Idaho senator arrested for disorderly conduct

August 28, 2007

Larry Craig, the senior United States Senator for Idaho, was arrested at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in Minnesota after pleading guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct. He has been forced to pay US$575 in fees and serve 10 days in jail, and has been put on unsupervised probation for a period of one year.

Craig was arrested on June 11th after an undercover police officer reported lewd conduct in one of the men's restrooms. At the time, he stated, "I complained to the police that they were misconstruing my actions. I was not involved in any inappropriate conduct".

After his arrest, he stated, "I should have had the advice of counsel in resolving this matter. In hindsight, I should not have pled guilty. I was trying to handle this matter myself quickly and expeditiously".

Craig is a member of the Republican Party. He has served in the United States Senate continuously since 1991, and was a United States Representative from 1981 to 1991. Earlier, he was elected to the Idaho State Senate in 1974, 1976 and 1978. Craig is married, and adopted the three children his wife had had from a previous marriage.

Craig had previously faced allegations of homosexual behavior, and in 1982 went on network news to deny rumors involving cocaine and sex with male congressional pages. He is considered a social conservative in his voting record, and supported a Federal Marriage Amendment to bar same-sex marriage.