This document is part of a series about Randall "Duke" Cunningham's attempted murder / suicide on November 25th, 2005

Home page for "Cunningham's Last Battle" web site / Contact the author / victim / witness Russell 'Ace' Hoffman

January 5th, 2006

(Sent to a reporter named Alex)

This morning my wife and I went down and talked to a sergeant at the San Marcos Sheriff's station (at least, I think he was a Sergeant who came out to talk to us).  I didn't write his name down -- Henkley or something close to that.

He was much more forthcoming about everything, as far as I could tell.  And just as depressing.  He said my story sounds crazy (evidently, he doesn't like my style of prose (too dramatic, apparently)).

I think when I actually described the accident his attitude towards whether it could have happened AS I DESCRIBED seemed to have changed slightly -- this was very near the end of the conversation and it was only after that that he finally admitted it would be possible for me to start the prosecution of this case and end it as soon as I'm satisfied it was, in fact, Cunningham at the wheel.

He will have Kellerher take a proper report and they'll look into whose car it was that hit me, but he said if they can't seen an obvious connection between the car and Cunningham, they simply won't talk to him about it.  I pointed out that that doesn't match what Bennett had said, since she had said his political station wouldn't change anything.  Well, apparently the truth is, it DOES change things.  I said, "If I identified some guy at the local pizza shop as the other driver, you'd go talk to HIM."  That was when he admitted it's different for Cunningham.  My mistake, of course -- I thought we lived in a democracy!

Fortunately, this cop looked at the damage to my car, which Bennett had refused to do, and I'll bet he has enough experience to know that was not a low-speed crunch, but rather a high-speed sideswipe just as I've been describing.

I assured him I had no interest in prosecuting Cunningham but that until I know something definitive, I consider it immoral for me to let this go and let that driver stay on the road as if I am legally capable of deciding he is not a threat to anyone else.  What if he kills someone?  What did I do to prevent THAT accident?

The officer asked to see my letter to Cunningham (I didn't have it on me) and says I shouldn't have sent it, in terms of prosecuting the case.    Maybe so, but since I don't want Cunningham prosecuted, we got past it.

I'm supposed to hear from Kellerher some time soon, and he'll take his statement and so forth after all.  I'll let you know when that's happened and how it went.

Yours,

Russell Hoffman
Carlsbad, CA