Role American Politician Name Rex Barnett | Nationality American | |
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Alma mater Trenton Junior CollegeCentral Missouri State University Education North Central Missouri College, University of Central Missouri | ||
Rex Barnett (born October 22, 1938) is an American politician and former member of the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
A Republican, he represented District 4 (Atchison, Nodaway and Worth Counties) in the Missouri House of Representatives for four terms (from 1994 to 2002). During this time, he sat on committees for criminal law, public safety and law enforcement, and appropriations for corrections and public safety.
Controversy with Matthew Barnett
In 2012, Barnett's grandson, Matthew Barnett, was arrested for the rape of the then fourteen-year-old Daisy Coleman and for having left her unconscious on her family's front porch in severe conditions in Maryville, Missouri, and confessed; however, prosecutors declined to pursue charges, and allegations were subsequently made that Barnett had interfered with the case.
Barnett subsequently denied any involvement in the case, stating that he "knew that any contact whatsoever by [Barnett] with the sheriff’s department or prosecuting attorney — or any witness, as far as that goes — would have been bad for [Barnett] and bad for the case."