- Kansas State Sen. Gene Suellentrop faces several charges, including DUI and police evasion.
- He was arrested in early March after 911 calls reported that he was driving in the wrong direction on the highway.
- The new charges were announced Friday by Shawnee County prosecutor Mike Kagay.
- See more stories on the Insider business page.
Kansas state senator Gene Suellentrop, a Republican and majority leader in the state Senate, faces a list of charges, including DUI, after his arrest in Topeka in early March.
Five charges were brought against Sullentrop on Friday, including a charge of police evasion, a charge of DUI and a charge of misdemeanor for reckless driving. According to the Associated Press, Sullentrop surrendered to the authorities on Friday afternoon and faces $ 5,000 bail.
Mike Kagay, a Republican and district attorney for Shawnee County, announced the charges on Friday. Kagay in a press release said that Sullentrop was the sole occupant of the SUV at the time of his arrest on March 16. The police used “tactical vehicle intervention” to stop Sullentrop, he said.
Neither Suellentrop nor his office immediately returned Insider’s request for comment.
The most serious charge – the police evasion charge – could lead to a prison sentence of five to seven months for the primitive defendant, although he is more likely to go on probation, according to The Associated Press.
Audio released by Shawnee County Dispatch and published by the local news agency KSNT showed several people called 911 to report that they saw a white SUV driving west on the east lanes of I-470 and finally driving on I-70 around 12:45. March 16, according to local media.
Suellentrop, one of the top Republican lawmakers in the state, was driving for at least 11 minutes, according to the AP report.
The Kansas Highway Patrol Capitol Police division arrested Suellentrop, 68, in downtown Topeka after “a short chase” in which officers discussed using switches in his SUV to slow the vehicle, according to audio from the police published by KSNT.
The KHP said on Thursday that it had no plans to release records about Sullentrop’s arrest because such reports were not required for DUI incidents, according to a previous report by the Associated Press.
According to the initial arrest report, Sulletntrop was accused of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, running away or trying to escape from a policeman, speeding and improperly crossing a divided highway, but a judge hours after his arrest released Sullentrop in prison and said the police did not provide sufficient evidence to substantiate the charges.
Many of Sullentrop’s duties as a Senate majority leader were temporarily taken over by Assistant Majority Leader Larry Alley, also a Republican, according to the report.