Ed Dowd

Updated at 8 p.m. with reactions from state officials including Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley, who called for the governor to resign — The woman with whom Gov. Eric Greitens had an affair in 2015 told a special Missouri House committee investigating his conduct that she felt coerced into a sexual act during one of their early meetings.

The woman, who had been Greitens’ hair stylist, told the committee that Greitens was “controlling” during the encounter on March 21, 2015, tying her to pull-up rings in his basement and tearing her shirt and pants without her consent. She also told the committee she felt compelled to perform oral sex in order to be able to get to work on time. 

The judge in Gov. Eric Greitens’ invasion of privacy trial is ordering attorneys, witnesses and parties to stop talking publicly about certain aspects of the case.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner sought and received an order from St. Louis Circuit Judge Burlison on Tuesday that prevents “counsel, the parties, and endorsed witnesses” from “making any public statements outside the courtroom regarding the identity of witnesses and their expected testimony, references to specific evidence to be offered at trial, and any personal belief in the defendant’s guilt or innocence.”