Almost six months after he was accused of slapping a woman in his hotel room, former House District 38 Representative Zach Fansler is pleading guilty, though not to assault.
In a conversation with KYUK this afternoon, State Ethics Attorney Maria Bahr said that Fansler has agreed to plead guilty to one count of harassment in the second degree, a misdemeanor charge.
“Under that particular provision he’ll be pleading to the charge of subjecting another person to offensive physical contact,” Bahr said.
Bahr added that this particular charge applies to “offenses against public order,” whereas an assault charge applies to an offense against a person.
A rising star in Alaska’s Democratic party, Zach Fansler resigned his seat in the state house after a woman accused him of drunkenly hitting her and rupturing her eardrum. Alaska’s Office of Special Prosecutions has been reviewing the incident for several months. Maria Bahr says that Fansler doesn’t have a court date yet, but that his change of plea will take place in Juneau.
