LYNDON, Kan. – The USD 421 Board of Education has scheduled a special meeting for tonight, Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, after the district’s superintendent, Brad Marcotte, was arrested Friday afternoon at the high school by Lyndon Police Chief David Forkenbrock.
Osage County Jail logs indicated Marcotte, 53, of Scranton, Kan., was booked into jail Friday on misdemeanor charges of endangering a child and interference with a law enforcement officer, and released on a $2,500 cash or surety bond.
Forkenbrock confirmed Wednesday that Marcotte was arrested at the school. He said formal charges would be filed as municipal charges and handled though Lyndon’s city court, which meets once a month on the third Wednesday of each month. Forkenbrock said charges had not yet been filed with the court because the investigation was ongoing and he was still gathering evidence.
The amount of Marcotte’s bond was set by the city’s bond schedule, he said.
Forkenbrock said no evidence in the case would be released publicly, and he declined to release the standard offense report regarding the arrest, saying the report was not yet completed. Osage County News filed a records request for the standard offense report with the police chief.
Forkenbrock indicated the case is being reviewed by city attorney Pat Walsh, and he said a special prosecutor might be needed in the case due to conflicts of interest with the parties involved. He said an arraignment date has not been set.
Lyndon’s municipal judge is Osage County Magistrate Judge Lori Breshears. Osage County News has petitioned the city court for access to the arrest affidavit filed in the case.
The school board held two special meetings, one Friday and one Sunday, but did not notify the public in advance of holding those meetings. At the Oct. 18, 2024, special meeting, the board took action to place Marcotte on administrative leave without pay and also prohibited him from the district’s property indefinitely. At the time of this report, Osage County News has been unable to confirm if actions were taken at the Sunday meeting.
The board called for another special meeting for 6 p.m. tonight, Thursday, Oct. 24, to be held at the Lyndon Community Center.
The USD 421 Board of Education has previously been admonished and required to undergo Kansas Open Meetings Act training for failure to notify citizens who had requested to be notified of all board meetings.
Marcotte was hired as USD 421 superintendent in April 2019. See related story: USD 421 hires Marcotte as new superintendent.
See the minutes to the USD 421 Board of Education special meeting held Oct. 18, 2024.
