Just-elected Jackson County Legislative Chair Manny Abarca charged with harassment
A Jackson County legislator who was charged in three jurisdictions after a domestic incident last year is facing an additional set of charges in Kansas, according to court records.
Manuel Abarca IV was charged in Hutchinson, Kansas, municipal court with two counts of harassment by telecommunications device. The charges were both filed on December 31, 2025, court records show.
Abarca has been a Jackson County legislator since 2023 and was voted chair of the legislature earlier this month. His seat is up for re-election later this year.
Harassment by telecommunication device is considered a Class A misdemeanor in Kansas, which can carry a penalty of up to a year in jail or a fine of up to $2,500. It entails using a phone to make a call or send a text message “with intent to abuse, threaten or harass.”
The harassment charges are the latest in a series of highly publicized controversies in both Abarca’s public and private life. The lawmaker is still facing pending domestic battery charges in Kansas, along with related charges in Missouri, after an alleged domestic altercation with his ex-wife in late May.
Missing persons reports were briefly filed for both Abarca and the couple’s toddler son. Abarca’s ex-wife Alexis Garcia previously said on social media that the child’s location was unknown to her for about a week, during which she had filed an order of protection against Abarca.
Abarca has pleaded not guilty to the charges, while Garcia has alleged that Abarca threw her to the ground during an argument in Shawnee, Kansas.
Garcia filed for divorce last year and asked a Jackson County judge earlier this month to compel Abarca to pay child support for their son, according to court records. A Jackson County court had awarded Garcia full custody of the toddler in early June while the father and son were missing.
The lawmaker has also faced public backlash around his alleged conduct with female employees in the workplace. Through an attorney, three female legislative department heads sent Abarca a cease and desist letter last year; the lawmaker was also the subject of an independently conducted internal investigation alleging “inappropriate behavior” and threats made repeatedly toward women on county staff.
A recent lawsuit by former Jackson County Assessor Gail McCann Beatty also appears to reference allegedly disturbing conduct by Abarca. The lawsuit names a county employee as “M.A.,” believed to be Abarca, and alleges that he was specifically hostile toward female employees in the assessment department in the weeks before the Sept. 30 recall of former County Executive Frank White.
Abarca and White had clashed repeatedly in the public arena, sparring openly over disagreements around property taxes, professional sports stadiums and the use of county funds. Abarca told The Star that he was “not at liberty to discuss any personal matters involving proceedings of his divorce, nor would it be appropriate as it’s not directly business of the legislature.”
David Bell, an attorney for Abarca, declined to comment, as did Interim County Executive Phil LeVota. Newly elected legislature vice-chair Sean Smith said he had no knowledge of charges against Abarca.
Abarca will be arraigned on both harassment charges in Hutchinson County court on January 30 at 7:45 a.m.
This story was originally published January 22, 2026 at 1:30 PM.