Thomas Christopher Ross is the Republican nominee for a state House district in Missouri. He beat Louise Secker in the August 4 primary by a mere 32 votes. Then, on September 2, he was charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and amphetamine under 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C), and 846.
The government’s theory, per the FBI agent’s sworn affidavit, is that back in June, Ross handed his campaign manager a black nylon glove containing a baggie of cocaine and a couple of capsules from his own prescription of Adderall, and asked the manager to put it in Secker’s purse or her car. Campaign managers really do get asked to do all the thankless tasks, don’t they?
According to the feds, Ross followed up on this request over the next three months. And, unfortunately for his case, the government says he did this in text messages employing what he seems to have believed was code.
The code was “the substance of the matter.” Not exactly Enigma.
“We need to resolve that situation sooner than later,..June 9th she will be at the republican women meeting at granny shaffers.”
“I was hoping that we could make it happen before THIS Thursday…which would be extreme egg on the face given Thursdays nights event”
I didn’t know what Granny Shaffer’s even was, but apparently it’s a staple of the local scene. Or at least it was… it closed in July after 53 years. No wonder Ross was in a hurry!
Checked in from his mid-campaign vacation, Ross wrote: “Hope you all are having success knocking doors and getting the substance of the matter sorted this week.”
In a June 21 thread, Ross again asked about the “substance of the matter” and the campaign manager reported that he was still looking for an opening. Ross replied with some actual campaign talk and then pivoted:
ROSS: A good time would have been while signs were going up….she would have been a ways away from an unlocked car
Missouri seems like such a nice place, where you can leave your car unlocked and not have to worry about it getting stolen or a rival campaign planting cocaine on you.
The complaint also notes that the campaign manager bought a two-gram cannabis vape off Ross for $40 at the campaign office and spotted several more “inside of a small ammunition container.” There’s something so amazingly Republican about dealing drugs out of an ammo box believing gun accessories qualify as sacrosanct.
As for the political fallout, under Missouri’s candidate withdrawal statute, the deadline to leave the race has passed. All that’s left is subsection 2, which requires a court order from the circuit court in the county of his residence — available only if the ballots cost nothing extra to reprint or the candidate pays for it himself — and only “upon application by the candidate.” That deadline is 5 p.m. on September 8. His hearing is September 9.
Missouri GOP officials have publicly asked Ross to withdraw, but it doesn’t seem like he has yet.
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter or Bluesky if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.
The post Nominee Charged With Plotting To Plant Cocaine On His Primary Opponent appeared first on Above the Law.
Thomas Christopher Ross is the Republican nominee for a state House district in Missouri. He beat Louise Secker in the August 4 primary by a mere 32 votes. Then, on September 2, he was charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and amphetamine under 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), (b)(1)(C), and 846.
The government’s theory, per the FBI agent’s sworn affidavit, is that back in June, Ross handed his campaign manager a black nylon glove containing a baggie of cocaine and a couple of capsules from his own prescription of Adderall, and asked the manager to put it in Secker’s purse or her car. Campaign managers really do get asked to do all the thankless tasks, don’t they?
According to the feds, Ross followed up on this request over the next three months. And, unfortunately for his case, the government says he did this in text messages employing what he seems to have believed was code.
The code was “the substance of the matter.” Not exactly Enigma.
“We need to resolve that situation sooner than later,..June 9th she will be at the republican women meeting at granny shaffers.”
“I was hoping that we could make it happen before THIS Thursday…which would be extreme egg on the face given Thursdays nights event”
I didn’t know what Granny Shaffer’s even was, but apparently it’s a staple of the local scene. Or at least it was… it closed in July after 53 years. No wonder Ross was in a hurry!
Checked in from his mid-campaign vacation, Ross wrote: “Hope you all are having success knocking doors and getting the substance of the matter sorted this week.”
In a June 21 thread, Ross again asked about the “substance of the matter” and the campaign manager reported that he was still looking for an opening. Ross replied with some actual campaign talk and then pivoted:
ROSS: A good time would have been while signs were going up….she would have been a ways away from an unlocked car
Missouri seems like such a nice place, where you can leave your car unlocked and not have to worry about it getting stolen or a rival campaign planting cocaine on you.
The complaint also notes that the campaign manager bought a two-gram cannabis vape off Ross for $40 at the campaign office and spotted several more “inside of a small ammunition container.” There’s something so amazingly Republican about dealing drugs out of an ammo box believing gun accessories qualify as sacrosanct.
As for the political fallout, under Missouri’s candidate withdrawal statute, the deadline to leave the race has passed. All that’s left is subsection 2, which requires a court order from the circuit court in the county of his residence — available only if the ballots cost nothing extra to reprint or the candidate pays for it himself — and only “upon application by the candidate.” That deadline is 5 p.m. on September 8. His hearing is September 9.
Missouri GOP officials have publicly asked Ross to withdraw, but it doesn’t seem like he has yet.
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter or Bluesky if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.
