Victims of the month: the Hudson family and Florida’s 16th district
Alcoholic victims of the month:
“American Idol”star Jennifer Hudson’s mother Darnell Donerson, brother Jason Hudson and nephew Julian King, who are believed to have been murdered by William Balfour, the estranged husband of Jennifer’s sister, Julia Hudson. Balfour, who was on parole since May 2006 after serving seven years on charges of attempted murder and carjacking, was kicked out of Julia’s home in May because of alleged drug dealing. Furious, he vowed to Julia that he’d kill her and the rest of the family if she “didn’t stop messin’ in his life.”He threatened to kidnap Julia’s son Julian and kill him. While it’s true that we generally shouldn’t believe addicts, there is one exception: if they threaten you, believe them. The Hudson family erred in failing to take Balfour’s threats seriously and several have tragically paid for it with their lives.
The constituents of Florida’s 16th congressional district suffered under former Congressman Mark Foley, whose travails, discussed in the November 2006 TAR, were a prime example of the fact that addicts have an impact way out of proportion to their numbers. The constituents’ suffering has continued under Congressman Tim Mahoney, who fired a staffer, Patricia Allen, after allegedly paying her $121,000 in hush money. He is heard on an audiotape telling Allen, “You’re fired,”and then threatening her with, “If I find out you say anything else, you won’t get your last paycheck.”He tells her, “The only person that matters is: guess who? Me.”Yup, tell that to your wife and kids, Mr. Mahoney. Oh, and current and former aides say that he was having yet another extramarital affair with a county official during the Allen affair while trying to secure the other woman a $3.4 million federal grant. Now we know what “pork”is.