Florence police chief charged with sex offenses
Merlin Stout charged with two counts of sexual battery
Staff reporter
"The badge is a symbol of public trust," said Lee Becker, Marion County Sheriff. "It's disturbing in law enforcement when this type of incident occurs."
These comments were made by Becker following the arrest Friday of Merlin D. Stout, 60, Florence Chief of Police.
According to Becker, following a one-month investigation, Stout was arrested Friday and charged with two counts of sexual battery.
Becker stated a sheriff's officer was flagged down by a distressed woman claiming inappropriate behavior by the police chief. She believed he was acting in the capacity of his position.
The charges stem from a report of Stout inappropriately touching a woman in her 20s at a local restaurant.
Stout was arrested without incident, said Becker. A $1,500 signature bond was posted and Stout was released Friday afternoon.
"The goals of the sheriff's department were not to embarrass the city or the Florence community in any way," said Becker.
Other leads are being investigated by the sheriff's office following the arrest. Not all of the incidents were criminal in nature, however, they did follow similar lines as other reports.
"We're still in the process of following up the leads," said Becker. "It will be up to the county attorney's office to decide whether to file charges."
Reports of Stout being seen in uniform and driving the city's patrol car Friday afternoon in Florence following his arrest, prompted the Florence mayor to suspend Stout, pending action of the city council.
"I'm proud of the victim for coming forward," said Becker. "Her coming forward will save other victims. We hope to move through this swiftly so we can get on to other functions."
Becker acknowledged sheriff's deputies Randy Brazil and Jeff Soyez handled the investigation and action.
Kansas statute defines sexual battery as "
Sexual battery is a class A person misdemeanor.
On Oct. 6, 2003, the Florence City Council hired Stout as chief of police.
Stout did not have current law enforcement certification and had taken the exam in November 2003.
Indications from the city council meeting Monday were Stout did not pass the exam and was wanting to attend the academy, retake the exam, and become certified.
Stout was from Rolla and was elected Morton County Sheriff, serving from 1973 through December 1988.
Stout was a key figure in a 1999 Kansas Supreme Court case involving a disputed commission election in Morton County in 1998.
After Stout won the commissioner election by 11 votes, a voter filed suit, claiming the election was invalid because illegal ballots were accepted and legal ballots rejected, according to the Supreme Court opinion in the case.
The court ruled there were irregularities in the vote caused by errors in the distribution of ballots, but there was insufficient evidence that the irregularities would have changed the outcome.
Stout ran unsuccessfully for re-election last year as Morton County commissioner.
Morton County is located in southwest Kansas with a total county population of 3,500 residents.
Stout's preliminary hearing is set for 10:30 a.m. March 3 in Marion County District Court.
Stout was not available for comment.
