BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Rand Paul is suing a neighbor who admitted tackling Paul as he mowed his yard.
The Bowling Green Daily News reports the complaint filed Friday seeks compensatory and punitive damages from neighbor Rene Boucher for "physical pain and mental suffering" from the November assault.
Boucher says his actions were brought on by Paul repeatedly stacking yard debris near a shared property line. Paul suffered multiple fractured ribs. The lawsuit calls Boucher's actions "unnecessarily cruel, malicious, willful, wanton" with total disregard for Paul's "rights, life and liberties."
The lawsuit charges that Paul has "been deprived of his enjoyment of life" and left with an increased likelihood of injury and disease. It also asks to prevent Boucher from contacting the Paul family or Boucher "will continue ... the pattern of stalking and harassment."
Boucher pleaded guilty to assaulting a member of Congress and was sentenced this month to 30 days in jail and fined $10,000.
"To the best of my knowledge, Sen. Paul has not suffered any loss of any income and doesn't appear that he will in the future," said Matt Baker, Boucher's lawyer. "It was established at the sentencing hearing that he does not have any out-of-pocket medical expenses in this case, and at some point after the incident he told Fox News in an on-camera interview that he has not taken any prescription pain medication, and so all that is to say we're going to defend this civil suit just like we would any other and see if we can get it resolved as efficiently as possible."
