Sen. Rand Paul sees "no justification" for attack
Sen. Rand Paul, R-Kentucky, said that there is "no justification" for an attack that was allegedly initiated by his neighbor and left him with six broken ribs, cuts on his face and a fluid buildup in his chest.
The violent scuffle occurred Nov. 3 at Paul's Bowling Green, Kentucky, home while he was doing yard work. The neighbor, Rene Boucher, allegedly tackled the senator from behind.
Boucher's attorney told CBS News that the attack was not politically motivated, but rather "a very regrettable dispute between two neighbors over a matter that most people would regard as trivial."
Paul told The Washington Examiner that he had not spoken to Boucher for a decade before the attack and that he could not conceive of a motive, but that "there is going to be a criminal prosecution."
"My first encounter was basically being hit in the back," Paul told The Examiner, which notes that he was "struggling to breathe and talk" during the interview. "We've never had words over anything, we've never had a dispute or discussion or words."
While recovery could take months and Paul is in a great deal of pain, he told The Examiner, he has since returned to the Senate, but finds his neighbor's alleged behavior inexcusable.
"From my perspective, I'm not really too concerned about what someone's motive is," Paul said. "I'm just concerned that I was attacked from the back and somebody broke six of my ribs and gave me a damaged lung where at least for now I have trouble speaking and breathing and now I've hurt for 10 days."
Boucher has been charged with misdemeanor fourth-degree assault and was released on a $7,500 bail Saturday.
"Really if you told me he was doing it for some noble cause to feed starving children somewhere, there is no motive," Paul said in the interview. "There is no motive that would justify hitting somebody from behind and breaking their ribs and damaging their lungs, so no, there is no justification for something like that."