'I'm Just Really Stressed Out': Arizona Republican Charged With Masturbating Near a Preschool
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
There are a lot of tools out there to manage stress. Allegedly masturbating within view of a preschool is not the best one, as one Republican candidate in Arizona's largest county found out this month.
Randy Gene Kaufman was given a citation on October 4 for doing just that, according to a probable cause affidavitpublished by Law and Crime earlier this week. When a Maricopa Community Colleges Police Department officer asked him why he would masturbate in his truck in public, Kaufman responded: "I'm just really stressed out. I have a lot of things going on."
Kaufman, a retired prison supervisor, also happens to be a Republican candidate for the Maricopa County Community College District's governing board. Kaufman suspended his campaign this week, according to multiple reports, but as it's too late for the GOP to replace him with another candidate, he'll still be on the ballot in November.
Reached for comment about Kaufman's case, the Republican Party of Arizona told VICE News that the party "respects due process and the Consitution [sic]."
"Every American citizen has the right to fair treatment throughout the judicial system," the party said in a statement. "We support Mr. Kaufman's decision to suspend his campaign."
The Maricopa County Republican Committee told VICE News in a statement that "our foremost concern is the safety and protection of the students in Maricopa County. Maricopa County Republican Committee supports Mr. Kaufman's decision to suspend his campaign."
Kaufman was approached by the cop shortly after 4 p.m. on Oct. 4, when he was on the campus of a lifelong learning center in Surprise, Arizona. The responding officer reported that he "immediately became alarmed as I saw [Kaufman] had his pants down mid-thigh and was exposed showing his fully nude erect penis," and that Kaufman was "manipulating his genitals in a masturbatory manor [sic]."
The report said that Kaufman's truck was approximately 190 feet from a preschool next to the lifelong learning center, where "several preschool age children" were on the playground.
In his conversation with the cop, Kaufman said he "didn't notice" the proximity of the childcare center until the officer approached him.
"Don't you see how alarming that is?" the officer asked him, according to the report. "That there are children nearby, people passing on bikes and in cars where they can see what you are doing?"
"I fucked up," Kaufman responded.
Later, Kaufman told the officer he worked for the state Department of Corrections for nearly three decades. "I really fucked up; this is bad. You have no idea," Kaufman said.
He then asked if he can "say something off the record," according to the report, and went on to tell the cop that he was running for office and that he personally knows the president of the community college's police union. (The MCC Police Officers' Association did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.)
An Arizona GOP spokesperson also clarified to VICE News in an email that Kaufman was not arrested for allegedly masturbating near a child care center. The probable cause affidavit says Kaufman was "contacted, arrested, and cited for Public Sexual Indecency," but the same report also says that Kaufman was "cited in lieu of detention" and that he was released at the scene.
In an email, a Maricopa Community College spokesperson told VICE News that the way police handled Kaufman's case was standard for someone in his situation.
"Mr. Kaufman had met all of the MCCPD and the courts criteria on a class 1 misdemeanor for citation in lieu of detention," including having a valid driver's license and no outstanding warrants or probation, the spokesperson said.
In a now-deleted May Facebook post, Kaufman said he wanted "our children protected [from] the progressive left," according to HuffPost. Kaufman said he was an enthusiastic support of former President Donald Trump, and opposed mask and vaccine mandates and abortion, according to now-removed Facebook posts reported by Law and Crime.
Kaufman also appears to have shut down his campaign page after he dropped out of the race Tuesday.
"A personal legal matter has recently arisen, and I need to step out of the race to focus on personal affairs," Kaufman told KTVK Tuesday. "I am sincerely grateful for the supporters and friends I have gathered throughout the campaign."
"I will never stop fighting to protect the United States Constitution and the values that make America the greatest country in the world."
Kaufman was approached by the cop shortly after 4 p.m. on Oct. 4, when he was on the campus of a lifelong learning center in Surprise, Arizona. The responding officer reported that he "immediately became alarmed as I saw [Kaufman] had his pants down mid-thigh and was exposed showing his fully nude erect penis," and that Kaufman was "manipulating his genitals in a masturbatory manor [sic]."
The report said that Kaufman's truck was approximately 190 feet from a preschool next to the lifelong learning center, where "several preschool age children" were on the playground.
