LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Rand Paul never shies away from speaking his mind, but his attorneys are asking a Kentucky judge to make the Republican lawmaker’s political beliefs off-limits at his upcoming trial against the neighbor who tackled him while he was doing yard work at his home.
That’s fine with the neighbor’s attorney, who’s pushing back against a second request from Paul’s team: to also refrain from talk of the senator’s lawn-maintenance habits.
Paul suffered multiple broken ribs in the 2017 attack, and the neighbor, Rene Boucher, pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress. Paul sued Boucher, and a jury trial set for Jan. 28 in Bowling Green, Kentucky, will determine the amount of damages the senator can receive.
Paul’s legal team says his political beliefs are “irrelevant” to the trial, noting Boucher has said the attack had nothing to do with politics.
“Any reference to Senator Paul’s detailed political positions could only serve to alienate potential jurors who do not share his beliefs,” Paul’s lawyers said in a recent pretrial motion. “Accordingly, the court should exclude any mention of Senator Paul’s political ideology from this trial.”
Boucher’s attorney, Matt Baker, said Friday he agrees that Paul’s political views are irrelevant to the trial.
A hearing on the motion by Paul’s lawyers is scheduled next…
