Photo: Tippecanoe County Sheriff's Office
A Republican candidate running for a seat in the Indiana House of Representatives was arrested on a preliminary charge of invasion of privacy on Monday (November 4), just one day before the election.
Authorities said that 57-year-old Jim Schenke, who is running for a seat in the state's 26th House District, commented on the Facebook post of a person who had a protective order against Schenke.
Tippecanoe County Chief Deputy Terry Ruley said that officers received a call from the victim on Sunday night, claiming that Schenke commented on their Facebook post in violation of the protective order.
After looking into the complaint, Ruley said it was determined there was probable cause to arrest Schenke, and he was taken into custody just after 6 a.m. on Tuesday morning.
"Part of the order is to not have any direct or indirect contact, and that does include social media," Tippecanoe County Sheriff Robert Goldsmith, according to The Purdue Exponent. "The (victim) ... made a post on Facebook, and Mr. Schenke commented on it, so he was arrested for invasion of privacy."
The Lafayette Journal & Courier reports that there are two protection orders filed against Schenke. One was granted to a local attorney and their staff, while the other was given to a man who lives in Schenke's West Lafayette neighborhood.
It is unclear who filed the complaint against Schenke.
After he was released on bond, Schenke pushed back against the allegations on Facebook.
"For anyone who cares about honesty, I have been accused of violating a protective order," Schenke said. "In truth, I have a protective order against the sociopath that has been stalking and menacing me for months."
According to The Daily Mail, Schenke then went on to attack the individual who made the claim, calling them "a drunk angry pagan transgender activist who became insanely convinced that I wanted to kill his child who imagines himself some sort of caped Avenger with a license to stalk and menace those he hates."
