Tennessee Lawmakers Can Expel Durham During Special Session After All, Says House Speaker

Tennessee lawmakers will consider expelling state Representative Jeremy Durham, after all, when they meet next week for a special session.

House Speaker Beth Harwell said Wednesday that a petition can be brought up even though it’s not part of the official scope of the special session.

“I welcome the opportunity to vote for it,” she added.

The purpose of the special session is to fix the state’s new DUI law. A measure passed last spring raised the penalties for drivers between the ages of 18 and 21, but it also increased the blood alcohol content limit for those drivers to .08.

Federal law requires it to be set at .02 for drivers under 21. Authorities have threatened to withhold $60 million in highway funds unless it’s changed by Oct. 1.

Durham, meanwhile, has been accused of sexually harassing nearly two dozen women and of misusing campaign funds.

He’ll leave office after the November elections, but unless he’s expelled before then, he remains in line to receive a state pension of more than $300 a month.