…
In a now-deleted May Facebook post, Kaufman said he wanted "our children protected [from] the progressive left," according to HuffPost. Kaufman said he was an enthusiastic support of former President Donald Trump, and opposed mask and vaccine mandates and abortion, according to now-removed Facebook posts reported by Law and Crime.
Yes, by all means, protect the children from those lefty pedos.
... another maga jerkoff demonstrating his xtian family values.
... like the maga cult's right to jerk the gerkin wherever whenever apparently.
You'll probably see whataboutism soon.
Wait, isn't he from the family values party...
his xtian values ended up on the steering wheel...
Horny is as horny does. Kum on, man!
“Paradise by the Dashboard Lights” ~don’t let your Meatloaf
“What do you gain by doing so?”
What do you gain by defending what can only be described as degenerate and criminal behavior?
Though the ‘nut jobs’ reference is actually very funny.
Extrapolation.
denigrating xtians? speaking of nut jobs, incidences like this are becoming normal behavior for maga thumpers.
xtians are nowhere close to being Christians, they are blasphemous hypocrites...
according to the maga cult of xtians, there's no such thing...
no, I'm an american...
sorry, but real americans place the bible subordinate to the constitution...
“…we real Americans capitalize the word.”
And you real true Americans capitalize upon the ‘Word’.
See 2.1.15
“just empty, useless rhetoric in a pathetic attempt to debate?”
Couldn’t describe it better, tex. Well said and voted up as this simple statement should preface every single post of yours.
You were wise in avoiding the question.
Wait, he's Randy...
This is pretty much an unimportant story. A man was running for an unpaid position on a community college governing board. He either has psychological health issues or self-control issues. I guess this is a national story because he has previously tweeted support of Trump.
The extreme left gets it's jollies from this story like the extreme right enjoyed the Anthony Weiner saga (he and his wife had a much higher profile). Who here had ever heard of Randy G Kaufman before this story?
“He either has psychological health issues or self-control issues.”
Is that you, Herschel? The quality of candidate matters, regardless of race or race.
No, it's DOTW in VA.'
You've mastered the obvious, good job!
Huh?
He either has psychological health issues or self-control issues.
Msy I remind you that you are defending an adult male Trump supporter running for a public office who was caught masturbating in view of children, and that he has a history of claiming that children need to be protected from progressives. Just so we’re clear.
I haven't defended anyone here, what in my comment confused you so?
There is nothing clear about what you just wrote.
Calling it unimportant is defending it. I’m pretty sure no decent person waives off the actions of a pedophile.
No, as a national story, the picadillos of a candidate for a community college governing position is unimportant.
I'll assume that you are a decent person, what are you doing besides commenting here after learning of this incident?
This guy jacking off while parked in front of a preschool playground with preschoolers playing is a "peccadillo" ?
Yeah, sure it is.
Maybe he was to into the porn on his phone. In any case, how is this national news?
And maybe he was just doing penile exercises to cure his Peyronie's disease. Why do you continue to make excuses for this creep?
And coincidentally his truck was parked facing a preschool playground. Sure.
Ya let's just dismiss it then.
I've made no excuses, why do you remain confused?
You should consider sending a campaign donation to his competitor for the Maricopa County Community College District's Governing Board.
You should consider the terms you use for pedophilic behavior. Hint: "peccadillo" isn't one.
Thanks for the hint. Have you decided upon the size of the campaign donation that you'll make?
I'm gonna donate a large supply of CBD meds because Randy's "just really stressed out".
So you are just dismissing it then, unless you consider your comments here as somehow substantive.
"dismissing" ?
I'm not the one that referred to pedophilic behavior as "peccadillos".
I'm not at all qualified or knowledgeable enough about this case to diagnose this as pedophilic behavior. But I guess that you then agree that it is the manifestation of "psychological health issues" as I raised as a possibility in 3.
Again, are you dismissing this other than comments here?
I'm here on an internet forum discussing news articles, giving an opinion here and there, you know, just like you.
Exactly, neither of us care enough to take any substantive action following this and why should we.
Sleep tight, Pat and don't enroll in the Maricopa County Community College until you know that Kaufman was defeated.
Once on Tuesday and again on Friday, Mr kaufman said he has stopped his "campaign" or suspended it.
The County has not been notified. Regardless, Early voting and mail in voting has already commenced so Mr. Kaufman's name cannot be removed from the ballot.
He may well be elected.
The community college will never be the same.