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A representative from the state of Minnesota dropped his re-election bid after learning that Minnesota Public Radio News was working with his daughter on a story about his accusations that he had inappropriately touched her for years.
In a statement released Friday, state representative Jim Knoblach (R) said he learned last week that his 23-year-old daughter, Laura Knoblach, had accused the MPR of ending her campaign for the House of Commons. representatives of Minnesota. .
She first publicly accused her father of behaving inappropriately towards her in a Facebook publication published in December 2016, which has since been deleted. In this article, obtained by MPR News, she said she was "molested as a child and young adult" by her father.
Laura Knoblach, a student at the University of Colorado at Boulder, also accused family members of threatening her and coercing her "to keep quiet about it for almost 15 years."
MPR News on Friday released a damning report that highlights his allegations of abuse and his family's attempts to shut up.
On Friday, Jim Knoblach said the allegations were false and described his daughter as being separated from the family. He noted that the charges had been reviewed and dismissed by Sherburne County.
"In recent years, I and my family have tried to reconcile with her several times, but she refused," he said.
Laura Knoblach told MPR News that her father's inappropriate behavior began at age 9. In one case, she says, he went into her room, went into bed with her, licked her neck and bit her ear.
According to MPR News, she said that this kind of behavior happened often, even while watching movies together on the couch. In more than 30 cases, she said, he approached her from behind, then leaned her body against hers against a refrigerator or dishwasher.
This type of abuse continued until the age of 21, she told the station.
According to MPR reporter Nina Moini, she began by reviewing Laura Knoblach's claims after the Facebook post 2016. Moini interviewed Knoblach for four hours in July, reviewed an investigation by the St. Cloud Police Department on these charges. and spoke with his friends, family members and "trusted adults" whom Knoblach had to deal with.
Jim Knoblach served on the State House from 1995 to 2007. He was re-elected to the House in 2014 and is currently Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee.
"I could fight another six weeks to defend my reputation during the re-election race. But that would involve subjecting my wife, my son, and my elderly parents, as well as my daughter, to six weeks of extreme stress and surveillance, "he wrote in a statement released on Friday.
Need help for? Visit RAINN National online hotline on sexual assault or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center Website.
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