Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne's initial court date for his hit-and-run charge today was delayed till December 17 after his attorney Michael Kimerer asked for more time to prepare Horne's defense.
Horne has already pleaded not-guilty to the fender-bender, which took place in an apartment complex parking lot at the residence of his paramour, Assistant Attorney General Carmen Chenal, in March of this year.
See also: -Tom Horne's Fender-Bender: Photos for the Curious -Tom Horne Pleads "Not Guilty" on Fender-Bender, Avoids Friday Hearing
General Horne backed into another vehicle but did not get out of his car and leave a note, as is required under Arizona law. Unbeknownst to him, he was being dogged by two FBI agents at the time, who witnessed the accident and took photos of the damaged vehicles.
Earlier, Horne had driven his gold Jag from to meet Chenal at a parking lot at 10th Avenue and Washinton Street. Chenal was in a black VW Passat she had borrowed from another employee of the AG's office.
The couple left in the Passat, with Horne at the wheel, wearing a baseball cap as some sort of disguise. They stopped at the Pita Jungle on Roosevelt Street for lunch to go, then headed over to Chenal's digs next door for their nooner.
Alas, the course of elderly lust never did run true, and Horne had some problems with the security code for the gated resident parking. In backing up, he hit a parked, white Range Rover belonging to Goodyear resident Kevin Montano.
Apparently the damage was minor, as Montano didn't even know his car had been hit until FBI agents called him later to set up an interview.
Sounds pretty straightforward. Both Chenal and Horne have admitted that the Passat hit the Range Rover. They just claim that they didn't realize there had been damage done to other vehicle.
Which, admittedly, is kinda tough when you don't get out of your car.
So why has Horne pleaded guilty? Search me. You would think he'd want to get this comedy over with as soon as possible.
Kemerer's excuse for the additional delay is scribbled on a court continuance form.
"Discovery has been extensive," reads the explanation. "Additional time is needed to evaluate the evidence and determine if further investigation is warranted."
Who knew gathering info on a fender bender witnessed and documented at length by two FBI agents would be so tough?
As to why the FBI was dogging Horne, well, that's because they were looking into a possible campaign finance violation by Horne, as well as suspected fraud, witness-tampering, and obstruction of justice.
See, there was so much more to this investigation than a mouthful of falafel.
