Top Story: U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, the cops and his doctor
How Many Times Will Kennedy Fans Enable Before he Dies from his Disease?
The cops do what they can to prevent another attempt at sobriety, but (fortunately) fail
Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, six-term congressman from Rhode Island, entered rehab”again”for an admitted addiction to pharmaceuticals after crashing his car. He remembered nothing of the incident (meaning he was in a blackout), which occurred May 4th at 3 a.m. A police report stated at the time of the accident Kennedy’s “eyes were red and watery, speech was slightly slurred and, upon exiting his vehicle, his balance was unsure…. [His car] had no lights running”and almost swerved into a police car traveling in the opposite direction. When an officer tried to stop him, Kennedy “did not respond but continued at a slower speed,”finally colliding head-on with vehicle barriers placed around the Capitol after 9-11.
There may be two parts to this story that could prove more interesting than Kennedy’s relapse, but which the media will all but ignore. One is the cops, who attempted”no doubt, yet again”to enable Kennedy by protecting him from appropriate consequences for misbehaviors. We can only guess how many hundreds or even thousands of times his poor conduct failed to make news, when a friend, family member, fellow congressperson or law enforcer enabled Patrick J. Kennedy. In this instance, the officers who were involved sought to give a breath test, but were overruled by the watch commander and told to leave the scene so higher-ups could take Kennedy home. Kennedy and others whom he will come into future contact with got lucky: the publicity seems to have forced him into rehab.
The other overlooked part to the story may be the doctors, who provided a known addict with a prescription to at least one psychotropic drug. Kennedy admitted to having Phenergan and Ambien in his system. Ambien, a sedative-hypnotic (think: Valium), by itself causes problem behaviors in addicts. The warning label clearly states, “The habit-forming potential is high. Psychological and physical dependence is possible…[If you stop using this drug, there may be] physical withdrawal symptoms.”In other words, it’s an addictive drug, which you don’t give to addicts. The label also says, “Do not take this drug with any other drug that might slow the central nervous system, like another sedative, benzodiazepine, sleeping pills, monoamine oxidase inhibitor, antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, or antihistamines.”Phenergan is an antihistamine. You don’t compound the destructive potential by providing drugs to an addict that could prove deadly in combination. Addicts frequently ignore warning labels.
This is not the first time his antics have appeared on the front pages. The youngest of three children of alcoholics Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and former wife Joan Kennedy, Patrick Kennedy was admitted to rehab after getting caught with cocaine in 1986 at age 18. In 2000, he shoved a security guard at Los Angeles International Airport when she told him he had to check his bag because it was too large to carry on board. He settled a lawsuit she brought against him for an undisclosed sum out of court. In 2001, the Coast Guard was called to his rented yacht to intervene in an argument with his girlfriend, who said he had been drinking. It must have been quite a scene, as he was accused of causing $28,000 in damage to the boat. Five months ago he sought treatment for his psychotropic drug addiction. Just a month before this latest incident he was reportedly at fault in a two-car accident in Portsmouth, RI, as he was “hurrying into the parking lot of a pharmacy.”Any one of these behaviors suggest an almost certain likelihood of addiction: a young person in the public eye using an illegal drug (one would expect non-alcoholic children of famous people to shy away from controversy); a sense of entitlement and a “rules don’t apply to me”attitude; arguing while drinking to the point at which law enforcers are called to the scene; damaging property while drinking; prior stays in rehab; causing an accident because he was in a hurry (at a pharmacy, no less). How many more incidents might have escaped public notice?
A Rhode Islander is reported to have said, “People accept the Kennedy’s. Everyone knows they’re going to get in trouble”and everyone knows they’ll get out of it.”Yes, as long as there are enablers willing to protect alcoholics from proper consequences. Such enablers need to be reminded that as long as they are willing, the odds of sobriety are greatly reduced and the likelihood of real tragedies ultimately occurring are dramatically increased.