MINOT — On March 4, 2021, the North Dakota House of Representatives stopped its busy legislative schedule to consider harassment accusations against state Rep. Luke Simons of Dickinson.

The claims against Simons spanned years and included not just staff at the Bismarck Capitol and news media members but also some of his fellow lawmakers, such as Grand Forks Rep. Emily O’Brien and Casselton Rep. Brandy Pyle, both Republicans. Ultimately, the House made the unprecedented move of

voting to expel Simons,

something that had never happened before in state history.

That expulsion has become one of the fault lines in the North Dakota Republican Party, dividing traditional conservatives from an ascendant faction of MAGA populists closely aligned with former President Donald Trump.

Many outspoken members of the populist faction — including former lawmaker Rick Becker, who is currently seeking election to the U.S. House of Representatives and opposed Simons’ expulsion during floor debate in 2021 — have claimed that Simons was removed improperly and wasn’t afforded due process.

Now Simons, who has stayed active in politics, including providing

a recent defense of a Williston-area Republican lawmaker

who has refused to resign after berating law enforcement officers with homophobic slurs during a DUI arrest, is accused of a years-long history of mental and physical abuse against his wife and children. That’s according to court documents in a divorce proceeding his wife filed in June 2023. The filings, in which she is the plaintiff, indicate that the two have been separated since October 2021.

Forum Communications Company does not typically name the survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.

“Throughout our marriage, Luke has a history of assaulting myself and our children,” states a declaration filed in the case by the plaintiff on March 1, 2024. “Social service reports exist that document Luke has beat our children with a 2×4, extension cords, and also used a crowbar for spankings. He has run into me with a 4 wheeler, attacked me until I was on the floor, punched my nose and broke my glasses and phone.”

“Luke punched the walls of our home and choked me until I passed out,” the declaration continues. “We have been separated following a significant domestic violence incident in October 2021, in which Luke assaulted me and bit one of our daughters, requiring the intervention of Luke’s father and our church.”

The filing includes photos of the bite wound. The plaintiff alleges that Simons bit another of their children after becoming frustrated while teaching that child to drive.

One exhibit in the case is a testimonial from Simons’ wife dated November 2021, just months after Luke Simons’ expulsion from the Legislature. Titled “My Story,” it contains allegations of abuse by Luke Simons against his wife dating back to their wedding night in 1999.

Describing it as “such a happy, scary, time for a young lady,” the plaintiff indicates that she “did something wrong or said something wrong and made him upset” at which point “he pushed me out of bed and I slept on the floor” with “no clothes and no blankets.”

She also alleges that Luke raped her in the basement of his parent’s home after a Wednesday church meeting, and that he perpetrated physical abuse against her — everything from kicks to punches to choking and slaps — during the more than 18 years they lived together on their ranch. “I found out that chains really hurt and even leave chain shaped bruises,” she wrote.

She claims that Luke accused her of being deficient in her “Bible studies” because she was “missing the part about wives being submissive to their husbands.” She says Luke claims she was talking “with a bad attitude just like liberal Democrats.”

Under a section of the document titled “Reasons to get away,” the plaintiff wrote, “I don’t remember the last time I felt 100% safe and secure in my own home.” She also wrote that she wants to “get away from Luke and his weird ideas about women and girls and their proper place.”

In his own court filings, Luke Simons doesn’t dispute that abuse occurred in the marriage.

“Plaintiff alleges Defendant was abusive throughout the parties’ entire relationship,” a pre-trial brief filed by Luke Simons’s legal counsel states. “Defendant does not deny that abuse occurred but does deny that it occurred to the extent Plaintiff claims. He admits that he has made mistakes in the past and has sought counseling to overcome his issues.”

At least one member of Simons’ own family also acknowledges that abuse occurred in the relationship. One of the exhibits in the plaintiff’s filings is a text message sent by Ben Simons, brother to Luke Simons, to the couple’s children in which he refers to “wrong” perpetrated by his brother even as he opposes the divorce.

“Your mom is still proceeding with divorcing your dad,” he wrote in the Aug. 10, 2023, text. “There is not one spiritual leader in her life that has condoned this. Your mom is being wrong. I know your dad has been very wrong for a lot of your growing up years but now it’s your mom that is in the wrong.”

“I wished so bad that your whole family would’ve not covered up the wrong that your dad did and maybe your family could’ve been helped sooner,” Ben Simons, a former Republican candidate for the Legislature, continued. “I was so mad at your dad when I found out, I couldn’t even talk to him. Now I don’t want to cover up what wrong your mom is doing.”

I sent a list of questions to Jamie Haynes, attorney for Luke Simons in this proceeding. I asked him which specific allegations of abuse Luke Simons denies.

Haynes told me his client declined to answer. “This is a private family matter that involves children. Luke won’t defend himself. He loves his family and hopes that this can be reconciled in the future.”

Sandra Kuntz, an attorney who is representing the plaintiff in these proceedings, declined to comment on behalf of her client.