Lawmaker fined $4,000

? A legislator facing other legal problems was fined $4,000 Thursday by the State Ethics Commission for campaign finance violations.

Rep. Patricia Kilpatrick, R-Overland Park, told the commission that the mistakes she made on her last report for her 2004 campaign were the result of personal problems. She described herself as a victim of domestic violence.

“This was a very trying time,” Kilpatrick said. “I operated in a fog for a long time.”

The report in question was filed in January 2005, covering the last week before the November 2004 general election through the end of the year. Among other things, the report showed no cash contributions when a review by the commission staff discovered Kilpatrick had collected nearly $5,100 in contributions.

Kilpatrick said because of her extenuating circumstances, the fine should be minimal. Commissioners voted 7-1 to impose a $4,000 fine, rather than the maximum fine of $45,000.

While Kilpatrick declined to criticize the commission, she did say she thought the fine was disproportionately large compared with other cases. She did not know whether she would appeal the decision.

Kilpatrick, who said she wasn’t seeking a second term because she had a job promoting tougher penalties for sex offenders, is no longer involved with the Florida-based group.

Court records also show a shoplifting case against Kilpatrick filed in November, as well as various bad check complaints.

On May 30, she signed a one-year diversion agreement with Overland Park Municipal Court over her arrest for shoplifting $213.85 in merchandise from a Super Target store, court records show.

Records also show numerous complaints against her in the last several years for writing bad checks and owing back rent. Last month the Johnson County District Court ordered the state to garnishee her legislative paycheck after The Source, a campaign consulting firm, won a $5,000 judgment against her.