Rep. Mark Olson apologizes on House floor

02/18/2008

The Big Lake Republican will not face an ethics complaint now that he has asked his colleagues' pardon for bringing disrepute to the body.


By MARK BRUNSWICK,
Star Tribune
Last update: February 18, 2008


A Minnesota House member convicted of a domestic assault charge last year asked his colleagues for forgiveness today on the House floor, averting a possible ethics complaint against him.

Rep. Mark Olson, a Republican from Big Lake, spoke briefly on the House floor, saying he accepts responsibility for his personal failure and asking colleagues to forgive him for bringing dishonor and disrepute to the institution.

Olson, who has been expelled from the House Republican caucus, was convicted by a Sherburne County jury last year for causing his wife fear of bodily harm when they collided and fell to the ground behind their garage. He was acquitted of intentionally harming or trying to harm her.

House Democrats and Republicans had been considering filing an ethics complaint against Olson, but House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, said Olson's remarks indicate Olson has accepted responsibility for his actions.

"Representative Olson's completion of a counseling program ordered by the court is a sign that he understands the serious nature of this case," Anderson Kelliher said in a statement. "It is my hope that he can now begin to repair the damage done to his relationship with his family and friends."