Crossposted over yonder at The Vermont Political Observer.
Well, well. Looks llike there was more to the story of Louis Freeh’s car wreck than we were led to believe.
The former FBI director was driving on state Route 12 in Barnard on August 25 when his vehicle left the road and smashed into a tree and some shrubs. It’s assumed that he fell asleep at the wheel. State police had said they would not seek charges nor even write a ticket. But look what the Burlington Free Press’ Mike Donoghue dug up:
An out-of-control SUV driven by former FBI Director Louis Freeh almost struck head-on three motorists, who were forced to take evasive action to avoid crashing in southern Vermont, according to one of the drivers.
The driver, Van Coleman, gave a written statement to a Windsor County deputy sheriff, who was the first police officer on the scene of the Aug. 25 crash of Freeh’s vehicle. Deputy Sheriff Justin Hoyt said he gave the eyewitness report to state police.
Donoghue reports that a motorcycle and two cars were forced to “swerve into the left lane when Freeh’s vehicle crossed the center line… and headed at the trio at a high rate of speed.”
Apparently, Coleman’s account failed to make it up the chain of command. VSP spokesperson Stephanie Dasaro, who issued three news releases that didn’t mention the close calls, said “I did not have that level of detail.” And Public Safety Commissioner told Donoghue “This is the first I have heard about that.”
Flynn added that he “would ask for an explanation.”
He’d better. This smells as bad as a week-old fish. If Freeh is not charged or ticketed, the State Police needs to provide a solid, thorough, convincing explanation. Otherwise it’ll look like the Good Old Boys’ Network got the better of justice.
Louis Freeh was treated just the same as anyone else who happens to fall asleep and total a vehicle after running three drivers off the road in the middle of the day.
Just a written warning (yet to be written?) no ticket and no blood test for drugs or alcohol-all standard procedure.Right?
It didn’t matter that he had an indication on his out of state license plate that the vehicle was related to law enforcement or that he was a former judge or the former FBI director. And no reason why Commissioner Flynn should have been told about the three close calls-or apparently not be at all curious specific details of the case until asked by the press.
would you want to be the podunk VSP officer who gave a careless and negligent, or who knows what ticket to the former (disgraced by his reports on the Olympics and Penn State for being sham investigations) director of the premier law engorgement agency in the country??
Knowing that at some point attending the FBI academy to advance your job prospects could be in the cards?
Knowing that the thin blue line (or green and gold as it were) would paint a stripe up your ass and that the “cops never do anything wrong” AG office would probably suck up jurisdiction and shame you?
Wonder if any news agency actually asked IF the AG was called or anyone on the GOV staff for advice on how sticky Vermont was going to be on equal protection for law enforcement “royalty”…….
We live in a class less society…. meaning your class does not stand up to mine if they know what is in their best interests.
I think that a PA court just allowed a suit to advance against Freeh in relation to the Penn State investigation being shabby and destroying the reputations of a couple of coaches and the university president.
Louie should find out he is not in Kansas anymore. Wonder who owned the tree?