Senator Craig involved in “He said/he said misunderstanding” UPDATED
UPDATE: A video reenactment of the whole episode can be found here.
How in the world did this not get out before?
Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho) was arrested in June at a Minnesota airport by a plainclothes police officer investigating lewd conduct complaints in a men’s public restroom, according to an arrest report obtained by Roll Call Monday afternoon.
Craig’s arrest occurred just after noon on June 11 at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. On Aug. 8, he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor disorderly conduct in the Hennepin County District Court. He paid more than $500 in fines and fees, and a 10-day jail sentence was stayed. He also was given one year of probation with the court that began on Aug. 8.
A spokesman for Craig described the incident as a “he said/he said misunderstanding,” and said the office would release a fuller statement later Monday afternoon.
After he was arrested, Craig, who is married, was taken to the Airport Police Operations Center to be interviewed about the lewd conduct incident, according to the police report. At one point during the interview, Craig handed the plainclothes sergeant who arrested him a business card that identified him as a U.S. Senator and said, “What do you think about that?” the report states. [...]
According to the incident report, Sgt. Dave Karsnia was working as a plainclothes officer on June 11 investigating civilian complaints regarding sexual activity in the men’s public restroom in which Craig was arrested.
Airport police previously had made numerous arrests in the men’s restroom of the Northstar Crossing in the Lindbergh Terminal in connection with sexual activity.
I love that line “he said/he said misunderstanding”. We’ve all been there, every trip to the men’s room is a potential he said/he said misunderstanding waiting too happen. Just Senator Craig’s bad luck that his involved an undercover cop.
UPDATE: Even more, courtesy Ana at the Swamp (Roll Call servers seem to be overwhelmed a bit):
Roll Call’s story about the arrest of Sen. Larry Craig (R!* Idaho!) for “lewd conduct” inside a men’s restroom contains some truly eloquent police report writing. Seriously, there should be a special award for sentences like this:
I could hear several unknown persons in the restroom that appeared to use the restroom for its intended use.
And this passage could be proudly printed on the snarky political blog of your choice:
Craig stated “that he has a wide stance when going to the bathroom and that his foot may have touched mine,” the report states. Craig also told the arresting officer that he reached down with his right hand to pick up a piece of paper that was on the floor.
“It should be noted that there was not a piece of paper on the bathroom floor, nor did Craig pick up a piece of paper.”
Craig’s office described “the incident as a ‘he said/he said misunderstanding,’ and said the office would release a fuller statement later Monday afternoon.” That’s what she said, ha ha.
UPDATE #2: From Think Progress, who apparently could get to Roll Call, part of the arresting officer’s report:
My experience has shown that individuals engaging in lewd conduct use their bags to block the view from the front of their stall. From my seated position, I could observe the shoes and ankles of Craig seated to the left of me. […]
At 1216 hours, Craig tapped his right foot. I recognized this as a signal used by persons wishing to engage in lewd conduct. Craig tapped his toes several times and moves his foot closer to my foot. I moved my foot up and down slowly. While this was occurring, the male in the stall to my right was still present. I could hear several unknown persons in the restroom that appeared to use the restroom for its intended use. The presence of others did not seem to deter Craig as he moved his right foot so that it touched the side of my left foot which was within my stall area.
Holla at me