Idaho’s former conservative GOP chairman has been busted on lewd charges, and booked into jail on a felony first-degree stalking charge.
According to the criminal complaint, on or between May 16 and May 30, Parker “did knowingly and maliciously engage” in conduct that “seriously alarmed, annoyed or harassed (his wife) Kelly Parker.”
The complaint states that Parker’s conduct included “repeatedly hiding in bushes, masturbating, disguising himself with a wig” at or near her apartment complex.
On May 30, police said they received a call about a man acting strangely near homes in the 300 block of N. Whitewater Park Blvd.
Officers made contact with that man and identified him as Parker.
Further investigation revealed that there is an active protection order between Parker and a woman living nearby — his wife — and Parker was then arrested.
Parker and his wife are in divorce proceedings and a temporary restraining order is in place until the divorce is adjudicated.
Jonathan Parker
Parker, 39, was arraigned Friday afternoon in Ada County district court.
During his video arraignment, the prosecutor told the judge that police responded to a report of a man looking into windows and fondling himself.
When police arrived, they learned that Parker’s estranged wife lived in the complex.
Parker told police that he was there to scare a different female, but police said they were not able to contact this person.
The prosecutor also noted that Parker’s estranged wife has previously reported him staring into her windows.
Former GOP Idaho attorney general David Leroy represented Parker during the arraignment.
Leroy told the judge that the incident was a “grand misunderstanding” and that Parker had been invited to a costume party at the apartment complex.
Parker resigned earlier this year claiming he wanted to spend more time with his family.
“Last year, Kelly and I were blessed that Presley came into our lives as our beloved daughter,” Parker wrote in his Feb. 18 resignation letter to the party.
“Serving as your chairman, while maintaining a full-time job and being a fully engaged father, has been harder than I imagined, so much so that I have reluctantly decided that I should no longer continue to serve as chairman of the Idaho Republican Party so that I can focus on the priorities I place above all others,” Parker stated at the time.
About one month later, on March 26, Parker’s wife filed for divorce in Ada County, according to court records.
The divorce proceedings are pending and sealed.
Parker was elected GOP chairman in July 2017 and re-elected in June 2018.
He started his own government affairs consulting and lobbying business, Parker Public Affairs, in 2017.