A judge ordered a 47-year-old man to undergo anger assessment after accosting an attendee at an Eastern Carver County school board meeting last fall over the district's decision to extend masking requirements in schools amid rising COVID-19 cases.
Thomas W. Kahlbaugh, of Carver, was sentenced Thursday by Carver County District Judge Eric Braaten after he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in connection with the incident in Chaska on Sept. 27 in which Kahlbaugh assaulted Jonas Sjoberg, who was wearing a mask.
Kahlbaugh, who must undergo an anger evaluation and follow its recommendations, faces a year of probation and must pay $390 in fines and fees. He also must serve two days on a supervised work crew or do other community work involving physical labor.
Sjoberg told the Star Tribune the day after the clash that he attended the meeting to let board members know that not everyone in the community was against a mask requirement. His daughter attends a private school, but he said he wanted to comment as a Chaska resident.
Sjoberg did so wearing a mask before he was confronted by Kahlbaugh. It was captured on the meeting video that remains available on the district website. The 45 minutes of comments largely were dominated by those who opposed mask requirements.
The incident was the latest in a series of interruptions last year at school board meetings — both locally and nationwide — caused by irate and even violent parents arguing over COVID-19 protocols, critical race theory and social studies standards.
According to the criminal complaint:
After Sjoberg spoke and sat down, Kahlbaugh rolled his chair toward Sjoberg. One witness said Kahlbaugh appeared "to be visibly upset and made aggressive comments regarding [Sjoberg's] statement to the board," the complaint continued.
