Lawmaker accused of kicking boy pleads guilty to 3 charges

By JOHN HANNA
AP Political Writer

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas legislator accused of kicking a high school student in the testicles has pleaded guilty to three lesser misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct. A magistrate judge on Monday placed Republican state Rep. Mark Samsel on a year’s probation under a deal with the local prosecutor. Samsel agreed not to use social media for personal purposes or have any contact with two high school students whose complaints led to the charges. Samsel his actions represented an isolated reaction to extreme stress. He had faced three higher misdemeanor criminal charges of battery over interactions with the two students during an April 28 art class in his eastern Kansas hometown of Wellsville.