Legislator claims Mental Illness cased his ethical lapses

A 23-year-old New Hampshire state representative facing possible expulsion from the Legislature says he will sue to stop ethics proceedings against him. Bedford Rep. John Kerns failed to show up at a hearing Monday on three ethics charges against him: passing a bad check with “State of New Hampshire” written on it; using his title to get a parking spot reserved for school officials; and threatening them when told to stop parking there. He also faces four criminal charges of passing bad checks.

Kerns claims he has a medical condition that caused his behavior.

Kerns said private e-mails he sent to the chairman of the committee, state Rep. Shawn Jasper, R-Hudson, were improperly disclosed. The ethics committee’s own rules say its proceedings must be suspended if certain violations of confidentiality have occurred, he said.

Jasper recommended that Kerns be expelled from the Legislature. If he is, it would be the first expulsion of a state lawmaker since 1913. The committee meets again next week to resume its debate.

“He claims to have a mental illness. Before that it was a physical illness,” Jasper said. “He won’t tell anyone what it is. He led people to believe at one point he was diabetic.”