Carson Campaign Accuses Dickerson Of Being A Wife Beater

UPDATED: POLICE REPORT INDICATES VIOLENCE IN DOMESTIC DISPUTE
During an exclusive, live interview with Eric Dickerson this morning on his WXNT radio talk show this morning, Abdul Hakim-Shabazz dropped this bombshell story in the 7th District race for Congress. Dickerson tells Abdul's radio audience that he was contacted recently by a Star reporter about an accusation his Democratic opponent, Rep. Julia Carson, had leveled during an interview with the Star's editorial board. At the conclusion of that editorial board interview, Dickerson tells us that the reporter says Carson volunteered the statement that Dickerson was a wife beater.

As Dickerson explains to the radio audience, the reference made by Carson was to a 1991 domestic violence arrest. Dickerson explained that he had just returned from an out-of-town business trip when he learned upon arriving at his home that his teen-aged son had taken his corvette on a joy ride and totalled it, nearly killing himself. Dickerson admits that he became extremely upset and did a lot of yelling. He assures his listeners that he did not strike any family member. During the heated moment, however, his then 12-year old daugther became frightened and called police. When police arrived, they told Dickerson he would have to go down town with them, and they booked him on a domestic violence charge. A subsequent investigation of the incident resulted in the charges being dropped, something that is not unusual in domestic disputes of this nature.

Dickerson is not surprised, but extremely disappointed in Rep. Carson for bringing up this issue. He had talked to her as recently as Saturday and the two of them had agreed to run a clean campaign. Then he learns just two days later from the Star reporter that Carson had referred to him as a wife beater. Abdul added to the discussion that Carson's supporters have been circulating a mug shot photo of Dickerson taken at the time of the arrest around the Internet in an effort to stir the issue.

Abdul asks Dickerson the question of why Carson's campaign would feel it necessary to resort to negative campaigning against him given what appears to be an insurmountable lead Carson holds over Dickerson according to a recent WISH-TV poll. Dickerson first reminds his radio audience that at this same point two years ago, then-candidate Mike Sodrel was trailing former Rep. Baron Hill by 25 points according to one poll and yet he still managed to upset Hill on election day. Dickerson also thinks his campaign is hurting Carson and some of her supporters, and they are getting desparate. He, of course, is referring to the criticism he's directed to the private club/bar a number of close Carson political supporters are building in the Julia Carson Government Center where her congressional office is located.

In light of the police report that has since been posted, the temptation to use this story against Dickerson is understandable, but I don't think it was appropriate for Carson to accuse Dickerson of being a wife beater to the Star's editorial staff as he asserts she did (assuming that part of the story is true). She has been the first to cry foul when her past opponents attacked her for such issues as failing to pay her property taxes and maintaining a nuisance in her neighborhood by failing to clean up an abandoned house she owned that was being used as a crack house. In the case of the latter, city taxpayers had to shell out more than $13,000 to clean up the house because she refused to do anything about it. Only after the news media reported on the incident and the bill owed to taxpayers did she dig into her $150,000 a year congressional salary and pay the debt.

It should be pointed out that when Dickerson first protested against the private club/bar in the government center, he specifically made a point of saying that he did not blame Carson for it and did not think she bore any responsibility. Nonetheless, Carson accused Dickerson of engaging in negative campaigning. Who's doing the negative campaigning now? Carson doesn't need this issue to defeat her opponent, but that's pretty much what we've come to expect in politics today.

Taking Down Words has posted up the police report from the incident. It doesn't look pretty, and it doesn't comport to Dickerson's story that he did not lay a hand on any family member. He will have a tough time explaining this one. He indicates that the charges were dropped, which means the statements contained in the police report were not proven in a court of law. My comments have been revised. I have to say that I'm extremely disappointed in Mr. Dickerson and what appears to be a complete lack of candor on his part in describing these events. I truly felt that he was someone in whom I could trust based upon my past communications with him, but now I'm left thinking otherwise. I am truly saddened by these turn of events.