Former Grant County clerk pleads not guilty

EPHRATA - Former county clerk Kenneth Kunes pleaded not guilty this week to felony charges stemming from an alleged assault of his wife March 7.

Kunes, 60, is facing charges of unlawful imprisonment, harassment/threats to kill, fourth-degree domestic violence assault and interfering with reporting domestic violence. A no-contact order was also filed against Kunes, which he allegedly violated Saturday when he walked into his mother's home on Laguna Drive, where his wife also lives.

While at the house, he allegedly told his wife it would be best if she did not testify against him in the domestic violence case from the previous week. He left the house and was later found and booked into Grant County Jail.

Kunes and his wife are in the process of separating. She reportedly went to their Laguna Drive home on March 6 and found Kunes and another man smoking inside, police reports show.

A black bag owned by the other man inside allegedly went missing and Kunes accused his wife of taking it. Kunes then grabbed his wife's arms and held her down on the bed, reportedly threatening to kill her and her dog while demanding she give him the bag, according to court records.

The next morning, another confrontation ensued and Kunes allegedly threw a cellphone at his wife before leaving.

His wife told police there were several prior incidents of domestic abuse, but she was afraid to report them.

Kunes, a former Grant County Jail corrections officer, was elected county clerk in 1998 and served until 2006.