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Last updated: November 20, 2009 9:21 a.m.

Lugar’s wife faces DWI count

Sylvia A Smith
Washington editor
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The daughter of Sen. John Kerry was arrested Thursday in Hollywood for allegedly driving drunk.

Alexandra Kerry, 36, was stopped by officers about 12:40 a.m. and booked at the Hollywood police station for investigation of driving under the influence, Officer April Harding said.

Kerry was held for about five hours and released about 5:30 a.m. after posting $5,000 bail, Harding said.

Jodi Seth, John Kerry’s spokeswoman, said the senator’s daughter was pulled over for an expired registration and was released after a breathalyzer test showed her blood-alcohol level was under the legal limit.

“Senator Kerry supports his daughter and will have no further comment on a private matter,” Seth said in a statement.

Harding said she did not know whether Alexandra Kerry had tested for a blood-alcohol level above the legal driving limit of 0.08 percent.

However, a driver with a lower blood-alcohol level still can be arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence if that person was driving recklessly or officers considered that driver to be a danger, Harding said.

WASHINGTON – Charlene Lugar, wife of Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., was arrested Wednesday evening on drunken-driving and hit-and-run charges after hitting an empty parked car near their home in a Washington suburb.

A statement released Thursday by Sen. Lugar’s office said no one else was in Charlene Lugar’s car or the one she hit about 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

“Thankfully, no one was injured. We are deeply sorry and embarrassed that this accident has occurred,” the statement said.

Charlene Lugar, 77, was arrested at an intersection diagonal to the Lugars’ home in McLean, Va.

Fairfax County Police spokesman Bud Walker said Charlene Lugar was charged with driving while intoxicated and hit and run. He said a patrol officer stopped Lugar’s car because of the front-end damage to it.

She was processed at the county’s adult detention center. Sen. Lugar’s office said she had been released.

Walker said other information – such as whether a blood-alcohol test was administered and its result – would not be released before a trial. Charlene Lugar’s court appearance has been scheduled for January.

In Virginia, people convicted of drunken-driving charges must pay a fine, complete an alcohol-safety program and spend up to 10 days in jail, depending on their blood-alcohol level.

sylviasmith@jg.net

– Associated Press