Felon files for Kansas congressional seat
TOPEKA (KSNT) – A man with a violent criminal past wants to represent Kansas in Congress, throwing his name into the mix just hours before Monday's filing deadline.
"The majority of Kansas is probably going to vote for a felon for president, so I figured why not take my shot and you can vote for two if you want," said Michael Ogle, the Topeka man vying to replace Rep. Jake LaTurner in Kansas' second district, which represents portions of eastern Kansas.
In 2020, Ogle pleaded guilty to two felony charges following a Christmas standoff in 2019. He pleaded guilty to aggravated domestic battery for choking a family member in a rude manner and interference with law enforcement, along with misdemeanor domestic battery.
When asked about the charges on Monday, Ogle said he "drank too much" that day, got into an argument with his ex-wife and touched a family member's face. He said he's hoping for an expungement before the general election.
"I came out with my hands up and I asked them what they were doing there. I said it was Christmas, I'm going to go back in and celebrate Christmas with my family," he said. "I went to turn to go back inside and [the police] shot me with rubber bullets [and] they put a dog on me."
"From there, I was taken to the hospital and was sent to jail. I was very disoriented. I didn't know what would happen. I drank quite a bit post-coming back from deployment... It was kind of hard to find me coming back, so I drank a lot," Ogle continued.
In 2019, Topeka Police Department officers said they were able to make contact with the female victim who indicated she was a victim of domestic violence and that the suspect was inside armed with a handgun and making threats.
Ogle said he also pleaded guilty, admitting to choking his ex-wife at the time. He said served one year of probation and completed a psychological welfare and recovery program through Veterans' Affairs.
"The sentence was two years of probation. They let me off early in one year because I had met every qualification and requirement that they had asked me to meet," Ogle said.
Ogle will be facing off with four other Republican candidates in the Aug. 6 primary, according to the Kansas Secretary of State's Office.
- Jeff Kahrs (Topeka)
- Derek Schmidt (Independence)
- Shawn Tiffany (Delavan)
- Chad Young (Lawrence)
The United States constitution says members of congress must be 25 years old, a U.S. citizen for seven years and live in the state where he or she is elected, at the time of the election. It says no other stipulations can be put on membership.
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