State to Pay for Former Senator's Wild Ride
Broke California to pay $335k for Migden's crash
Updated 7:21 AM PST, Tue, Jul 7, 2009
The State of California is using IOUs to pay bills, but the state has agreed to pay $335,000 to a woman who was rear-ended by former State Senator Carole Migden.
In May 2007, several 911 callers in Solano County reported seeing the San Francisco Democrat driving erratically at speeds over 80 miles per hour, weaving across the road while talking on a cell phone and reading a book in her state owned SUV. After hitting guardrails, Migden exited a freeway and rear-ended a car stopped at a red light, injuring a 33-year-old woman and her 3-year-old passenger.
Migden, who now makes $132,178 annually on California’s waste management board, says she does not remember the accident, and blamed medical problems and treatment for the behavior. The senator had previously undergone chemotherapy treatment for leukemia, which she was diagnosed with in 1997.
The senator pleaded no contest to reckless driving charges in superior court and paid several hundred dollars in fines. Due to Migden’s state employee status, the state has already paid tens of thousands of dollars in property damage for this incident and $5,000 for another incident in 2006 when she sideswiped a bus.
Copyright Associated Press / NBC San Diego
First Published: Jul 6, 2009 6:20 PM PST
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