House Ethics Panel Probes 28 Sexual Misconduct Cases Over 50 Years, 5 Linked to Florida Lawmakers

The House Ethics Committee has conducted 28 investigations of sexual misconduct over the past 50 years, according to a comprehensive list the panel published this week. Five of those probes involved Florida congressmen, including two separate investigations of the same lawmaker.

The committee released the accounting alongside a statement reaffirming its transparency record. "The Committee has always made public its findings whenever allegations of sexual misconduct were substantiated," the panel wrote. "There should be zero tolerance for sexual misconduct, harassment, or discrimination in the halls of Congress, or in any employment setting."

One of the five Florida-linked investigations remains active. A House Ethics investigatory panel is currently examining Rep. Cory Mills, a New Smyrna Beach Republican, over allegations of "dating violence" and "sexual misconduct" from two women. His Washington girlfriend, Sarah Raviani, alleged Mills assaulted her in their shared apartment and later recanted. Ex-girlfriend Lindsey Langston alleged he threatened to release intimate photographs after their breakup. A Florida judge issued a restraining order against Mills in October. The panel's investigation, which expanded in November, runs parallel to a separate inquiry into whether Mills profited from defense contracts during his time in Congress.

Former Fort Walton Beach Rep. Matt Gaetz, who resigned in 2024 amid consideration for U.S. Attorney General, was the subject of a report the Ethics Committee voted to publish after his departure. The report alleged Gaetz paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl, including testimony placing him at a 2017 sex party where a woman said she was a minor. Gaetz has denied the allegations.

The late Fort Lauderdale Democrat Alcee Hastings was investigated twice — once in 2011 over an employment discrimination claim in which a staffer alleged unwelcome sexual advances, and again in 2020 over an alleged improper relationship with a longtime aide he ultimately married. The 2011 matter produced no finding of misconduct; the staffer settled a related lawsuit for $220,000, according to public records. Hastings consistently maintained his innocence and called any taxpayer-funded settlement "outrageous." He died in 2021.

Palm Beach Republican Mark Foley resigned in September 2006 after sexually suggestive emails to underage male House pages became public. The Ethics Committee investigation that followed faulted House leadership for failing to protect minors in the page program but found no sitting member had violated House rules. Florida authorities investigated Foley and brought no criminal charges. Congress ended the page program several years later.

The fifth investigation has direct implications for Southwest Florida. Madison Cawthorn, the one-term North Carolina congressman who now lives in Cape Coral and is seeking the Republican nomination to replace outgoing Rep. Byron Donalds, was investigated in 2022 over allegations of an improper relationship with a staff member. The committee found no sexual misconduct; both Cawthorn and the staffer denied any romantic involvement. Cawthorn was separately fined for profiting from a cryptocurrency venture.

For Treasure Coast residents in Florida's 21st Congressional District — represented by Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., who was not named in the committee's list — the disclosure carries weight beyond the individuals named. The committee's release signals renewed institutional pressure on Congress to police itself as complaints from current and former staff have mounted in recent months. Martin and St. Lucie County voters whose representatives sit on House committees with oversight responsibilities will have direct interest in how the Mills investigation concludes. Any formal committee action against a sitting member triggers a floor vote, giving the full House — and every Florida delegation member — a public record vote on the outcome. The Mills case is the only active investigation on the committee's published list, and no resolution date has been set.

This article was generated with AI assistance using publicly available information. It was reviewed and approved by a human editor before publication. TC Sentinel uses AI writing tools in accordance with FTC guidelines.