DOCUMENT: Crime

No Charges For Rep. McKinney

Grand jury declines to indict Democrat in police punching incident

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No Charges For Rep. McKinney

JUNE 16--A federal grand jury today declined to indict Representative Cynthia McKinney in connection with a March 29 incident during which she struck a Capitol Hill police officer. The Georgia Democrat, 51, has acknowledged hitting the officer, Paul McKenna, after she was stopped from entering a House office building. At the time, McKinney--who was not wearing a congressional lapel pin--bypassed a metal detector and did not respond to three requests by McKenna to stop. When McKenna sought to physically keep her from entering the building, McKinney punched him in the chest with a closed fist, according to a police report (a copy of which you'll find below). McKenna is identified as C-1 (complainant 1) and McKinney is S-1 (suspect 1) in the report. After initially claiming that she was a victim of racial profiling, McKinney subsequently went to the House floor to apologize for the 'misunderstanding.' She added that there 'should not have been any physical contact in this incident.' (1 page)