Rep. Huizenga wins appeal of $5,000 fine for going around metal detector

U.S. Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Holland Township, has had a $5,000 fine against him for breaking House rules reversed by the Ethics Committee.

"We appreciate the committee resolving this and clearing up any misunderstanding," Huizenga's spokesman, Brian Patrick, said Monday.

In August, the committee announced the fine by the U.S. House sergeant-at-arms  after Huizenga went around a metal detector leading onto the chamber floor. 

At the time, Huizenga said he planned to appeal. He said he had gone through the detector just moments before, when his son, who works for another member of Congress, called to him from the cloakroom to talk.

More:Rep. Bill Huizenga, accused of walking around House metal detector, fined $5,000

After they spoke, Huizenga went back onto the floor, this time without going through the detector. 

Huizenga has taken issue with the metal detectors in the past, noting that he doesn't have to go through one even when visiting the White House. But Patrick has said that he nonetheless follows the rules and did not deserve to face such an exorbitant fine.

The Ethics Committee apparently agreed, with a majority voting to uphold the appeal.

Contact Todd Spangler attspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler. Read more onMichigan politics and sign up for ourelections newsletter.