Did a North Texas lawmaker attend an investigative hearing at the Capitol?

AUSTIN — State Rep. Bryan Slaton, a Royse City Republican reportedly facing allegations he had an inappropriate relationship with a staffer, on Thursday was seen leaving an area where the meeting of a legislative committee tasked with investigating lawmaker misconduct took place.

The House General Investigating Committee met for about an hour behind closed doors to conduct a due process hearing into a case it is referring to as “Matter B.”

Committee Chairman Andrew Murr, R-Junction, has declined to discuss whom the panel is investigating.

Earlier this week, Rep. Charlie Geren, a Fort Worth Republican who sits on the committee, said the individual involved in the matter likely engaged in “inappropriate workplace conduct.”

Journalists saw Slaton enter and exit a room that’s connected, via back hallways, to the room the committee was using for its hearing. He refused to answer reporters’ questions about his presence there, and later appeared back on the House floor.

Patrick Short, an attorney for Slaton, did not respond to a request for comment.

Julie Springer, the attorney for the staffer at the center of the complaint, also did not respond. A spokeswoman for Speaker of the House Dade Phelan did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Slaton was accused last month of having had “sexual relations” with a Capitol staffer, the Texas Tribune previously reported. He also allegedly drank with the intern, who the Tribune reported is under the age of 21.

His attorney has said they are aware of “outrageous claims” circulating online.

Before going into executive session, which is closed to the public, the committee voted to give a sergeant-at-arms or an agent the power to issue a subpoena on behalf of the committee.

The committee already voted earlier this month to issue subpoenas to four individuals, all who were identified as “John Doe.” Another House lawmaker, Jolanda Jones, D-Houston, is also being investigated by the committee after her entire staff quit, she said in a statement April 5.