Former Oklahoma public schools superintendent Ryan Walters faces new ethics probe

Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters’ scandal-plagued tenure officially ended last month when he resigned to work with right-wing activist group Teacher Freedom Alliance. But his resignation hasn’t brought an end to the controversies.

On Tuesday, the state Ethics Commission announced the latest in a string of ethics probes it has launched into Walters this year. The latest stems from a local Democratic lawmaker’s complaint that alleged Walters used office resources to repeatedly promote the organization he ultimately left his post to join.

Andrea Hancock, a news editor at Oklahoma-based Nondoc Media, posted a statement from the commission saying it is “actively investigating potential violations of Rule 4, Conflict of Interest, as related to former State Superintendent Ryan Walters’ departure.” The commission “is gathering materials and information within its authority to determine the relevant facts and make an appropriate and responsible determination regarding these allegations.”

Walters paid more than $23,000 this year to settle previous cases with the commission that included violations of campaign finance rules and improperly using state social media for partisan activities.

Walters didn’t immediately respond to MSNBC’s request for comment sent through the Teacher Freedom Alliance.

That the controversial conservative is facing another ethics probe shortly after leaving office seems to bolster the assessment of Republican Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond that the former superintendent’s tenure was an “embarrassment” and “a stream of never-ending scandal and political drama.”