Indiana House candidate arrested for restraining order violation for Facebook post

Republican Jim Schenke was in Tippecanoe County Jail Monday on accusations that he violated a neighbor's recent restraining order that prohibited any contact – including social media posts

Jim Schenke. (Photo provided)

Jim Schenke, a Republican candidate for Indiana House District 26 seat, was arrested early Monday morning, a day before Election Day polls opened, on suspicion of violating a restraining order when he commented on several posts on Facebook, the Tippecanoe County sheriff said.

Schenke, 57, of West Lafayette, did not post threatening message on the social media account of one of his neighbors who had a restraining order against him, Tippecanoe County Sheriff Bob Goldsmith said Monday.

But the sheriff said the protective order included contact on social media. Goldsmith said the neighbor filed a complaint Sunday evening about times in recent days that Schenke had made comments about the neighbor’s Facebook posts.

Here were two examples still live on Facebook Monday:

The restraining order against Schenke was finalized Sept. 18, according to court records.

Schenke was expected to be held in the Tippecanoe County Jail for 12 hours, after his arrest at 5:16 a.m. Monday. His cash bond was set at $250.

Jim Schenke was arrested Monday morning. (Photo: Tippecanoe County Jail)

Schenke is on ballots in the West Lafayette-based Indiana House District 26 against Democratic incumbent Chris Campbell, who is running for her fourth two-year term.

In September, West Lafayette police cited Schenke for driving without active insurance when he backed his campaign RV into a lamp post in the West Lafayette Village, knocking it over and leaving the scene before reporting it to the city or police. Schenke also was ticketed for leaving the scene of a property damage crash for the Sept. 21 incident.

According to West Lafayette investigators, Schenke renewed an insurance policy within an hour after the accident, but before he left a phone message with the West Lafayette Street Department about bumping and knocking over the pole with the 32-foot RV. The West Lafayette Republican was ticketed for operating without financial responsibility.

At the time, Schenke used Facebook to offer his explanation: “While trying to navigate a tight space, I accidentally backed into a small lamp post. I did not initially realize the full extent of the damage. In the moment, I attempted to rectify the situation by trying to stand the post back up. When this could not be done securely, I carefully laid the lamppost in a position that would not be an impediment to pedestrians. … Public safety and accountability are core values of my campaign. Which is why I called both the city street department and police department to report the incident.”

As of last week, the county prosecutor was still reviewing the two citations and deciding whether to file charges.

Schenke’s RV also had been in the news earlier this this election cycle. When Tippecanoe County election officials questioned whether disclaimers included with campaign signage on the vehicle adequately meets state election law, Schenke went to court to unsuccessfully stop Election Board actions and delivered a cease and desist to get them to back down.

Schenke claimed that because “I'm not a status quo guy” that “self-proclaimed king makers” in the local Republican Party have worked to sideline him over his claims about election integrity lapses that came in the 2020 election. Schenke called the Election Board hearings harassment and retribution for his views and his accusations. The Election Board voted that he was in violation but did not fine or sanction him, instead sharing the situation with state election officials for review.

Election Day is Tuesday, with polls open 6 a.m-6 p.m.

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