Bouchard gets his second ethics complaint in under a year after cursing woman

Jennifer James, an advanced practice registered nurse from Sweetwater County.

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CHEYENNE — Cheyenne Republican Sen. Anthony Bouchard is subject to his second ethics complaint in less than a year after calling a member of the public a “f****ing idiot.”

His comment centered around Senate File 144, a bill he sponsored that would have revoked the licenses of providers who offer gender-affirming medical treatment to minors in Wyoming. The bill died Monday after failing to meet a procedural deadline. 

Jennifer James, an advanced practice registered nurse from Sweetwater County, testified against the bill in the House Appropriations Committee last week, referring to medical standards of care from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health which state that genital surgeries shouldn’t be carried out until patients reach the legal age of majority and have lived continuously for at least 12 months in the gender role that matches their identity. 

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“Rest assured, doctors and nurses have a code of ethics. We follow the standard of care,” James said.  

Over the weekend, Bouchard reached James over text and slammed her for her comments. 

Editor’s note: Text image to the right contains an expletive.

“You are a f***ing idiot. Stating that there are rules against surgery on minors, when they are actually doing surgery on minors,” Bouchard said in his text. 

He sent James a photo of Luka Hein, a woman who transitioned back to the gender assigned to her at birth after having a double mastectomy when she was 16. Hein has testified in support of Bouchard’s bill. 

“Here’s one of the individuals that they supposedly aren’t performing surgery on. The Double Mastectomy at 16 years old — that didn’t happen??? Sorry, truth matter,” Bouchard wrote.  

Bouchard told the Star-Tribune that he hadn’t talked with James about his concerns before sending the message and hasn’t communicated with her since. 

In response to Bouchard’s message, James filed a formal complaint on Sunday to the Management Council Committee members requesting an investigation into possible ethics violations. 

“I have always had respect for Senator Bouchard and considered him an intelligent Legislator, especially in the area of gun laws,” James said in a statement. (James is the spouse of former lawmaker Tom James, who collaborated with Bouchard on multiple gun bills during his time in the Legislature.)

“However, an elected official cannot simply belittle and demean individuals who disagree with his bill,” James continued. “I did nothing to provoke this text from him and don’t appreciate being cursed at and called names.”

The complaint is the second Bouchard has been the subject of in less than a year. 

Last session, Wyoming Hospital Association President Eric Boley filed a complaint against Bouchard, saying that the senator had yelled at him, called him a liar and has been “combative and disrespectful” to witnesses before the Legislature’s health committee, the Star-Tribune previously reported. Bouchard was subsequently booted from his committee assignments. (Bouchard sits on the Senate Labor and Health Committee this year.) 

Bouchard shrugged off the complaint, raising the possibility of being kicked out of the Senate altogether. 

“There are some that would use this bogus complaint to kick me out of the Senate,” Bouchard said in a text to the Star-Tribune, adding that “they should be careful what they wish for” and noting that the Star-Tribune had published a profile about him being an effective lobbyist. 

Bouchard acknowledged that it’s unlikely he would get kicked out of the Senate. That would require a two-thirds vote from the body. 

James said in an email to the Star-Tribune that she hopes her complaint will lead to an investigation. 

“I want Wyoming folk to feel safe to exercise their right to free speech, to be heard, for or against legislative topics, especially,” she wrote. 

Follow Maya Shimizu Harris on Twitter @M_ShimizuHarris

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