Why Should Delaware Care?
A Delaware representative pleaded guilty to driving drunk and crashing into another vehicle late last year. Yet information about the case was made scarce to the public, and state officials have yet to take a stance on any political consequences for the representative.
Delaware Rep. Kevin Hensley (R-Middletown/Odessa) pleaded guilty Tuesday to driving drunk in a case that saw him crash his truck into a car on Route 1 near Milford, sending a smaller vehicle into a roll that lacerated that driver’s hands and face.
As a result of his plea, Hensley will lose his driver’s license for a year, be mandated to take a DUI course, serve probation and pay a $500 fine. The judge also sentenced him to a suspended 18-month sentence, meaning he will avoid jail time as long as he doesn’t commit another crime in the near future.
A news release announcing the plea said the victim of the crash died weeks later from “a separate medical issue.”
Hensley, a real estate agent who has represented a district that encompasses eastern parts of the Middletown-Odessa-Townsend corridor since 2014, entered his guilty plea Tuesday during a court hearing in Kent County.
Delaware State Police arrested Hensley on Nov. 9 last year, charging him with second-degree vehicular assault as well as charges related to driving drunk, having an expired insurance card, and improperly entering a roadway.
In the deal, prosecutors lowered the vehicular assault charge from second-degree to third-degree while Hensley also pleaded guilty to DUI. The other traffic charges were dropped.
“I am deeply disappointed in the poor judgment I exercised on the evening of November 9, 2024. It served as a wake-up call to me and, as a result, I have chosen to make significant changes in my personal life, including entering a recovery program. I am humbled by the events of these past several months, while thankful for the recovery journey that I am now on,” he said in a statement released afterward by the House Minority Caucus.
The House Republicans did not answer questions as to how Hensley would continue to serve his elected duties without a driver’s license.
A second offense
The Delaware Department of Justice said it believes Hensley’s sentence is “consistent with both the statutory sentencing range” when compared to other defendants with similar charges.
According to the DOJ, this is Hensley’s second DUI, with him being convicted of a separate reckless driving case in 2009. Though the DOJ said it doesn’t consider Hensley’s most recent case as a “second offense” since it’s been more than 10 years since the first incident.
Asked why the state didn’t pursue stronger charges, Caroline Harrison, a spokeswoman for the DOJ, pointed to the 10-year limit.
If this incident had been considered a second offense, state law says he would have been sentenced to a minimum of 60 days in jail and been forced to pay at least $750.
“Had he not accepted a plea, he faced up to 24 months of incarceration as well as additional fines,” Harrison said.
Less than a week before his DUI arrest last year, Hensley won re-election to the statehouse in District 9. Yet no public alerts about Hensley and his case were shared with the public, following his crash.
After failing a field sobriety test, Hensley gave a blood alcohol concentration breath sample, where he blew 0.142, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08, the affidavit for his arrest said.
Spotlight Delaware previously reported on the reasons around why state law enforcement did not tell members of the public a government official was involved in a drunken driving crash.
According to a statement at the time, state police said its departmental policy is to not issue news releases for misdemeanor offenses, irrespective of whether the defendant holds a position of public trust.
Episode could have political effects
Hensley’s District 9 was one of a handful watched for a potential party change, as Democrats have increased registrations in the area. Hensley won with a margin of more than 900 votes though.
Democrats had hoped to flip the seat as they seek a supermajority of 28 votes, which would allow them to pass constitutional amendments – a scenario that requires approval by two-thirds of all legislators — without Republican support.
On Wednesday, House Speaker Melissa Minor-Brown told Spotlight Delaware that she only learned of Hensley’s plea deal after it was publicized by the DOJ. Democratic leaders in the House Majority Caucus said they were not aware of any referrals of Hensley’s case to the House Ethics Committee for review – however, even if undertaken, those proceedings are confidential.
“Although this incident occurred outside of Legislative Hall, we have a responsibility to the public to ensure accountability within our chamber, regardless of party affiliation. We are currently weighing our options to determine the most appropriate response,” Minor-Brown said in a statement.
Hensley serves on a number of the lower chamber’s most important committees, including the influential Joint Finance Committee that crafts the state’s operating budget. He is also a member of the Appropriations; Economic Development/Banking/Insurance & Commerce; Education; Health & Human Development; Housing, and Veterans Affairs committees.
It’s possible that House leaders could strip some or all of those assignments from Hensley as a punishment or even call for his resignation. An impeachment process, which would require two-thirds of the House’s approval and then a two-thirds vote by the Senate following a trial, is unlikely.
Legislators on both sides of the aisle have been caught up in legal issues in recent years, but have rarely been forced from office. A concurrence of crimes and scandals ultimately forced the resignation of Democratic Wilmington Rep. Gerald Brady from office in 2021.
