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Congressman Etheridge Accused Of Assaulting Student On Video

By Lois Alley, The Raleigh Telegram

Monday, June 14, 2010

WASHINGTON DC - An edited video is being circulated that shows US Congressman Bob Etheridge grabbing a student who is asking him questions on a sidewalk in Washington.

Representative Etheridge (D-NC) is running against Republican challenger Renee Elmers in a bid to keep his seat in the 2nd Congressional District, which includes parts of the Triangle area around Raleigh. According to various media reports, the video was made as Congressman Etheridge left a fundraiser for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Media across the state were made aware of the video by an email sent out by the North Carolina Republican Party on Monday morning. It should be pointed out the video has been edited and it is unknown if there were parts of the incident that were left out of the final version.

In the video that appeared on YouTube, a student wearing a suit jacket holding a camera approaches Congressman Etheridge as he walks down a sidewalk. Another student behind the student is filming the incident on another video camera.

“Hello Congressman Etheridge,” said the student. “Do you fully support the Obama agenda?”

“Who are you?” asked Congressman Etheridge.

After the camera shakes, the video shows Etheridge grabbing the student, asking again, “Who are you?”

He initially grabs his hand and then holds it as he asks again, “Tell me who you are.”

The second student tells the Congressman, “We’re just here for a project, sir.”

At one point, the student says “We’re in a public place,” to which Etherdige responds, “So am I, now tell me who you are.”

The student asked for Congressman Etheridge to let go of his arm several times.

At the end of the video, Congressman Etheridge forcefully grabs the first student around his neck and pulls him closer to him and then holds him in a bear hug around his shoulders.

At that point, the student says “Please let go of my me,” while the other student shouts “Sir, Sir!” to try and get Etheridge to stop grabbing the student.

At this time, it is not known who the students were and in the video, the face of the student on camera was blurred out.

Calls made to Congressman Etheridge’s press secretary Don Owen were unsuccessful on Monday. A staffer said that Owen was on a phone call and said to leave a voicemail. Owen’s voicemail box was full. An email sent to Owen’s email address bounced back, possibly due to an email box being full.

The Republican Party in North Carolina has been quick to pounce on the video as a campaign tool.

According to a statement issued on Monday afternoon, NC GOP Chairman Tom Fetzer and Etheridge’s Republican opponent will be holding a press conference at 3pm in Raleigh to make statements about the incident.

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