Democratic Lawmaker Caught on Camera Swiping Bibles, Flees When Reporter Calls Her Out
When Bibles started disappearing from the House-members-only lounge at the Arizona State Capitol, security officers hid a camera in the room in an attempt to identify the responsible party. It turned out to be Rep…
When Bibles started disappearing from the House-members-only lounge at the Arizona State Capitol, security officers hid a camera in the room in an attempt to identify the responsible party.
It turned out to be Rep. Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, a Democratic state lawmaker who is also an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church, USA — generally considered one of the more liberal denominations in the U.S. (as opposed to the similarly named but much more conservative Presbyterian Church in America, or PCA).
Journalist David Caltabiano of KPHO in Phoenix asked Hamilton about the Bibles, but she wasn’t talking.
“I don’t want to talk to you,” she said when Caltabiano approached her in the Capitol building.
“It’s just a simple question: Why would you hide the Bibles?” he asked.
“Who said anything about hiding Bibles?” she asked.
“You were caught on video,” he responded, at which point the lawmaker retreated back into a section of the building where journalists are not permitted.
She later texted the reporter, admitting to the thefts but claiming that her actions were “Just a little playful commentary on the separation of church and state.”