Kennedy Says He Was Disoriented From Prescription Drugs

WUSATV
May. 05, 2006

Rep. Patrick Kennedy crashed his car near the Capitol early Thursday, and a police official said he appeared intoxicated. Kennedy said he had taken sleep medication and a prescription anti-nausea drug that can cause drowsiness.

He originally issued a statement saying he had not been drinking. But late Thursday, his chief of staff handed out a statement saying he was on a prescribed combination of Ambien -- a sleep medication -- and Phenergan -- an anti-nausea drug.

In his statement, Kennedy said he was treated Tuesday for gasroenteritis and given Phenergran, which can cause drowsiness.

Kennedy was reportedly behind the wheel of a green Ford Mustang when it crashed into a security barrier at 1st and "C" streets Southeast about 2:45 a.m.

No one was hurt, but police say the car nearly struck a Capitol police cruiser and that it had been swerving, as if trying to make a U-turn.

So far, Kennedy has not been charged.

Kennedy said he had returned home after a series of votes on Capitol Hill Wednesday and took "the prescribed amount" of Phenergan and Ambien.

He says sometime around 2:45 a.m., he drove back to the Capitol believing he needed to vote.

"Apparently, I was disoriented from the medication," he said.

He says police told him to park his car and drove him home.

"At no time did I ask for special consideration, I simply complied with what the officers asked me to do."

Earlier Thursday, the Capitol Hill Fraternal Order of Police called for higher-ups in the department to allow patrol officers to complete their investigation into the crash.

The head of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 1, Lou Cannon, told W*USA 9 News Reporter Stacey Cohan that he’s concerned that Kennedy may have received special treatment and this could be a case where “rank has its privilege.”

Capitol police Officer Greg Baird wrote a letter to acting Chief Christopher McGaffin saying how the investigation was handled calls the department's integrity into question.

According to Rollcall.com, Baird -- acting chairman of the Capitol Police Fraternal Order of Police –- said Kennedy’s Mustang had its lights off when it narrowly missed crashing into a police cruiser and smashed into a security barrier.

According to Roll Call, Baird wrote in his letter that the driver got out and “was observed to be staggering.” He told officers he was a congressman late for a vote. Baird wrote that patrol officers at the scene were prohibited from performing field sobriety tests. Then two sergeants arrived, conferred with a watch commander and “ordered all of the patrol division units to leave the scene … that they were taking over.”

Congressman Patrick Kennedy is Ted Kennedy's son. He is currently serving his sixth term as the Democratic Congressman from Rhode Island. He sits on the powerful House Appropriations Committee.

Kennedy spent time at a drug rehabilitation clinic before he went to Providence College. He has been open about mental health issues, including being diagnosed with bipolar disorder.