Miami DUI lawyer John Musca notes that the crime of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs is one that has affected even the powerful and well-connected. On June 12, Congressman Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island, son of Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy, checked himself back into a rehabilitation facility to deal with his ongoing problems with depression, prescription drug addiction, and bipolar disorder. Congressman Kennedy made headlines in 2006 when he crashed his 1997 Ford Mustang into a barricade in Washington, D.C. at 2:45 A.M., while apparently under the influence of alcohol and prescription drugs. Surprisingly, Kennedy was not asked to perform field sobriety tests after the crash, but was instead driven to his home by the police officer who responded to the scene. Several witnesses later noted that Kennedy had been drinking at a local bar prior to the accident.
At a court appearance several months later, Kennedy pleaded guilty to operating a motor vehicle while impaired and was ordered was ordered to pay a $250 donation to the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Washington, a $100 fine to the Victims of Crime Fund, and to perform 50 hours of community service with the Boys and Girls Club, says Miami DUI attorney John Musca. Kennedy was also given 12 months of probation and required to attend weekly Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Kennedy blamed his car crash on an ongoing addiction to prescription medication which stemmed from his struggle with bipolar disorder. Prior to his sentencing, Kennedy spent one month in in-patient treatment for alcoholism and prescription drug abuse at the Mayo clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Interestingly, Kennedy's sponsor in Alcoholics Anonymous has been a former Congressman from across the political aisle, Republican Jim Ramstad from Minnesota. Congressman Ramstad, who had his own addiction problems when he was first elected to Congress in the early 1980s, stated that the AA organization is well-equipped help people like Kennedy with a wide range of problems such as mental health and prescription drug abuse that go beyond alcoholism. Congressman Kennedy's office was reluctant to provide details about his decision to re-enter treatment. The Congressman's office did not disclose where Kennedy was entering treatment. Kennedy has admitted to attending treatment as a teenager for a cocaine addiction and having ongoing problems with alcoholism and depression.
