House won’t seek to impeach state auditor

OLYMPIA – Leaders in Washington’s House of Representatives say they don’t plan to impeach state Auditor Troy Kelley, who is fighting federal charges of tax evasion, money laundering and perjury.

Speaker of the House Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, and Republican Minority Leader Dan Kristiansen of Snohomish delivered a letter on Friday to Lt. Gov. Brad Owens saying they won’t try to impeach Kelley “for the time being” because of fear the impeachment process could be used to delay Kelley’s trial, the Everett Herald reported on Tuesday. They still urged Kelley’s resignation.

Kelley is also facing allegations that he kept millions of dollars that should have been refunded to customers of his old real-estate services business. Kelley was elected in 2012 and is a Democrat from Tacoma. He was formerly a state representative.