Wednesday, July 18, 2007

R.I.P. Mary Jo Kopechne

Thirty-eight years ago today, Mary Jo Kopechne was killed by Sen. Edward "Ted" Kennedy (Dem.-Mass.).

On July 18, 1969, Mary Jo and five other single women who had worked for Robert Kennedy's campaign attended a party on Chappaquiddick Island with six married men. (None of their wives were present) Sen. Kennedy and Mary Jo left the party together at 11:15. P.M.. According to Sen. Kennedy, he made a wrong turn, and drove off a bridge and into a small lake.

Sen. Kennedy got out of the car, and says he made several attempts to rescue Mary Jo, but she drowned. He then walked back to the party, (ignoring nearby houses) and talked to his cousin, Joe Gargan, and Paul Markham who were both lawyers. All three of them returned to the scene of the crash.

None of the three told anyone else about the crash for the next ten hours. Sen. Kennedy ended up pleading guilty to a charge of leaving the scene of an accident after causing an injury. His sentence was a two month suspeneded sentence and a year of probation.

Despite this tragedy and the cover up, Sen. Kennedy continues to serve as a Senator and even ran for president once. Most people are convinced that the true story has never come out.

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