caleb Lyon (1822-1875) — of Lyonsdale, Lewis County, N.Y. Born in Lyonsdale, Lewis County, N.Y., December 7, 1822. Member of New York state assembly from Lewis County, 1851; resigned 1851; member of New York state senate 21st District, 1851; U.S. Representative from New York 23rd District, 1853-55; Governor of Idaho Territory, 1864-66. In 1866, an audit revealed that he had embezzled $46,418 in federal funds intended for the Nez Perce Indians, but he was never convicted. Died in Staten Island, Richmond County, N.Y., September 8, 1875 (age 52 years, 275 days). Interment at Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, N.Y.   Relatives: Son of Caleb Lyon (born c.1784).   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Find-A-Grave memorial   Edward Dexter Holbrook (1836-1870) — also known as Edward D. Holbrook — of Idaho City, Boise County, Idaho. Born in Elyria, Lorain County, Ohio, May 6, 1836. Lawyer; Delegate to U.S. Congress from Idaho Territory, 1865-69. Censured by the House of Representatives in 1869 for use of unparliamentary language. Shot and mortally wounded by Charles H. Douglas, and died the next day, in Idaho City, Boise County, Idaho, June 18, 1870 (age 34 years, 43 days). Interment at Masonic Burial Ground, Idaho City, Idaho.   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Wikipedia article — Find-A-Grave memorial   Joseph B. Bistline (1862-1946) — also known as Joe Bistline — of Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho. Born in Andersonburg, Perry County, Pa., April 10, 1862. Democrat. Lawyer; lumber business; mayor of Pocatello, Idaho, 1899; in October 1913, the U.S. District Attorney for Idaho sued him for $8,000, the value of land fraudulently obtained from the government; after a trial in federal court, he was ordered to pay $600; this verdict was upheld on appeal. Died in Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho, October 31, 1946 (age 84 years, 204 days). Interment at Mountain View Cemetery, Pocatello, Idaho.   Relatives: Son of Benjamin Bistline and Jane Elizabeth (Nesbitt) Bistline; brother of John McClintock Bistline; married to Grace Gross; uncle of Francis Marion Bistline; granduncle of Beverly Barbara Bistline.   Political family: Bistline family of Pocatello, Idaho.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Theodore Francis Turner (1868-1951) — also known as Theo F. Turner; "Father of Idaho State College" — of Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho. Born in Ringgold, Morgan County, Ohio, May 4, 1868. Republican. Abstract and title business; member of Idaho state house of representatives, 1901-02; mayor of Pocatello, Idaho, 1913-15; Idaho state auditor, 1903-05; in March 1915, the commissioner of the U.S. General Land Office found him guilty of irregular practices in land office transactions; later, in August 1915, the Department of the Interior announced that he had been exonerated; acting postmaster at Pocatello, Idaho, 1932-33. Member, Freemasons; Scottish Rite Masons. Died in Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho, April 17, 1951 (age 82 years, 348 days). Interment at Mountain View Cemetery, Pocatello, Idaho.   Relatives: Married 1889 to Lucy Petty.   Turner Hall, on the campus of Idaho State University, Pocatello, Idaho, is named for him.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Glen Hearst Taylor (1904-1984) — also known as Glen H. Taylor — of Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho. Born in Portland, Multnomah County, Ore., April 12, 1904. Country-western singer; candidate for U.S. Representative from Idaho, 1938; U.S. Senator from Idaho, 1945-51; defeated, 1940 (Democratic), 1942 (Democratic), 1956 (Independent); arrested on May 1, 1948, in Birmingham, Alabama, for attempting to use a door reserved for Negroes, rather than the whites-only door; convicted in 1949 of disorderly conduct; Progressive candidate for Vice President of the United States, 1948. Member, United World Federalists. Died April 28, 1984 (age 80 years, 16 days). Interment at Skylawn Memorial Park, San Mateo, Calif.   Relatives: Son of Pleasant John Taylor and Olive Oatman (Higgins) Taylor; married, March 31, 1931, to Dora Marie Pike.   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Wikipedia article Franklin Samuel Smith (1895-1988) — also known as Frank Smith — of Blackfoot, Bingham County, Idaho. Born in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Utah, January 28, 1895. Bakery owner; mayor of Blackfoot, Idaho, 1949-51; charged with perjury, as part of a scandal involving gravel contractors; tried in January 1952, and found not guilty. Died in Blackfoot, Bingham County, Idaho, May 20, 1988 (age 93 years, 113 days). Interment at Riverside-Thomas Cemetery, Blackfoot, Idaho.   Relatives: Son of Charles Franklin Smith and Elizabeth (Walker) Smith; married, April 27, 1918, to Leona Mary Graham.   See also Find-A-Grave memorial   Image source: Idaho Falls (Idaho) Post-Register, January 5, 1950   George Vernon Hansen (1930-2014) — also known as George V. Hansen — of Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho. Born in Tetonia, Teton County, Idaho, September 14, 1930. Republican. Insurance agent; mayor of Alameda, Idaho, 1961-62; Republican candidate for U.S. Senator from Idaho, 1962 (primary), 1968, 1972 (primary); U.S. Representative from Idaho 2nd District, 1965-69, 1975-85. Mormon. Member, American Legion; Farm Bureau; Kiwanis. Convicted in 1984 of failing to include four transactions on federal disclosure forms; sentenced to 15 months in prison and fined $40,000; reprimanded by the U.S. House; his conviction was reversed in 1995. Died in Pocatello, Bannock County, Idaho, August 14, 2014 (age 83 years, 334 days). Burial location unknown.   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — NNDB dossier H. Brent Coles (born c.1951) — of Boise, Ada County, Idaho. Born about 1951. Mayor of Boise, Idaho, 1993-2003; resigned 2003; defeated, 2019; resigned as mayor in February 2003, after being charged with pecuniary benefit for taking a insurance company-paid trip to the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City; found not guilty on misdemeanor charges; in November 2003, he pleaded guilty to one felony count of presenting a fraudulent voucher; other charges were dropped, and he was sentenced to 180 days in jail. Mormon. Still living as of 2019.   See also Wikipedia article   Image source: City of Boise   Larry Edwin Craig (b. 1945) — also known as Larry Craig — of Midvale, Washington County, Idaho; Payette, Payette County, Idaho. Born in Council, Adams County, Idaho, July 20, 1945. Republican. Member of Idaho state senate, 1975-81; U.S. Representative from Idaho 1st District, 1981-91; U.S. Senator from Idaho, 1991-2009. Methodist. Member, National Rifle Association. Arrested for soliciting sex in a men's bathroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, June 11, 2007; charged with disorderly conduct; pleaded guilty, and was fined. Still living as of 2014.   See also congressional biography — Govtrack.us page — Wikipedia article — NNDB dossier — Internet Movie Database profile   Steven Dana Pankey (born c.1951) — also known as Steve Pankey — of Greeley, Weld County, Colo.; Shoshone, Lincoln County, Idaho; Twin Falls, Twin Falls County, Idaho. Born in California, about 1951. Candidate in Republican primary for Lieutenant Governor of Idaho, 2010; candidate for Governor of Idaho, 2014 (Constitution), 2018 (Republican primary); indicted in October 2020 for the kidnapping and murder of Jonelle Matthews, a 12-year-old girl who disappeared in Greeley, Colo., in 1984. Nazarene. Still living as of 2020.   Relatives: Son of Dana Pankey and Ruth Pankey.

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