Updated at 5:35 p.m. March 23 with comments from one of Eric Greitens' attorneys
A former FBI agent hired by the St. Louis circuit attorney to investigate criminal allegations against then-Gov. Eric Greitens has to misdemeanor evidence tampering in connection with his conduct during the case.
William Tisaby, 69, admitted Wednesday that he failed to turn over certain documents to the governor鈥檚 defense attorneys, including notes he took during an interview with the woman at the center of the case. He had faced seven felony counts, including allegations that he lied during a March 2018 deposition about the investigation.
鈥淭here was no malice in this man鈥檚 heart,鈥� Tisaby鈥檚 attorney, Jermaine Wooten, said in an interview after the plea hearing. 鈥淚t was more an issue of negligence in this matter. He just went into that deposition really not prepared.鈥�
Jury selection was to begin Thursday, with a pool of 48 residents to face questioning from Wooten and Robert Russell, a special prosecutor handling the case. Wooten said up until the last minute, his client was set to go to trial.
鈥淲e met late Monday with Mr. Tisaby, along with his wife, and they just felt because of his health decline, along with her health situation, they thought it was just in their best interest to enter a plea of guilty,鈥� Wooten said.
Wooten added he believed that had his client gone to trial, prosecutors would have had difficulty proving that any of the things they say Tisaby lied about affected the underlying case against Greitens.
Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner , after news reports that Greitens had tied up a woman with whom he was having an affair and taken a semi-nude photo of her without her consent. Gardner claimed she needed outside help because the St. Louis police department had refused to investigate, an allegation the department has denied.
Tisaby鈥檚 conduct during his investigation, especially that deposition, was a source of numerous defense motions, including one to . The judge that far, but did allow Greitens鈥� attorneys to re-interview Tisaby and other key witnesses.
In a hearing on the matter back in 2018, Robert Dierker, then Gardner鈥檚 chief trial assistant, admitted that prosecutors had been 鈥渟addled with an egregious mistake of relying鈥� on Tisaby.
Gardner is facing a for her behavior during the Greitens case, including questions about whether she allowed Tisaby to lie. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
Scott Rosenblum, an attorney for Greitens, said he wished the case had gone to trial so those involved were forced to testify.
Tisaby did not speak after the hearing. In court, he answered Judge Bryan Hettenbach鈥檚 questions about whether he understood the plea confidently, usually replying, 鈥淵es sir, your honor.鈥�
His voice broke, however, when he told Hettenbach that he had just been trying to help the circuit attorney 鈥渂ring justice鈥� to the woman.
Tisaby will spend a year on probation but is not required to report to an officer. And Hettenbach made it clear that he would likely release Tisaby from probation early.
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