Steve Henry (politician)
Encyclopedia
Steve Henry was a Lieutenant Governor
of Kentucky
from 1995 through 2003. He twice ran unsuccessfully in statewide elections, finishing third in Democratic primaries for the United States Senate
in 1998 and for Governor of Kentucky
in 2007
.
and graduated from Owensboro Senior High School
in 1972, when he was a starter on the Red Devil's Kentucky Boys Basketball State Championship team led by Sweet Sixteen Tournament MVP, Jerry Thruston. He attended Western Kentucky University
and was elected Student Body President in this second attempt, after losing a close election the preceding year to Jeff Costello. As President of the Student Government Association and as a Kentucky resident, Henry also served as a voting member of the WKU Board of Regents. Henry was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, which also included as its members during that time, future Western Kentucky University President Gary Ransdell and future Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John D. Minton, Jr. Henry attended the University of Louisville School of Medicine and became an orthopedia surgeon
in Louisville, Kentucky
. While in Louisville he was elected to the Jefferson County, Kentucky Fiscal Court
as a Democrat
County Commissioner.
, then Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky
, selected Henry as his running mate for Patton's campaign for governor. Due to a 1992 amendment to the Kentucky Constitution
, 1995 was the first year in which candidates for Governor
and Lieutenant Governor ran together as a slate in Kentucky. Patton and Henry won the election with 500,605 votes (50.9%) to 479,227 (48.7%) for the Republican nominees, Larry Forgy
and Tom Handy. During the 1995 campaign, due to complaints that Henry ran up charges for telephone calls related to his campaign that were made out of his county office, Henry repaid the county for those calls.
In 1998 Henry ran for the United States Senate
seat being vacated by Wendell H. Ford
. Henry finished third in the Democratic primary with 156,576 votes (27.6%) to 166,472 votes (29.3%) for former federal prosecutor
Charlie Owen
and 194,125 votes (34.2%) for eventual nominee Congressman Scotty Baesler
. Baesler narrowly lost the general election to Republican Jim Bunning
.
In 1999 there was considerable speculation that Patton would drop Henry from the ticket, and Patton considered dropping Henry, but the two ran again and won re-election with 352,099 votes, 60.6% of the total in a very low turnout, defeating the Republican ticket of Peppy Martin
and Wanda Cornelius
.
While serving as lieutenant governor, Henry married 2000 Miss America
Heather French Henry. The wedding led to controversy over state resources being expended as part of the wedding and planning (see below).
In 2002 Henry advocated legislation that would mandate healthier lunch options for Kentucky school children and limit junk food in public schools .
Henry served as Lieutenant Governor until late 2003, when Steve Pence was elected on the Republican
ticket and succeeded Henry.
for the Western District of Kentucky was investigating Henry for fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid billings while he taught at the University of Louisville
Medical School from 1996 through 2001.
Then-United States Attorney Steve Pence
had previously stated that he would not seek an indictment in regards to a criminal case, but the federal government pursued a civil case to attempt repayment. Henry countersued claiming that the University of Louisville employees had verified his presence at the procedures before he had signed the papers. In 2003 Henry settled the federal lawsuit by paying the federal government $162,000.
A 2006 editorial by the state's largest newspaper, The Courier-Journal
of Louisville, questioned Henry's past record of billing errors. In 2000 and 2001 Steve Henry repaid the state for numerous improper charges. He blamed a Kentucky State Police
trooper for his hotel stay during a beauty pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey
being charged to a state credit card. Henry was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
in 2000; Henry ended up repaying $4,327 to the state for personal expenses of his that were charged to the state for he and his wife.
Later, he repaid the state $491 for personal telephone calls he made from his state office. Henry also repaid the state $1,804 for almost 1,000 photos and video tapes made of him over a nine month period, including his wedding, that were made by state employees. He also repaid the state $1,800 for press packets for his wedding that were made by state employees at taxpayer expense. Henry also charged a four night stay during two beauty pageants in a Lexington, Kentucky
hotel – just 30 miles from the lieutenant governor's mansion – to the state.
Henry also repaid the state $1,800 for services related to his wedding rendered to him by state employees.
In September 2003, Henry paid the federal government $162,000 to settle allegations that he defrauded Medicare and Medicaid over a period of more than four years while he was a teaching physician at University Hospital.
