GREEN BAY - A candidate for Green Bay mayor was convicted of battery over a decade ago for pushing a man through a window in Milwaukee.

Nick Mortensen was charged with felony battery in August 2004 after he pushed the man through the window and pulled him back out, according to court documents obtained by the Press-Gazette. The charge was later amended to a misdemeanor.

Mortensen, 41, is one of eight candidates vying to replace Mayor Jim Schmitt, who is not seeking another term after 16 years in office. A political newcomer, Mortensen has lived in Green Bay most of his life and works for Jones Sign Company.

In the 2004 incident, the victim suffered a laceration to his right shoulder that required stitches, court documents state. He also underwent surgery to have a piece of glass removed from the area of his rib cage.

Mortensen told the Press-Gazette the man was screaming at his sister's roommate, and he told the man he needed to leave. According to Mortensen, he then grabbed the man by the collar, intending only to move the man back toward his apartment. But the man went limp and slipped on a garbage bag, Mortensen said, causing his shoulder to go through a storm window.

"I didn't want to hurt him," Mortensen said.

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Mortensen entered an Alford plea for the misdemeanor charge, meaning he didn't admit guilt but acknowledged sufficient proof had been shown to convict him. Because he didn't "willfully and knowingly" harm the man, he said, he didn't want to plead guilty.

Mortensen was sentenced in 2005 to nine months of work release, followed by 15 months of probation. The judge ordered him to seek counseling, and he had to pay nearly $3,500 in restitution to the victim.

Mortensen called the incident a life lesson, one he said he doesn't shy away from.

"I mention it pretty regularly," he said.

Candidates with records

Mortensen isn't the only mayoral candidate with a history. The Press-Gazette previously reported that Paul Boucher, who ran for School Board and City Council last year, was convicted of lewd and lascivious behavior after exposing his genitals to a female social worker in 2010.

In a 2018 interview with the Press-Gazette, Boucher maintained his innocence and said the charge stemmed from "a miscommunication." He also asserted it doesn't affect his ability to serve as an elected official.

Former Alderman Guy Zima, who entered the race last week, has a checkered history as well. He made headlines in 1980 when he was charged with attempting to steal $5.50 of bratwurst and ground beef from a grocery store. Zima, who was an alderman at the time, paid a fine after pleading no contest in municipal court.

And in the 1990s, Zima was charged with six felony counts of misconduct in public office stemming from his votes on housing matters while he, as a landlord, rented to tenants who received government rent subsidies. Zima pleaded no contest to non-criminal neglect of duty, and other charges were dismissed or dropped.

Zima declined to comment extensively on the matters Thursday, calling them "lies, half-truths, ancient history." But referencing a passage from the Bible, he said, "Let he without sin cast the first stone."

Because Mortensen, Boucher and Zima weren't convicted of felonies or misdemeanors that violate public trust, they're still eligible to run for and hold public office.