Posted on 05/06/2006 12:34:01 AM PDT by CellPhoneSurfer
Capitol police investigate motive behind story By Casey Ross Saturday, May 6, 2006 - Updated: 02:16 AM EST
Police are investigating whether U.S. Rep. Patrick Kennedy’s bizarre crash-scene story about being late for a 2:45 a.m. vote was a desperate attempt to escape an OUI bust by invoking a law that prevents members of Congress from being arrested while en route to formal sessions, authorities said.
Kennedy, who yesterday admitted an addiction to prescription pain medication, told officers upon emerging from his Mustang convertible Thursday morning that he was “late for a vote,” even though formal business had ended hours earlier, according to a police statement.
“There are a lot of different thoughts as to why he said that,” Capitol police officer Mike Killough said. “We’re looking into what he stated and what other people have to say about what he did that night.”
Killough said police are careful to observe a provision contained in the U.S. Constitution that protects members of Congress against arrest while traveling to and from formal sessions.
The constitutional provision includes exceptions for “felony or breach of peace” - which could apply to Kennedy’s actions, depending on what investigators find - but Killough said cops typically use restraint when Congress is in session.
“You can always take appropriate action afterward, and we have in the past,” he said.
A hostess at the Hawk ’n’ Dove bar, a popular Capitol Hill watering hole, told the Herald that Kennedy was drinking in the hours before cops say they watched his Mustang swerve eratically, nearly hit a police cruiser and smash into a concrete security barricade.
Kennedy said he did not drink alcohol before the accident and instead blamed his actions on a reaction to the sleep medication Ambien and a gastroenteritis drug called Phenergan.
After initially saying he got behind the wheel because he was disoriented and believed he needed to vote, Kennedy said yesterday he has no memory of getting out of bed or crashing his car.
Conflicting statements
U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy (D-R.I.) seemed to remember a good bit about his Thursday morning car accident on Thursday evening. But by Friday afternoon, his memory was failing.
THURSDAY: “Following the last series of votes on Wednesday evening, I returned to my home on Capitol Hill and took the prescribed amount of Phenergan and Ambien, . . .Some time around 2:45 a.m., I drove the few blocks to the Capitol complex believing I needed to vote. Apparently, I was disoriented from the medication. At that time, I was involved in a one-car incident in which my car hit the security barrier at the corner of 1st and C St., SE.”
“At the time of the accident, I was instructed to park my car and was driven home by the United States Capitol Police. At no time did I ask for any special consideration, I simply complied with what the officers asked me to do.”
FRIDAY: “I simply do not remember getting out of bed, being pulled over by the police or being cited for three driving infractions. That’s not how I want to live my life. And that’s not how I want to represent the people of Rhode Island.”
Wake up Rhode Island. Do you really want someone representing your interests that cannot remember getting out of bed?
A hostess at the Hawk ’n’ Dove bar, a popular Capitol Hill watering hole, ..
It's all Bush's fault...
329 Pennsyvania Ave SE .
How far away is that from the crash scene? From his house?
This nation should be incredibly angry with how the Kennedys have unashamedly used the murders of two of their family to protect them from all manner of criticism and accountability. They are a corrupt group with several decent members, yet a corrupt group nonetheless. As an American of Irish heritage, it amazes me that people in this country think of Italian fictional families like the Corleones and Sopranos when they think of corrupt business families.
Based on Joe's dealings with phone and oil companies and his crippling of a young woman (who subsequently talked of suing him to get more money); the late Michael's perversions; the utter carelessness with their own lives and those of others; the drugs and booze and the casual attitude toward their use; and Teddy's nauseating moralizing while being pro-abortion, a public drunk, and at least an involuntary murderer, the obvious truth is that the Kennedy family's business IS corruption.
He should get a DUI regardless. Even if the cops pretend to believe his lie about not being drunk, being under the influence of drugs is also grounds for a DUI, and he has admitted that.
Ooops, Pennsylvania Ave.
Seriously, the party has totally given up on the definitive blue parts of the country. They don't see the overall strategic value in doing better in these areas, even if they don't win. And they don't even dream of actually winning. If an area is totally ignored by the party, how do they ever HOPE to gain ground?
I just had to ask around to find out if anybody's running against Patrick this year. Yeah. Some Guy.
I agree, but unfortunately there's no physical proof of intoxication.
He admitted being under the influence of drugs. DUI doesn't mean only alcohol.
Admitting it is one thing, successfully prosecuting it is another.
I was waiting for the Kennedy family's silent butlers in the news media to attirbute this latest abomination to the "awful curse" plaguing the Kennedy family. While it took an amazing 24 hours, sure enough, CNN ran a trailer across the screen right before the Larry King Show last night about the AWFUL CURSE, as though some evil mysterious force shoved alcohol down Patrick Kennedy's throat and frog-marched him behind the wheel of the Mustang. So, the AWFUL CURSE causes you to: 1) dunk a woman off the bridge and then go to sleep with pleasant dreams at your hotal; 2) crash your car while driving recklessly on Nantucket and paralyze a young woman for life; 3) take sexual advantage of an underage babysitter; 4) get indicted for rape; 5) drive drunk with abandon around the Capitol Building then lie through your teeth when caught.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.