Indianapolis Josh J. Minkler, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, announced on Friday that Rene A. Boucher, 58, Bowling Green, Kentucky, has been charged with assaulting a member of congress, US Senator Rand Paul resulting in personal injury, a felony under federal law.
“Assaulting a member of Congress is an offense we take very seriously,” said Minkler. “Those who choose to commit such an act will be held accountable.”
According to court documents, Boucher and the Senator are neighbors in Bowling Green, Kentucky. On November 3, 2017, Senator Paul was mowing his yard while wearing headphones. Boucher allegedly witnessed the Senator stack brush onto a pile near the victim’s property and “had enough.”
Boucher ran onto Senator Paul’s property and tackled him. As a result of this assault, the Senator suffered multiple fractured ribs and subsequently contracted and required medical attention for pneumonia. Boucher admitted the assault but denied it was politically motivated.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana was assigned the case following the recusal of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky where the offense is alleged to have been committed.
Boucher has signed a plea agreement but no date has been set for the taking of his guilty plea and the imposition of sentence.
This case was investigated by the Louisville office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“Just as we are committed to protecting the American people, the FBI will not tolerate violence directed against members of Congress,” said Special Agent in Charge Amy S. Hess of the FBI’s Louisville field office. “Those who choose to assault any federal official are certain to face serious consequences.”
No future court dates have been set.
An information is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven otherwise in federal court.
According to Assistant United States Attorney Bradley P. Shepard of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana who is prosecuting this case as a Special Attorney to the United States Attorney General, Boucher faces up to 10 years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to $250,000.
