Ohio Rep. Wes Retherford once ordered to remove office liquor cabinet

State Rep. Wes Retherford, R-Hamilton, addresses his Ohio House of Representatives colleagues. In 2015, Ohio House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger ordered Retherford to remove a liquor cabinet he was keeping in his office. CONTRIBUTED

State Rep. Wes Retherford, R-Hamilton, addresses his Ohio House of Representatives colleagues. In 2015, Ohio House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger ordered Retherford to remove a liquor cabinet he was keeping in his office. CONTRIBUTED

Ohio Rep. Wes Retherford had come under fire for issues concerning alcohol before his arrest Sunday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and improper handling of firearms.

MORE: Retherford allegedly passed out in McDonald’s drive-thru

In 2015, Ohio House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger ordered Retherford, R-Hamilton, to remove a liquor cabinet he was keeping in his office.

Retherford, 32, told the Journal-News that he bought the cabinet from a former legislator and was only storing it in his office until he had a chance to take it to his home.

MORE: Statehouse removes Butler County lawmaker's liquor cabinet

The incident became fodder for Retherford’s opponent during the March 2016 primary election.

Former state lawmaker Courtney Combs, who was challenging Retherford in the Republican primary, pounced on the incident, accusing Retherford of turning his district office into a frat house and coining the hashtag #StatehouseNotFratHouse in a Twitter battle with Retherford.

Ohio House rules prohibit the possession or consumption of alcohol in the Statehouse, a spokesman for Rosenberger told the Journal-News in 2016.

Retherford said he had kept two bottles of unopened wine from Hanover Winery in the liquor cabinet in an attempt to have it sold at the Statehouse Museum Shop. He also said he had kept an unopened bottle of bourbon that was a Christmas gift given to him and bottles of Hamilton water in the liquor cabinet.