Crime
Shadow senator busted for DUI
By: Michael Neibauer
Examiner Staff Writer
November 2, 2008
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| D.C. Shadow Sen. Paul Strauss has been arrested for allegedly driving while intoxicated. — Photo from was arrested for allegedly driving drunk, spurring the District’s Republican Party chairman to call for his resignation. — Wikipedia Photo |
Strauss, 44, a real estate lawyer and the former chairman of the District’s Board of Real Property Assessments and Appeals, was nabbed Oct. 1 on the Duke Ellington Bridge in the 2000 block of Calvert Street NW. He was charged with driving under the influence, driving while intoxicated and operating while impaired, according to court records.
Strauss is due in court Nov. 7 to face the charges.
“Because this matter is currently pending before the courts, I cannot comment on anything at this time,” Strauss, a Democrat, wrote in an e-mail. “I expect that this matter will be resolved favorably in court, and I look forward to continuing to serve the people of the District of Columbia in the future."
October was not a good month for Strauss. The day after his arrest, D.C. Auditor Deborah Nichols released an audit slamming him for providing “dubious levels of service to residents and businesses” as head of the Board of Real Property Assessments and Appeals.
Strauss’ failed leadership, Nichols concluded, jeopardized the integrity of the board, which hears assessment appeals on billions of dollars of real estate, “and diminished public trust and confidence” in its decisions.
News of Strauss’ arrest, first reported by the Washington City Paper, sparked a GOP call for his resignation.
“Senator Strauss should resign today,” Republican Committee Chairman Robert Kabel said in a news release. “First the D.C. auditor made recommendations that tainted Strauss’ leadership as Chairman of the D.C. Board of Real Property Assessments and Appeals and now we learn that he was arrested for drunk driving. D.C. residents need real leadership and Senator Strauss has failed his voters.”
Strauss is aiming for his third six-year term as one of the District’s two unpaid, non-voting shadow senators. In that role, he lobbies to end the District’s disenfranchisement in Congress and advance toward statehood. This year, Strauss enlisted “Heroes” star Hayden Panettiere in the effort.
His competition in Tuesday’s election is Republican Nelson Rimensnyder.
