Patrick Kennedy to Plead Guilty to DUI
By Henri E. Cauvin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 13, 2006; 12:08 PM
Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, who entered a drug treatment program last month after losing control of his car near the Capitol, was charged this morning in connection with the crash and was expected to plead guilty this afternoon in D.C. Superior Court as part of an agreement with prosecutors.
When Kennedy (D-R.I.) returned earlier this month from a four-week stay at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., his defense attorney and the D.C. attorney general's office were apparently already in negotiations to resolve the case.
Charged today with driving under the influence, reckless driving and driving without a permit, Kennedy, 38, is due to appear this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Aida L. Melendez to enter a plea.
Kennedy's chief of staff, Sean Richardson, told the Associated Press that Kennedy has reached a deal with prosecutors to plead guilty to the charge of driving under the influence in exchange for having the two additional charges of reckless driving and driving without a permit dropped.
Richardson told the AP that Kennedy will appear at D.C. Superior Court this afternoon "to accept the consequences of his actions."
"He is looking forward to closing this chapter," Richardson said. "He's feeling great and is expected to be back at work."
Kennedy, who has admitted abusing pain pills and alcohol as an adult, has said that he took a prescription sleeping aid and other medication before the May 4 mishap in the 100 block of C Street SE, outside the Cannon House Office Building.
Capitol Police officers suspected Kennedy was intoxicated when he staggered out of his Ford Mustang shortly before 3 a.m., after crashing into a security barrier. But the six-term congressman -- who said he was trying to reach the Capitol for a vote -- was not given a sobriety test, which could have led to his arrest. Instead Capitol Police commanders drove Kennedy home, touching off complaints that Kennedy, the son of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), had received special treatment.
Soon after the accident, police issued three traffic citations: failure to keep in the proper lane; driving at an unreasonable speed, and failure to give full time and attention to his car. Police said at the time that they were contemplating other charges.
As police and prosecutors sorted out what happened, Kennedy left on May 5 for the Mayo Clinic to be treated for an addiction to prescription medicines.
It was Kennedy's second trip to Mayo in less than a year, he said. He had been a patient there during Congress's winter recess and had left the clinic "reinvigorated and healthy," he said.
Last week, Kennedy made his first public appearance since returning from the clinic. Speaking at a Brown University conference on mental health care and addiction treatment, he said was "confident" of his health and "positive" about his future.
At the conference, Kennedy said that his House colleague, Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-Minn.), who is a recovering alcoholic, had visited Kennedy at Mayo and would serve as Kennedy's sponsor in recovery.
Born in Massachusetts, Kennedy went Rhode Island to attend Providence College and ended up staying on and entering politics in Rhode Island. He was elected to the state House of Representatives in 1988 at the age of 21, and was reelected in 1990 and 1992 before being elected to represent the state's First District in Congress. |
