WASHINGTON (MNI) – The least known Obama administration Cabinet
member, Commerce Secretary John Bryson, is a little better known Monday
for his dual auto accidents in San Gabriel, California over the weekend,
caused, the Department now says, by his suffering a “seizure.”
No one was injured in the accidents. Police said that there was no
indication alcohol or drugs were involved. Bryson, 68, was hospitalized
after the second incident but released. A Department spokesman said he
was administered treatment for his seizure.
The details of the crashes are still under investigation. Bryson
was initially charged with felony hit and run but if subsequent tests
confirm what his Breathalyzer test indicated that there was no alcohol
involvement, formal charges are said to be unlikely.
Police said about 5 p.m. Saturday the Lexus Bryson was driving
slammed into the rear end of a Buick. Bryson, the police said, spoke to
the three men inside and then hit the Buick a second time. When Bryson
allegedly drove away, the three men in the Buick followed while calling
police.
Bryson’s car then traveled into territory patrolled by the Los
Angeles County police and eventually hit a second vehicle. Police said
he was alone and unconscious behind the wheel of his car when they
arrived.
He was in Southern California to deliver the commencement address
at Pasadena Polytechnic School, a kindergarten through 12th grade
institution where his daughters attend.
Before being sworn in to be Commerce Secretary in October, to
replace Gary Locke who became the U.S. Ambassador to China, Bryson had
been chairman of the parent company of Southern California Edison.
“Secretary Bryson was involved in a traffic accident in Los Angeles
over the weekend,” Department spokeswoman Jennifer Friedman said in a
statement Monday. “He suffered a seizure. He was taken to the hospital
for examination and remained overnight for observation. He was released
and has returned to Washington. The investigation is ongoing.”
The secretary, she said, “has no public events scheduled for
today.”
** MNI Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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