(AREA) — Former State Representatives Todd Courser of Lapeer County and Cindy Gamrat of Allegan County appeared in 54A District Court in Lansing Tuesday. Both have been charged with misconduct in office. The alleged crimes by the Republican pair mostly relate to an effort to cover up their affair, either by using publicly paid staff or lying to investigators. Courser is also facing a perjury charge related to testimony he gave to the Michigan House of Representatives under oath. Both have pleaded not guilty to the charges. An evidentiary hearing has been scheduled for May 11 with a preliminary hearing tentatively set for May 25. Defense attorneys on Tuesday said they needed more time to review 35 hours of audio and 2,000 pages of documents in the case. Gamrat was expelled by the House in September, while Courser resigned. They both tried to regain their seats in a special election, but failed.
