Missouri House GOP pledged inquiry into accused abuser Roeber. Will Republicans act now?

Missouri House Republicans will meet Monday to discuss the case of Rick Roeber, the representative-elect from House District 34, which includes parts of Lee’s Summit.

In September, three of Roeber’s adult children credibly accused him of sexually and physically abusing them when they were young. Roeber denied their claims, and on Nov. 3, voters in the district elected him by a narrow margin.

Now, Republicans in the House must decide how they will deal with their new colleague.

Their first decision, expected Monday, is easy. Republicans must figure out if they’ll allow Roeber to join their caucus. The answer should be no: Roeber should not be given committee assignments, or any role in the statehouse, other than taking his oath.

After that, the House should undertake a full investigation of the allegations against Roeber. We’re confident that an independent look at the facts will convince the required two-thirds majority in the House to expel Roeber and prompt a new election.

House Republicans had an opportunity to conduct that review during the past weeks. In November, GOP House leadership promised a thorough investigation into the charges, which the children repeated in a letter to the House after the election.

“We take these accusations very seriously,” the GOP leaders said. Yet as of Friday, none of the children appeared to have met with House investigators to tell their stories.

While the lack of outreach is disappointing, those interviews should still take place. It now appears likely that someone, perhaps a Republican, will file a formal complaint against Roeber with the 10-member Missouri House Ethics Committee.

That filing would come the same day Roeber takes the oath, or shortly thereafter. Republicans and Democrats have discussed this approach and have reached general agreement.

The committee will review the case. The adult children may be asked to testify, although there is some reluctance to put them through the ordeal. Child welfare groups may also testify, and there are records of deposition testimony and decision-making to consider.

Roeber may also testify. The committee will then make a recommendation to the full Missouri House.

At that point, the House should call a vote on Roeber’s continued service. Every member should be on the record concerning his behavior. Republicans, who hold a larger than two-to-one majority in the House, should demand such a vote.

Some members may be nervous about overturning the will of the voters who elected Roeber. Indeed, in almost all cases, the voters’ decision should be respected.

But the allegations in this case are so serious they deserve a full examination and judgment. These incidents took place many years ago, but they continue to hurt the children.

“When we learned our father was running for office, the emotional turmoil started all over again,” the three adult children said in their letter to House leadership.

“To think that this man would have a say over laws that impact thousands of children is just too much,” they wrote. “We had to deal with what to do.”

Those three children, now adults — Anastasia Roeber, Samson Roeber and Gabrielle Galeano — have shown enormous courage. They stepped forward, on the record, with their claims. We believe them. The Missouri House should, too.

Rick Roeber must be brought to account for his behavior, and should be denied his seat in the legislature. That process should begin Monday in the state capitol.