FRANKFORT, Ky (AP) — A state House committee has advanced a proposal that would authorize Kentucky’s attorney general to file protest-related charges even if local prosecutors declined to do so. The advancement of the bill Wednesday follows a series of moves by GOP lawmakers to expand some of Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s authority in the state. Opponents say the bill violates free-speech rights and is being targeted against a Democratic state representative who was arrested while protesting last year. A Republican who sponsored the legislation insisted that the bill had “nothing to do” with Rep. Attica Scott, who was arrested in September. The charges against Scott were dismissed in November.
