DA: No charges for Colorado secretary of state

The Denver district attorney says no criminal charges will be filed against Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler, following allegations that he misused public funds.

District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said Wednesday that a grand jury found no criminal conduct in Gessler using discretionary funds for travel expenses related to attending a Republican National Lawyers Association seminar and the GOP convention in 2012. However, the grand jury released a report saying his decision to use discretionary funds to attend a partisan conference, then the GOP convention, wasn’t prudent.

Gessler’s spokesman Rich Coolidge said Gessler’s office had fully expected the secretary of state would be exonerated and that the office has changed how it manages discretionary funds.

Last week, the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission ruled Gessler’s use of the funds was inappropriate.