Von Ehlinger brought back to Idaho

Former Lewiston state representative Aaron von Ehlinger is back in Idaho after his extradition from Georgia on felony charges of rape and forcible penetration with a foreign object, according to the Ada County Sheriff’s Office.

Spokesman Patrick Orr said that once security clearances between the court systems of the two states were worked out, deputies from the sheriff’s office flew to Clayton County south of Atlanta on Thursday. They picked up von Ehlinger, 39, from the county jail Friday morning and flew him back to Boise. Once there, he was arrested on a book-and-release warrant, meaning he was processed at the county jail, given a court date and released, Orr said.

The warrant stems from an incident in March, when von Ehlinger was serving his first term in the Idaho Legislature. Following a dinner date with a 19-year-old House intern, he took her back to his apartment and they had sex. Von Ehlinger said the sex was consensual, but the intern told House officials that he raped her.

Last week, Boise attorney Jon Cox said von Ehlinger had been out of the country on a previously planned vacation that included a potential business interest, according to the Idaho Statesman. He had planned to turn himself in and contest the charges once he returned to Idaho, but Cox said von Ehlinger missed a connecting flight and ended up flying to Atlanta.

Officers there took him into custody on a fugitive warrant after he was instructed to leave the airplane before the other passengers, according to Cox. He had been held without bond in the Clayton County Jail until Friday.

Ada County Prosecutor’s Office spokesperson Emily Lowe said she was not yet aware Friday of when von Ehlinger will make his initial appearance before a judge.

After the intern reported von Ehlinger, he repeatedly claimed he was innocent not only of any criminal wrongdoing, but of any breach of “the concepts of appropriate social conduct.”

The Idaho House Ethics Committee disagreed. Even setting aside the rape allegation, it concluded that he engaged in conduct unbecoming a member of the Idaho House. It recommended that von Ehlinger be censured and suspended without pay for the remainder of his term. He resigned in April, before the full House could vote on the matter.

Mills may be contacted at jmills@lmtribune.com or at (208) 310-1901, ext. 2266.