Calhoon fights removal effort, accuses county attorney and sheriff
John Calhoon is fighting a bid to oust him from office, accusing Sherri Becker and Jack Laurie of turning a dual-office case into political warfare.
John Calhoon went to court June 30, accusing Atchison County Attorney Sherri Becker and Sheriff Jack Laurie of weaponizing the legal system against a political adversary as he fought a bid to remove him from office. The filing turned a dispute over Calhoon’s eligibility into a sharper fight over motive, authority and control of county government.
Becker, acting for the State of Kansas, filed the quo warranto petition March 10 in district court. The petition seeks an order requiring Calhoon to resign from one of two positions, either Atchison County commissioner or Jackson County undersheriff. Kansas law gives courts a way to challenge a person’s right to hold public office, and Becker has argued that a county commissioner cannot also hold another public office.
Calhoon’s path to the commission seat was fast. The Atchison County GOP appointed him to the District 2 opening in late January, and county records show he was sworn in Feb. 17 as the 2nd District commissioner. That timing put him in office only weeks before the removal petition landed, setting up a fight that has run from the courthouse to the campaign trail.
The central legal question is whether the undersheriff post counts as a public office under Kansas law. Kansas statute 19-805 governs deputies and undersheriffs, while 60-1202 sets out quo warranto actions challenging a person’s right to hold office. Those statutes now frame a case that could decide whether Calhoon can keep his seat, keep his law-enforcement post, or be forced to choose between them.
The dispute has also become openly political. In late May, Calhoon’s attorney alleged that Laurie was behind the effort to remove him. On May 7, Laurie did not appear for a court-ordered deposition in the case, showing the matter had already moved into formal discovery before Calhoon’s June 30 response.
County business has continued through the conflict. Atchison County Commission minutes from Feb. 17 and June 9 list Calhoon alongside Chairwoman Casey Quinn and Commissioner James Campbell, even as the removal case unfolded. District 2 is now on the ballot, with Republican Randell Vanderweide filing to challenge Calhoon for the seat, making the legal fight and the election part of the same struggle over who will shape county decisions next.
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