Reply #29: Call me a total idiot, but maybe Ted was telling the truth?

[hedgehog]

Remember, a lot of people back then didn't consider a couple of drinks "driving under the influence". Whatever Ted's reputation then or since as a womanizer doesn't necessarily apply to Mary Jo Kopechne. She had been on Robert Kennedy's staff, not his. I can't testify about the staff personally, but I do know that those of us campaigning for Bobby seem to have been a whole lot more serious about politics than people now. I tend to think that Mary Joe was an idealist, not Monica Lewinsky v1.0. It's entirely possible that Ted was giving her a ride home from the party, drove off the side of a poorly designed bridge, hit his head and then tried and failed to rescue her. (I doubt anyone was wearing a seat belt.) Obviously, he wasn't thinking clearly. Driving down to the ferry crossing and swimming across are not reasonable actions. The people who should have protected him by calling the police (Gargan & Markham) weren't used to disobeying orders. Once Ted had a night's sleep and realized he'd left the scene of an accident, he called his lawyer for advice and then called the cops. End of story except for 40 years of innuendo.