Defendant cross-examines Kansas congressman he threatened

By JOHN HANNA
Associated Press

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas congressman faced questions from a man who is charged with threatening to kill him and is acting his own attorney during a federal criminal trial. Republican U.S. Rep. Jake LaTurner rejected the man’s suggestions Wednesday that the threat was from God and the man was obligated to deliver it. LaTurner was the last prosecution witness in the trial of 32-year-old Chase Neill of Lawrence in northeastern Kansas. The trial came amid a sharp rise in threats against the nation’s lawmakers over the past two years. LaTurner testified that the threatening June 5 voicemail message to his Topeka office from Neill made him worry about the safety of his family and staff.