Indiana House Republican candidate arrested on election eve

A Republican candidate According to the Lafayette Journal & Courier, the Indiana House of Representatives was arrested on the eve of his election for allegedly violating a protective order.

Jim Schenke, the GOP candidate for the 26th House District, was arrested Monday morning and booked into the Tippecanoe County Jail after a complaint Sunday around 8:35 p.m. that he allegedly contacted the victim, who has a protective order against him. the outlet reports, citing Tippecanoe County Chief Deputy Terry Ruley.

He was booked into jail around 6:30 a.m., the outlet reported. He is no longer listed on the prison’s inmate list.

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Schenke has two orders of protection against him from a local attorney and their staff. Schenke also filed a protective order against a man living in his West Lafayette neighborhood, the Lafayette Journal & Courier reported, citing the state registry.

The Exponent reports that Schenke allegedly contacted someone with a warrant against him via a Facebook postwhich led to his arrest.

Ruley said officers who investigated the complaint determined there was probable cause to make an arrest on a charge of violating one of the protective orders.

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“Part of the order is to have no direct or indirect contact and that includes social media.” Tippecanoe County Sheriff Robert Goldsmith said, according to The Exponent. “The (victim)… posted on Facebook and Mr. Schenke commented on it, so he was arrested for invasion of privacy.”

Schenke took to Facebook to refute the allegations.

“For anyone who cares about fairness, I have been charged with violating a protective order,” Schenke said. “Honestly, I have a protective order against the sociopath who has been stalking and threatening me for months.”

On Sunday around 9:40 p.m., Schenke also posted a video to Facebook about blue light emergency phone booths around Purdue University campuses, one of which is in the background.

Describing himself as a former journalist and publicist, he says the prevalence of the phone booths underlines what women are sensitive to sexual assault and that such attacks are covered up. He promised to address the problem.

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Schenke faces incumbent Chris Campbell, a Democrat, for Indiana’s Seat of the 26th House District.

Last month, Schenke allegedly crashed his campaign camper into a light pole even though the vehicle was not insured. He was charged with operating a motor vehicle without insurance, but the charges were dropped, according to the exponent.

The Tippecanoe County Board of Elections has also accused him of not putting enough political disclaimers in campaign ads, while the Republican politician has filed two recent civil charges against the government, both related to his campaign, the outlet reported.