Victim Of Pasadena Boating Accident Outraged At Delegate For Drinking Behind The Wheel

PASADENA, Md. (WJZ)-- New fallout after a prominent state delegate admits drinking before being involved in a serious boating accident. WJZ speaks with the driver of the other boat, and he's outraged.

Mike Hellgren has his emotional reaction and if Del. Don Dwyer (R-Anne Arundel County) will face charges.

Randy Harbin's grandchildren are now out of the hospital. He is worried about public safety if the delegate is not punished in some way. Police tell WJZ that charges are not pending at this time and the delegate's drinking confession is not part of their investigation.

"He needs to understand what he's done," Harbin said.

Harbin and his grandchildren suffered serious injuries after being in a serious boating accident on the Magothy River.

"I knew from the moment that the boat veered into my path of travel that this person must be drunk," he said. "I just don't understand why Mr. Dwyer isn't being charged. I had blood under my fingernails from where I was holding the wheel."

Dwyer apologized in a stunning confession outside Shock Trauma.

"It is true that I was drinking while I was operating my boat yesterday," he told the press on Thursday. "It's also been reported that my blood-alcohol content was .2."

Video Of Dwyer's Prepared Statement To Reporters:

Hellgren: "We have a number of injuries and we have this confession where he says he's been drinking. Why hasn't he been charged?"
Capt. Jerry Kirkwood, a police officer with the Department of Natural Resources (DNR): "We don't have any evidence of that at this point. That's what the investigation is going to tell us. The investigation right now is to find out what caused this accident."

Del. Dwyer's political future is now uncertain. If convicted of a felony, he will be forced to leave office.

Harbin does not want the prominent politician to get any preferential treatment and he wants to stop this from happening again.

"In considering that he holds a high position of regard, we hold them to higher levels," Harbin said. "I think the next police detail ought not to be security but his detention."

Police say they are still waiting on final toxicology tests to confirm the blood alcohol content. Meanwhile, Dwyer urged people not to drink and operate their boats. He said he regrets his actions.

There is no speed limit on the part of the river where the accident took place.  But investigators are still looking into whether speed was a factor.