HOUSE REPUBLICANS FILE FOR ABERNATHY IMPEACHMENT

A handful of House Republicans launched impeachment proceedings Wednesday
against state Sen. Ralph David Abernathy III, who was caught with a small
packet of marijuana in his underwear at Hartsfield International Airport
earlier this month.

The initiative surprised even Republican leaders in the House and Senate.
It came the day before the Senate Ethics Committee considers whether to
punish Abernathy, an Atlanta Democrat, and rewrite conduct rules for
senators.

Rep. Bart Ladd (RAtlanta), the group's spokesman, called for Abernathy's
immediate resignation, saying he had disqualified himself from public
office by intentionally breaking state and federal drug laws.

"You can't fight a war on drugs and shoot blanks," he said at a press
conference with four other House Republicans.

"This is not a DemocratRepublican issue or a blackwhite issue, but what
is right and wrong," said Rep. Sharon Trense (RAtlanta). "It put a blemish
on the Georgia General Assembly."

But Rep. Bob Holmes (DAtlanta) said those calling for impeachment don't
represent all legislators, or their party's leadership. House Minority
Leader Bob Irvin (RAtlanta) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Clay
(RMarietta) neither endorsed nor rejected the initiative.

Ladd prefiled an impeachment resolution in the House, as required under
state law. If a House majority supports it, the resolution would move to
the Senate, where the chief justice of the state Supreme Court would
preside over a trial. Impeachment would require a twothirds Senate vote.

That's never happened before, as far as Ladd or other state officials could
recall. "There's no history or case law on this," said Attorney General
Thurbert Baker. "But it's totally within the House's rights to consider it."

Abernathy, who called his misdemeanor crime a "stupid" mistake, paid a $500
fine and was never arrested. U.S. Customs officials commonly resolve such
airport cases that way.

Holmes compared the impeachment initiative to "taking a sledgehammer to a
gnat."

Clay, a member of the Senate Ethics Committee, said he would reserve
judgment until after the hearing. "What [Abernathy] did was obnoxious and
inexcusable," Clay said. "But you don't want to fly off halfcocked."

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