Subsequent to that case, Henry continued to claim that he had made a pledge to donate $100,000 to his alma mater, Western Kentucky University, without explaining that he had withdrawn the pledge and had paid less than $5,900 toward the $100,000 he had pledged.
On March 16, 2007 Leslie Holland, a former employee of Henry, filed a complaint with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance stating that Henry broke state laws when he used a federal campaign account to spend money on his race for the state office of governor and used illegal corporate contributions for that purpose. This came shortly after the Office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky acknowledged having received information pertaining to violations of federal campaign finance laws by Henry and his campaign entities. In May 2009, a state audit, commissioned by a special state prosecutor, revealed that there were campaign finance violations during his 2007 run for governor. Henry claimed in an interview that the problems listed in the audit consisted of only a small portion of the campaign's finances.
In June 2007 it was reported that Henry was dismissed from the University of Louisville hospital faculty because of concerns about his attendance and performance and related liability problems. This came after his campaign for governor falsely claimed, among other things, that Henry still performed surgery at the hospital. Henry had claimed that he was donating his salary from the university, but the university stated that Henry had not been paid a salary since 1996.
In September 2009 Henry settled charges related to campaign finance law violations, agreeing to a $10,000 fine and assuming personal responsibility for approximately $600,000 in loans he made his campaign for governor.
Henry is scheduled to enter guilty pleas on December 21, 2009 to criminal charges related to campaign finance law violations. Henry's plea agreement calls for him to be fined $500 and sentenced to 12 months in jail, to be conditionally discharged for two years if he engages in no further criminal conduct in that time.
. He raised almost $1.5 million for the campaign, but approximately $700,000 of that was a loan (which was never repaid) from Henry to his own campaign. Early polls showed him at or near the head of the pack in the Democratic primary due to name recognition. However, Henry finished third in the primary with just over 60,000 votes (17%), behind Bruce Lunsford
's 21% and winner Steve Beshear
's 41% (over 142,000 votes) On election night Henry conceded and pledged his support to Beshear for the general election.
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
of Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
from 1995 through 2003. He twice ran unsuccessfully in statewide elections, finishing third in Democratic primaries for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
in 1998 and for Governor of Kentucky
Governor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
in 2007
Kentucky gubernatorial election, 2007
The Kentucky gubernatorial election, 2007 was held on November 6, 2007. In this election, incumbent Republican Governor Ernie Fletcher lost to Democratic challenger Steve Beshear, who therefore began serving as Governor of Kentucky in December 2007 for a term through December 2011...
.
Early years
Stephen L.Henry was born in December 1953 Daviess County, KentuckyDaviess County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 91,545 people, 36,033 households, and 24,826 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 38,432 housing units at an average density of...
and graduated from Owensboro Senior High School
Owensboro High School
Owensboro High School is a high school located at 1800 Frederica Street in Owensboro, Kentucky. The school's newspaper is The Scoop and its yearbook is the Owensboroan. Owensboro High School is one of only 33 high schools in Kentucky to be listed among the “Best High Schools 2009 Search” published...
in 1972, when he was a starter on the Red Devil's Kentucky Boys Basketball State Championship team led by Sweet Sixteen Tournament MVP, Jerry Thruston. He attended Western Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky, USA. It was formally founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier....
and was elected Student Body President in this second attempt, after losing a close election the preceding year to Jeff Costello. As President of the Student Government Association and as a Kentucky resident, Henry also served as a voting member of the WKU Board of Regents. Henry was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, which also included as its members during that time, future Western Kentucky University President Gary Ransdell and future Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice John D. Minton, Jr. Henry attended the University of Louisville School of Medicine and became an orthopedia surgeon
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. While in Louisville he was elected to the Jefferson County, Kentucky Fiscal Court
Jefferson County, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 693,604 people, 287,012 households, and 183,113 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 305,835 housing units at an average density of...
as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
County Commissioner.
Medical career
As an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Henry won international acclaim. He played an instrumental role in the research, development, and use of breakthrough techniques using antibiotic beads. Dr. Henry and his innovative techniques received international recognition on CNN during the Persian Gulf War, when the beads were used to treat wounded soldiers. His work was widely reported by several other national new organizations and won him personal recognition from General Schwarzkopf.Lieutenant governor
In 1995 Paul E. PattonPaul E. Patton
Paul Edward Patton was the 59th governor of Kentucky, serving from 1995 to 2003. Because of a 1992 amendment to the Kentucky Constitution, he was the first governor eligible to succeed himself in office since James Garrard in 1800...
