Kerry Kennedy is in court this morning over her misdemeanor drug charge, along with a swarm of media and her mother Ethel Kennedy, according to media reports.
Kennedy, who lives in Bedford and is part of the prominent Kennedy family, was arrested in July 2012 after an alleged collision on Interstate 684 in the Town of North Castle involving her vehicle and a truck.
The New York Daily News reported this weekend that Kennedy's defense team was working on a guilty plea bargain to avoid anything happening that would prevent her from continuing her international human-rights work. If convicted, Kennedy could face fines, loss of driving privileges and possibly one year in prison.
Her previous court appearances were held at North Castle's town court in Armonk. However, the case was moved to White Plains. Facility space for jurors, press and the public was a factor. Her attorney, Gerald B. Lefcourt, likened the previous space to a “meeting room.”
The White Plains court building houses Westchester County's court and New York's state supreme court.
The defense team argues that she took a sleeping pill accidentally. In paperwork submitted for the case, Kennedy admitted to taking sleeping medication accidentally, which she was prescribed, instead of her thyroid medication prior to leaving home to go to a gym.
Lefcourt said it is “not a crime if it's an accidental ingestion.”
Prosecutors argue that she should have known, should not have gotten behind the wheel, and shouldn't have left the scene of the accident.
Two defense requests to dismiss have been denied.
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