State senator steps down blaming aide’s ‘modesty’ as he’s caught taking photos of her without consent

Controversy envelops state’s capitol after female aide discovers photos of herself

Political turmoil is developing in Nebraska’s state capitol after a female aide to a GOP state senator discovered photos of herself she described as objectifying on her boss’s laptop that were taken without her consent.

Multiple news outlets reported that Mike Groene of the Nebraska Senate announced that he would resign following the discovery; Mr Groene is a seven-year veteran of the chamber and a conservative Republican. He admitted to taking the photos of his staffer, Kristina Konecko, in an interview with the Associated Press and said that he would resign to spare his family a media circus.

Mike Groene (AP)

“I’m done. I really don’t care,’ he said in an interview. “I don’t care about politics anymore. I’ve got bigger fish to fry.”

He added that he thought the photos were “harmless” and non-sexual in nature, and stated of the aide: “She’s a very modest person and I guess she was offended.”

Ms Konecko has since transferred to another office in the state Senate. She declined from commenting on the allegations specifically, but confirmed to a newspaper that she had filed an official complaint with the legislature over the photos. The matter was not revealed publicly, however, until the photos were published by a separate Nebraska-based news outlet and it was unclear if Mr Groene would have faced any punishment in the matter.

“I have not been advised or directed nor have I received any suggestions or recommendations from any outside sources, but because there has been a call for a formal investigation, I am not going to be answering any questions or sharing any further information,” Ms Konecko said, according to the Omaha World-Herald. “However, I am very grateful and appreciative for the outpouring of support and encouragement that I have received from the public.”

Ms Konecko described the photos as “objectifying and demeaning” to the Nebraska Sunrise News, and the outlet itself claimed that they had been sent to others with “explicit subject lines” in emails. Ms Konecko said it was untrue that the photos had been sent to others.

Now, a Democrat in the state Senate is getting involved as well and calling for the matter to go to a criminal investigation.

Sen Megan Hunt confirmed to the World-Herald over the weekend that she had written to the Nebraska attorney general, the state’s top law enforcement official, describing the situation as deserving “your attention in the highest priority”.

She added on Twitter: “There is still a lot of information to uncover and accountability to be had. Who did he share the pictures with? What were the captions?”

Ms Hunt also questioned how much other Republican lawmakers knew about the situation before it became public knowledge.

State Sen Dan Hughes of the Nebraska Legislature’s Executive Board confirmed to the Nebraska Examiner that a complaint stemming from the photos was being taken “very seriously” by his committee. It isn’t clear if the state’s attorney general will take action to criminally charge Mr Groene.

Mr Groene told the Examiner in a statement that he was also withdrawing from contention to join the Board of Regents at the University of Nebraska, which he had only said recently was an interest.

“I am cutting contact with all things political,” he told the newspaper. “I am going to just exist and enjoy my remaining days.”