, then Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky
Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky
The office of lieutenant governor of Kentucky has existed under the last three of Kentucky's four constitutions, beginning in 1797. The lieutenant governor serves as governor of Kentucky under circumstances similar to the Vice President of the United States assuming the powers of the presidency...
, selected Henry as his running mate for Patton's campaign for governor. Due to a 1992 amendment to the Kentucky Constitution
Kentucky Constitution
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the document that governs the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was first adopted in 1792 and has since been rewritten three times and amended many more...
, 1995 was the first year in which candidates for Governor
Governor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
and Lieutenant Governor ran together as a slate in Kentucky. Patton and Henry won the election with 500,605 votes (50.9%) to 479,227 (48.7%) for the Republican nominees, Larry Forgy
Larry Forgy
Lawrence E. Forgy, known as Larry Forgy , is a Republican politician and former candidate for office from Lexington, Kentucky....
and Tom Handy. During the 1995 campaign, due to complaints that Henry ran up charges for telephone calls related to his campaign that were made out of his county office, Henry repaid the county for those calls.
In 1998 Henry ran for the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
seat being vacated by Wendell H. Ford
Wendell H. Ford
Wendell Hampton Ford is a retired politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He served for twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate and was the 53rd Governor of Kentucky. He was the first person to be successively elected lieutenant governor, governor, and U.S. senator in Kentucky history...
. Henry finished third in the Democratic primary with 156,576 votes (27.6%) to 166,472 votes (29.3%) for former federal prosecutor
Prosecutor
The prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
Charlie Owen
Charlie Owen
Charlie Owen is a businessman residing in Louisville, Kentucky. He earned his bachelor's degree at Princeton University and his law degree at the University of Virginia. Owen worked as a federal prosecutor before Governor of Kentucky Edward T. Breathitt asked him to return to Kentucky to head the...
and 194,125 votes (34.2%) for eventual nominee Congressman Scotty Baesler
Scotty Baesler
Henry Scott Baesler is a Democratic politician and former Representative from Kentucky.Baesler graduated from the University of Kentucky in 1963 and from law school there in 1966. While at the University, Baesler played basketball under legendary coach Adolph Rupp...
. Baesler narrowly lost the general election to Republican Jim Bunning
Jim Bunning
James Paul David "Jim" Bunning is an American former Major League Baseball pitcher and politician.During a 17-year baseball career, he pitched from 1955 to 1971, most notably with the Detroit Tigers and the Philadelphia Phillies. When he retired, he had the second-highest total of career...
.
In 1999 there was considerable speculation that Patton would drop Henry from the ticket, and Patton considered dropping Henry, but the two ran again and won re-election with 352,099 votes, 60.6% of the total in a very low turnout, defeating the Republican ticket of Peppy Martin
Peppy Martin
Peppy Martin is a politician in Kentucky. She was the Republican nominee for Governor of Kentucky in 1999.-Early career:Peppy Martin served as an intern for United States Senator Thruston B. Morton and worked in the office of Governor Louie B. Nunn in 1971...
and Wanda Cornelius
Wanda Cornelius
Wanda Cornelius is a Kentucky politician.Cornelius won a seat on the Taylor County, Kentucky Board of Education.In 1999 Cornelius was the Republican Party's nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky....
.
While serving as lieutenant governor, Henry married 2000 Miss America
Miss America
The Miss America pageant is a long-standing competition which awards scholarships to young women from the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands...
Heather French Henry. The wedding led to controversy over state resources being expended as part of the wedding and planning (see below).
In 2002 Henry advocated legislation that would mandate healthier lunch options for Kentucky school children and limit junk food in public schools .
Henry served as Lieutenant Governor until late 2003, when Steve Pence was elected on the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
ticket and succeeded Henry.
Controversy
In 2002 and 2003 it emerged that the United States AttorneyUnited States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
for the Western District of Kentucky was investigating Henry for fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid billings while he taught at the University of Louisville
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
Medical School from 1996 through 2001.
Then-United States Attorney Steve Pence
Steve Pence
Stephen B. Pence was the Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He took office with fellow Republican Ernie Fletcher in December 2003.-Education:...
had previously stated that he would not seek an indictment in regards to a criminal case, but the federal government pursued a civil case to attempt repayment. Henry countersued claiming that the University of Louisville employees had verified his presence at the procedures before he had signed the papers. In 2003 Henry settled the federal lawsuit by paying the federal government $162,000.
