Pubdate: Sat, 04 Jun 2011
Source: Providence Journal, The (RI)
Copyright: 2011 The Providence Journal Company
Contact:  http://www.projo.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/352
Author: Katie Mulvaney
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing)

R.I. REP. ROBERT WATSON'S URINE TESTS POSITIVE FOR COCAINE

PROVIDENCE -- Former House Minority Leader Robert A. Watson's urine 
tested positive for cocaine and THC, a chemical compound in 
marijuana, after Connecticut police stopped him at a sobriety 
checkpoint in late April, according to East Haven Deputy Police Chief 
John Mannion.

"On its face, if it's in your body, you're under the influence," Mannion said.

"It's illegal to possess drugs; it's illegal to consume drugs. 
Therefore, you're under the influence," Mannion said.

Watson, who admitted to smoking marijuana to treat bouts of 
pancreatitis, on Friday denied using cocaine.

"What? What?" Watson said upon learning of the results. "I 
acknowledged ... being in possession of marijuana."

"I deny absolutely all other allegations. ... That is absolutely an 
untrue statement," he said of the results.

Watson's lawyer, Jack O'Donnell, a Connecticut lawyer whose practice 
specializes in criminal and personal-injury law, declined comment, 
saying only "I haven't seen the report at this point."

The police charged Watson, 50, an outspoken East Greenwich 
Republican, with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and 
possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia after he was stopped 
at a sobriety checkpoint in East Haven on April 22. Officers said his 
eyes appeared glassy and bloodshot and his speech was slurred. Watson 
told officers he had one or two drinks. A distinct odor of marijuana 
emanated from his body, the police said.

The police report shows that his eyes lacked smooth pursuit in 
horizontal gaze field-sobriety tests. He did not make heel-to-toe 
contact on the walk-and-turn test and did not perform the one-leg 
stand to standard.

East Haven police took a urine sample from Watson after a breath test 
showed his blood-alcohol level fell below the legal limit, at 0.05 
percent, the police reports show. The sample was sent to a Hartford 
lab to be tested for alcohol, narcotics, marijuana and other drugs.

The alcohol portion of the results came in late last month, showing 
his blood alcohol level at 0.07 -- below the 0.08 limit, according to 
the police. The police had been awaiting further testing by the 
Connecticut Toxicological Lab.

THC is known to remain stored in fatty deposits in the body and can 
appear in urine up to 20 days after actual use, according to Dennis 
Hilliard, director of the Rhode Island Crime Lab. Other drugs could 
remain in the system from several hours to several days, he said. 
Cocaine, for example, is out of the bloodstream in hours.

Days after his arrest, Watson, then House minority leader, made a 
rousing floor speech in which he admitted he used marijuana to treat 
flare-ups of the pancreatitis that landed him in the hospital last 
November. But he denied using marijuana the day of his arrest because 
he said he didn't experience pain. He said he kept the marijuana the 
police found to treat his illness, but vehemently denied driving 
under the influence at the time of his arrest.

He acknowledged, however, that he is not among the 3,428 Rhode 
Islanders legally authorized to use marijuana under the state's 
medical-marijuana program. He feared his personal medical information 
would somehow be leaked from the Department of Health, he said.

Watson questioned his treatment by East Haven police, after an 
officer saw his General Assembly ID in his wallet and learned that he 
was a state lawmaker in Rhode Island.

"I wish there had been cameras there. I wish it wasn't just my word 
against the police," he said. But "I deny that I failed any of the 
sobriety tests."

Following his speech, many in the House gave him a standing ovation, 
including all the members of his small Republican bloc. His fellow 
Republicans took a vote of confidence in Watson after hearing his 
explanation about the circumstances of his arrest. A week later, the 
same bloc ousted him from the leadership post he had held since 1998. 
The 10-member GOP caucus chose North Smithfield lawyer and two-term 
Rep. Brian C. Newberry, 39, then the minority whip, as his replacement.

Asked for comment on the latest development, Newberry said "I am not 
getting involved. ... It's not really my business."

Watson recently acknowledged a 1999 arrest by New Hampshire State 
Police in Milford, N.H., for driving under the influence of alcohol, 
first offense. His license was suspended for 90 days and a $420 fine 
imposed after he pleaded guilty in that case in March 2000.

Watson said the only other infraction on his record is a speeding 
ticket he received earlier this year in North Carolina.

Watson is due to be arraigned Tuesday in New Haven Superior Court.

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With reports from Katherine Gregg
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom