Paul Pelosi charges: watchdogs warn against 'special treatment' in DUI case
Nancy Pelosi's husband pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}FIRST ON FOX: Government watchdog organizations warned against any "special treatment" being given to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s, D-Calif., husband in his DUI case.
Protect the Public’s Trust director Michael Chamberlain and Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) executive director Kendra Arnold both weighed in on the charges that Paul Pelosi pleaded not guilty to this week.
Pelosi allegedly hit another vehicle while driving drunk and reportedly gave the responding officers his California Highway Patrol 11-99 (CHP 11-99) Foundation — a pro-police charity — membership card when pulled over.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband Paul Pelosi poses for a mugshot following a California DUI arrest. (Napa County Department of Corrections)
The speaker’s husband was arraigned on a pair of misdemeanor charges in a case that typically begins with a felony booking, pleading not guilty to both of them on Wednesday.
Chamberlain told Fox News Digital that Pelosi’s treatment under the law "is further evidence of the existence of a double standard in the DC Swamp."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Government officials and those close to them need to be held to the same standards of conduct and treatment under the law," Chamberlain said. "It appears as if this may be the latest incarnation of family members of powerful government officials being given a pass for their illegal or reckless behavior that the rest of us would never get away with."
Paul Pelosi has generated a series of public relations headaches for his wife, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Paul and Nancy Pelosi pictured here attending an event in 2015. (Dimitrios Kambouris/VF15/WireImage)
Arnold told Fox News Digital that any hint of "special treatment" going toward Pelosi in his DUI case must be "remedied."
"It’s fundamentally important that all laws in our country apply equally to all people," Arnold said. "If at any point it becomes apparent that even a hint of special treatment is being provided then it needs to be remedied."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A lawyer for the speaker’s husband appeared on his behalf in a Napa County, California, court for his arraignment on DUI charges Wednesday morning.
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The attorney, Amanda Bevins, entered a plea of not guilty to both counts on her client’s behalf before Napa County Superior Court Judge Monique Langhorne.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Pelosi's 2021 Porsche and the other driver's 2014 Jeep sustained "major collision damage" in a crash around 10:17 p.m. on May 28, and responding officers found Pelosi in his driver’s seat in his damaged car near the intersection of California Route 29 and Oakville Cross Road.
He faces two misdemeanor charges, DUI causing injury and driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% causing injury.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz contributed reporting.