A 2006 editorial by the state's largest newspaper, The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal
The Courier-Journal, locally called "The C-J", is the main newspaper for the city of Louisville, Kentucky, USA. According to the 1999 Editor & Publisher International Yearbook, the paper is the 48th largest daily paper in the United States and the single largest in Kentucky.- Origins :The...
of Louisville, questioned Henry's past record of billing errors. In 2000 and 2001 Steve Henry repaid the state for numerous improper charges. He blamed a Kentucky State Police
Kentucky State Police
The Kentucky State Police is a department of the Kentucky Justice and Public Safety Cabinet. The department was founded in 1948 and replaced the Kentucky Highway Patrol...
trooper for his hotel stay during a beauty pageant in Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
being charged to a state credit card. Henry was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...
in 2000; Henry ended up repaying $4,327 to the state for personal expenses of his that were charged to the state for he and his wife.
Later, he repaid the state $491 for personal telephone calls he made from his state office. Henry also repaid the state $1,804 for almost 1,000 photos and video tapes made of him over a nine month period, including his wedding, that were made by state employees. He also repaid the state $1,800 for press packets for his wedding that were made by state employees at taxpayer expense. Henry also charged a four night stay during two beauty pageants in a Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
hotel – just 30 miles from the lieutenant governor's mansion – to the state.
Henry also repaid the state $1,800 for services related to his wedding rendered to him by state employees.
In September 2003, Henry paid the federal government $162,000 to settle allegations that he defrauded Medicare and Medicaid over a period of more than four years while he was a teaching physician at University Hospital.
Subsequent to that case, Henry continued to claim that he had made a pledge to donate $100,000 to his alma mater, Western Kentucky University, without explaining that he had withdrawn the pledge and had paid less than $5,900 toward the $100,000 he had pledged.
On March 16, 2007 Leslie Holland, a former employee of Henry, filed a complaint with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance stating that Henry broke state laws when he used a federal campaign account to spend money on his race for the state office of governor and used illegal corporate contributions for that purpose. This came shortly after the Office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Kentucky acknowledged having received information pertaining to violations of federal campaign finance laws by Henry and his campaign entities. In May 2009, a state audit, commissioned by a special state prosecutor, revealed that there were campaign finance violations during his 2007 run for governor. Henry claimed in an interview that the problems listed in the audit consisted of only a small portion of the campaign's finances.
In June 2007 it was reported that Henry was dismissed from the University of Louisville hospital faculty because of concerns about his attendance and performance and related liability problems. This came after his campaign for governor falsely claimed, among other things, that Henry still performed surgery at the hospital. Henry had claimed that he was donating his salary from the university, but the university stated that Henry had not been paid a salary since 1996.
In September 2009 Henry settled charges related to campaign finance law violations, agreeing to a $10,000 fine and assuming personal responsibility for approximately $600,000 in loans he made his campaign for governor.
Henry is scheduled to enter guilty pleas on December 21, 2009 to criminal charges related to campaign finance law violations. Henry's plea agreement calls for him to be fined $500 and sentenced to 12 months in jail, to be conditionally discharged for two years if he engages in no further criminal conduct in that time.
2007 candidacy for governor
Henry ran as a candidate in the Democratic Primary for the 2007 election for Governor of KentuckyGovernor of Kentucky
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the executive branch of government in the U.S. state of Kentucky. Fifty-six men and one woman have served as Governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-election once...
. He raised almost $1.5 million for the campaign, but approximately $700,000 of that was a loan (which was never repaid) from Henry to his own campaign. Early polls showed him at or near the head of the pack in the Democratic primary due to name recognition. However, Henry finished third in the primary with just over 60,000 votes (17%), behind Bruce Lunsford
Bruce Lunsford
William Bruce Lunsford is an American Democratic politician from Kentucky. He has served various roles in the Kentucky Democratic Party including, Party treasurer, Deputy Development Secretary, and Head of Commerce...
's 21% and winner Steve Beshear
Steve Beshear
Steven Lynn "Steve" Beshear is an American politician who is the 61st Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. A Democrat, Beshear previously served in the Kentucky House of Representatives from 1974 to 1979, was the state's Attorney General from 1980 to 1983, and was Lieutenant Governor from...
's 41% (over 142,000 votes) On election night Henry conceded and pledged his support to Beshear for the general election.