MARYSVILLE, Kan. - A 77-year-old man who twice served time in federal prison for pornography charges won Tuesday's mayoral primary in Marysville, a town of 3300 in northeast Kansas.
Murlynn ``Mert'' Ott received 317 votes, edging Bernie Krug's 306 votes. Ott says he believes voters put his criminal record in the past in favor of his platform of limited spending in the Marshall County town.
In 1987 Ott pleaded guilty to a federal charge of interstate transportation of pornography and was sentenced to two years in prison. He was released in 1988.
Two years later Ott pleaded guilty in federal court in Topeka to selling or transferring obscene matter and was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was freed in 1993.
Ott said his prison time wasn't a major issue in the primary. The general election is April third.
