Peoria City Councilman Zach Oyler and his alleged survivor were no-shows in Order of Protection (OP) court Monday, August 19th. According to court records, the OP was dropped and replaced by a mutual no-contact agreement between the two parties to be further litigated in divorce court. Councilman Oyler was granted temporary permission to return to his domicile.
Currently, there are no pending charges against Oyler for the alleged assault of his wife. This is likely the case because his survivor declined to press charges further. However, this does not mean that Oyler’s survivor has recanted the allegations made against the Councilman; and, even though there are no pending charges against Oyler, this does not mean the incident of abuse was false
Oyler was absent from the last Peoria City Council meeting on August 13, 2019. He has made no public statement on whether he plans to resign from his elected position, despite multiple inquests. Oyler may take the dropping of charges as an opportunity to remain on City Council until at least the next election (which would be 2023). This will largely depend on whether constituents maintain public pressure against him or not. I’ve already detailed that the Councilman has a duty to his constituents to state publicly whether he intends to remain on City Council or not (and furthermore, why I think he should resign).
Councilman Oyler was arrested at his home on July 31st on charges of aggravated domestic battery, interfering with a report of domestic violence and unlawful restraint. He was later released from jail on a $100 bond. For a full description of allegations against Councilman Oyler, see my piece here.
UPDATE: On October 16th, 2020, Councilmember Zach Oyler took an Alford plea to disorderly conduct as part of an agreement to have other charges stemming from a July 2019 domestic incident dropped. Oyler & his wife have reconciled. (SEE FULL DETAILS)
