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Dr. William J. Frawley, posing in 2006 while visiting the UMW campus, has been put on paid leave by the college.
Next to a a reflection of The University of Mary Washington Jepson Alumni Center, Rector Bill Poole answers questions from the press concerning President William Frawley's recent charges of driving under the influence.
UMW Vice President Richard Hurley, shown yesterday at the board meeting, will assume the duties of president. |
STATEMENT: Read the board's official release
University of Mary Washington President William Frawley was placed on paid leave yesterday in the wake of consecutive drunken-driving charges against him.
The Free Lance-Star learned yesterday that Frawley, 53, had been charged with driving under the influence in Fairfax County on Tuesday, the day before being arrested in Fredericksburg on charges of drunken driving and refusing a breathalyzer test.
All are misdemeanors. He was alone in the car in both incidents, officials said.
UMW Rector Bill Poole said Frawley was in Mary Washington Hospital's intensive care unit yesterday afternoon. He said at a news conference that he didn't know the details of Frawley's injuries.
"The tragedy of all this is he's such a brilliant man and so capable," Poole told The Free Lance-Star.
The UMW board of visitors met privately in a special session for several hours yesterday and voted to put Frawley, who took over as president in July, on paid leave. Officials emphasized that the action was not a suspension, but could not explain the difference.
UMW officials said they had not spoken to Frawley since his arrest.
"We need to let him clarify his own mind," UMW spokeswoman Ranny Corbin said.
Rick Hurley, UMW's vice president for administration and finance, will perform the president's tasks in the meantime.
Fairfax County police spokeswoman Camille Neville said yesterday that there is an outstanding warrant for Frawley in Fairfax on a DUI charge.
The charge stems from a single-vehicle accident that occurred at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday on Georgetown Pike in Fairfax County near the Great Falls National Park, Neville said. She said a 2006 Toyota Avalon driven by Frawley ran off the road and overturned.
Poole said Frawley totaled the car while "rushing" to a conference at a Fairfax school his son attends.
The UMW Foundation owns the Avalon, Poole said. Frawley was driving his own car before he was arrested in Fredericksburg, Poole said.
Fairfax police spokeswoman Neville said officers at the scene "had probable cause" to believe Frawley was intoxicated. Neville wouldn't say what constituted the probable cause.
Frawley, who has not yet been served with a warrant in Fairfax, was taken by ambulance to the hospital, she said. The Avalon landed on its roof and was towed to a storage lot.
UMW officials said Frawley spent the night in the Inova Fairfax ICU then left early Wednesday morning against advice. Frawley showed up at his UMW office later that day looking tired, Poole said.
He was arrested about 2 p.m. Wednesday at Brompton, the official home of the Mary Washington president.
Officials said they didn't know where Frawley had gone before his arrest.
About 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, a woman called 911 from the Chatham Bridge to report a green Toyota Camry swerving into incoming traffic.
She reported that the car was missing its right front tire and traveling on the rim, said Fredericksburg police spokeswoman Natatia Bledsoe.
City police began following the Camry at the intersection of Amelia and Princess Anne streets. They activated their lights and followed slowly behind to Brompton, about 10 blocks away on Hanover Street.
The officer drew his weapon until it was clear that Frawley did not pose a threat, Bledsoe said. She said the weapon was drawn due to the "suspicious nature of the driver's behavior" and because the officer was alone at the time. That's standard procedure for that kind of traffic stop, she said.
Frawley's forehead was bleeding, and Bledsoe said "his behavior indicated that he was impaired."
At first, Frawley did not respond to police orders to get out of the vehicle and put his hands on the hood, Bledsoe said. He had trouble standing and walking, she said.
"He appeared dazed and confused and had difficulty responding verbally to questions," Bledsoe wrote in an e-mail in response to a question.
Bledsoe said police did not ask Frawley to perform a field sobriety test because they believed his condition made it unsafe.
She said Frawley had suffered the head injury before his arrest in Fredericksburg.
When asked whether Frawley's behavior could've been caused by a head injury or medication, Bledsoe acknowledged there are other forms of impairment.
She said a Breathalyzer test, which Frawley refused, could have helped detect whether alcohol was involved.
Police in the area received just one 911 call about the Camry driving on three tires. That may mean that the car was only on the road with three tires for a short period of time, she said.
The Camry was left in Frawley's driveway after the arrest, Bledsoe said. Other than the missing tire, it did not appear damaged.
An ambulance was called to assist Frawley, but Bledsoe said he declined medical treatment. He later agreed to go to Mary Washington Hospital in a police cruiser.
He is free on a personal recognizance bond and is scheduled to appear in Fredericksburg General District Court next Thursday.
Before coming to UMW last July, Frawley served as dean of the college of arts and sciences at George Washington University. He is married with two children.
Hurley said he thinks officials will discuss Frawley's situation in closed session at next week's board of visitors meeting. A possible topic, he said, is whether they should take a "different action on our part."
"They would probably want to consider any new information that has been obtained, including statements from him," he said.
Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
