GOP congressman in jail after alleged incident in which shots were fired

A Republican state lawmaker remains in jail in Lansing after being arrested early Thursday on “a felony-level offense” after police officers responded to a report of shots fired.

First-term Rep. Neil Friske (R-Charlevoix) missed Thursday’s House session and several record-breaking votes and may have to wait in jail until Saturday to be arraigned. A statement from Lansing police said the district attorney is expected to issue a report Friday.

“Further investigation is ongoing and we expect to present the case to the Ingham County District Attorney’s Office tomorrow for review with a view to filing charges,” it said.

In a Facebook post, Friske’s re-election campaign apparently attempted to link the arrest to the upcoming Republican primaries and a “deep state” conspiracy.

“As many of us know, Representative Friske is a consistent exerciser of his Second Amendment rights,” it said.

The campaign also called the timing of the arrest “highly suspicious” because mail-in ballots will be mailed out soon. It also claimed without evidence that Friske’s primary challenger, Parker Fairbairn, has “ties to the deep state.”

The district, which includes the northwestern tip of the Lower Peninsula and the eastern tip of the Upper Peninsula, is firmly in Republican hands. A spokesman for House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp.) did not respond to a request for comment.