Kansas lawmaker agrees to counseling to avoid battery charge

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) – A 21-year-old Kansas legislator has agreed to undergo mental health counseling and a domestic violence assessment to avoid being prosecuted on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge.

The charge against freshman Democratic Rep. Aaron Coleman of Kansas City in Johnson County stemmed from a fight in October with his younger brother.

Coleman also agreed to submit to drug or alcohol testing if asked.

Coleman signed the diversion agreement with the Johnson County district attorney’s office last week, and it was filed in district court Monday. In a separate case over a November traffic stop in Douglas County, records say

Coleman pleaded no contest last month to a traffic charge.