John Kasich campaign staffer fired after domestic violence arrest
COLUMBUS — A John Kasich campaign staffer, who was arrested in November for allegedly choking and punching a woman, was fired Saturday after The Enquirer called the Ohio governor's presidential campaign seeking comment.
Blake Waggoner, Kasich for America's 30-year-old deputy digital director, went to work for the campaign in November, according to his LinkedIn profile. That same month, on Nov. 12, officers from the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., arrested Waggoner after receiving a report of a woman "screaming repeatedly 'get off me,' " according to the police record. The woman Waggoner was with, who is not identified in the report, told police he choked her and punched her in the back.
Waggoner was charged with simple assault domestic violence, a misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. He pleaded not guilty the next day, according to court records.
In December, Waggoner enrolled in diversion, a program that allows defendants, often first-time offenders, to have their charges dismissed if they complete requirements such as community service.
The Kasich campaign found out about Waggoner's arrest on Saturday afternoon, when an Enquirer reporter called seeking comment. Waggoner was fired within a couple hours.
"Obviously, this kind of behavior is abhorrent and completely unacceptable," campaign manager Beth Hansen said in a statement provided to The Enquirer. "We were unaware of the incident concerning Blake, and he is no longer an employee of the campaign."
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Before enrolling in diversion, Waggoner apparently changed his plea to "guilty." Court records do not specifically state this, but records indicate he filed paperwork for diversion that takes place after a defendant enters a guilty plea, according to the District of Columbia Pretrial Services Agency.
Under a diversion agreement, if the defendant fails to complete requirements such as community service, he or she will be sentenced for the crime. If Waggoner is sentenced, it is scheduled to happen Sept. 9.
Waggoner lives in Washington, according to his public LinkedIn and Facebook profiles as of Saturday afternoon. He graduated in 2008 from Hastings College in his native Nebraska and has held a variety of political and public affairs jobs since then. He worked for the campaign of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and spent a couple years working for Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad. For Kasich's campaign, he directed rapid response.
Saturday evening, after The Enquirer broke this story on Cincinnati.com, Waggoner apparently deactivated his LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter accounts.
