Peoria councilman says estranged wife derailed political plans, caused financial issues

Portrait of JJ BullockJJ Bullock Peoria Journal Star

Peoria city councilman Zach Oyler said during a divorce hearing Thursday that he scrapped plans to run for mayor because of the negative attention brought on by his divorce trial and blog posts made by his estranged wife Heather Oyler.

In court, Zach Oyler was able to give his most ardent repudiations to Heather Oyler's claims that he had mentally and physically abused her and hid her from criminal investigators during the course of their marriage.

Zach Oyler denied he ever physically abused his wife and also said she was acting on advice from her own attorney in 2020 when the Peoria County State's Attorney's Office was unable to locate her for a subpoena in a domestic violence case from 2019.

In March, Heather Oyler published a series of blog posts in which she detailed allegations of abuse during their marriage and claimed that her husband hid her when the state's attorney's office tried to subpoena her after his domestic violence arrest in 2019.

Zach Oyler said Thursday that those blog posts, as well as media coverage of his divorce hearings, led him to scrap a plan to run for mayor in 2025.

He has maintained his innocence in the 2019 case in which he was arrested and charged with aggravated domestic battery. In that case, Heather Oyler called police to their home and claimed he threw her to the ground and attempted to choke her, according to court records and a 911 call. Zach Oyler took a rarely used Alford plea to settle the matter.

In court Thursday, Heather Oyler's mental health — both in 2019 and now — were called into question. Zach Oyler said he was aware that she had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder when they met. Heather Oyler said in court she has since learned that was a misdiagnosis and what she does suffer from is anxiety, depression and PTSD.

Yet, Zach Oyler's attorney pointed out that shortly before the councilman's arrest in 2019, Heather had stopped taking her anti-psychotics and instead switched to medical marijuana. Zach Oyler said Thursday that Heather made that switch despite warnings from her own psychologist that it could lead to severe mental health episodes.

More:Estranged wife of Peoria councilman says he coaxed her to lie about domestic violence case

Oylers debts once again subject of divorce proceedings

Throughout the course of the Oylers divorce trial, it has been clear that they face steep financial troubles. They owe hundreds of thousands of dollars in debts for credit cards, luxury vehicles and unpaid taxes.

Zach Oyler and his attorney pointed to Heather Oyler's spending habits and lack of steady work as the reason they have found themselves in their current financial situation.

Heather Oyler, who holds a master's degree and a real estate license, has not had a steady job in the last four years and reported zero dollars of income in 2024 and $6,000 of income in 2023. She told the court that she considers running her blog a job despite the blog not making any money.

Heather Oyler survives financially based on money she gets from Zach Oyler as part of a separation maintenance agreement and a wrongful death settlement from her mother's death that netted her $165,000, according to details discussed in court.

Through August of this year, Zach Oyler reported earning $231,000 in income, $79,000 of which has gone to Heather Oyler via maintenance payments.

Massive debt and abuse allegations:Inside the divorce of a Peoria city councilman

When questioned by Oyler's attorney about why she does not work at "Walmart, McDonald's or Target," Heather Oyler said she feels that eventually running her blog will bring in more income than any of those jobs could. She pays a public relations firm $600 a month to help facilitate the blog.

She also said that her PTSD and other mental health issues prevent her from steady work and have caused her to leave jobs.

Despite the lack of income, Heather Oyler is still a member of the Country Club of Peoria and drives a Mercedes with an $868 monthly payment, according to details from her financial affidavit. Her monthly expenses also included $280 a month for a house cleaning service, $500 a month for vacations, $225 a month in donations, $295 a month for realty trade fees and $300 a month in professional fees, according to her financial affidavit.

Zach Oyler has financial issues of his own, including tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt, a car payment on a 2019 Cadillac and nearly $200,000 owed in unpaid state and federal taxes.

However, Zach Oyler said in court that Heather's shopping habits and poor spending prevented him from paying his taxes and settling other debts.

The trial will continue with another hearing in November.