The House Ethics Committee on Monday released its long-awaited report on former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz. House investigators said they found that Gaetz, who was elected to Congress in 2016, "violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress."
Earlier this month, the committee voted in secret to release the report to the public. Gaetz filed a lawsuit on Monday to stop the report's release, arguing that releasing it would cause "immediate, severe and irreversible" reputational damage.
The House inquiry, which began in April 2021, was triggered by the news that Gaetz was the subject of a Justice Department probe into allegations that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl and broke sex-trafficking laws by transporting her over state lines. Gaetz has denied any wrongdoing, and the Justice Department ended its investigation last year without bringing charges.
Gaetz resigned from Congress last month after President-elect Donald Trump nominated him to serve as attorney general. But he quickly withdrew his name from consideration, and later said he would not be joining the 119th Congress.
Read the 43-page report from the House investigation below.
