Abernathy censured for trying to sneak pot into country

January 14, 1998 - Associated Press

ATLANTA - State Sen. Ralph David Abernathy III stared straight ahead Wednesday as his colleagues voted to reprimand him for trying to sneak marijuana into the country in his underwear.

By a vote of 51-2, the Senate approved a resolution censuring Abernathy, who was caught with a quarter of an ounce of the drug at the Atlanta airport as he returned from Jamaica last month.

Abernathy, 38, is the son of the Rev. Ralph Abernathy Jr. - the civil rights leader who became head of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference after the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was slain in 1968.

Abernathy, a Democrat from Atlanta, said nothing as lawmakers chastised him.

Senate Ethics Chairman Eddie Madden, a Democrat, called Abernathy's act ``inexcusable.''

After the vote, Abernathy said he hopes his constituents will forgive him.

``I'm going to do all that I can to restore the confidence of my voters through hard work and service,'' he said.

The Customs Service fined Abernathy $500 but did not charge him with a crime.

A Republican in the state House of Representatives has introduced a resolution to impeach Abernathy.

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