The News Courier reported Oct. 10 the Alabama Ethics Commission dismissed three ethics complaints filed against Limestone County Commissioner Ben Harrison.

The newspaper has since received transcripts from the five-member commission’s Oct. 7 meeting showing it cleared Harrison on all three complaints on a 3-0 vote, with Commissioners Stanton McDonald and John Plunk recusing themselves.

McDonald is a former Limestone County probate judge, and Plunk is an attorney in the county.

The commission dismissed the ethics complaints because it said there were insufficient facts to support them, based upon the evidence presented to the commission. It ordered the matters closed.

Harrison said in a statement issued the same day as the dismissals that the commission “looked into every aspect of this case in a thorough and careful investigation.” Harrison’s statement said the complaints contained “false and misleading accusations” and at least two of them were initiated by Greg Poss, who Harrison said was “heavily involved in my opponent’s campaign.”

LaDon Townsend, Harrison’s independent opponent in the Nov. 3 election for county commissioner, told the newspaper Poss “is not connected in any way with my campaign.”

As earlier reported, Poss confirmed to the News Courier he filed two of the three ethics complaints against Harrison. He also provided details about his allegations, as previously reported.

The News Courier requested the details from the Ethics Commission, but Executive Director Thomas Albritton replied by email that the complaints were dismissed “and that’s all I will say about the matter.”