Rand Paul Assaulted At Home Update: Suffers 5 Broken Ribs After Neighbor Tackles Senator While Mowing Lawn

Senator Rand Paul, who is a very familiar face in headline news for his politics, was assaulted at his home on Friday afternoon. A call came in from Paul’s Bowling Green home at 3:21 p.m. and the Kentucky State Police responded to the senator’s residence.

The suspect was arrested after he allegedly “intentionally assaulted” Paul, according to police. Paul suffered a “minor injury” in this home assault, reports CNN News. The suspect was identified as Rene Albert Boucher, 59, who was taken into police custody.

Boucher was charged with one count of fourth-degree assault and he was still being held on a $5,000 bond at the Warren County Regional Jail as of Saturday afternoon. He will have his initial court appearance on November 9.

Update November 5 at 6:30 p.m: Senator Rand Paul is recuperating after suffering five broken ribs from this assault, according to the Business Insider. According to Paul’s senior advisor, Doug Stafford said there is no time set for when Paul will return to work. Right now he is in “considerable pain” and getting around is proving difficult for the Senator, which would include flying. Stafford described the broken rib injury on Sunday. Business Insider reports that Stafford conveyed, “the broken ribs include three displaced fractures, which can lead to life-threatening injuries.” The severe pain that Paul is experiencing from these fractures could last for weeks or even months. Earlier reports indicated Paul suffered only “minor injuries” and that he was “fine.”

Update November 5 at 8 a.m.: Rene Boucher is Rand Paul’s neighbor, according to Fox & Friends Weekend on their Sunday morning show. Paul was mowing the lawn at his Bowling Green home when Boucher came up from behind and tackled him to the ground, reports the Bowling Green Daily News.

The police report indicates this assault caused injuries to Paul’s face and ribs, leaving the Senator in pain. Because his rib area was injured Paul had trouble breathing after the assault but his injuries are considered “minor” and his spokesperson reports that he is “fine.”

Boucher is a doctor, an anesthesiologist and pain specialist in Bowling Green. He is the inventor of the Therm-A-Vest, which is a cloth vest “partially filled with rice” and when heated it delivers that heat “directly to the area f the back where most pain is felt,” according to the Bowling Green Daily News.

The Washington Post reports that it is unclear if politics were a motive in this assault. Paul and Boucher live in adjoining homes in a Bowling Green gated community, but there is a large amount of land between the two homes. A friend of the family, Robert Porter, talked with reporters after stopping by to see Paul on Saturday night.

According to the Washington Post, “Porter said that he and Paul and their spouses raised their kids together. He also traveled with the senator to Guatemala in 2014 as part of a missionary trip to provide free eye care to hundreds of impoverished patients.” Paul, who is an ophthalmologist, practiced in Bowling Green before he was a senator.

The Post also described the scene of the reported assault, conveying that Paul was wearing earplugs while on a riding lawnmower in his yard at the time. It was when he stepped off the mower to move something in the yard that Boucher came up from behind, blindsiding the Senator.

Back to original article:

The details of this assault on Paul were “not immediately clear,” reports CNN, and the investigation into this incident is still on-going, according to Jeremy Hodges, a police spokesperson. The local Bowling Green News reports that the alleged assailant, Boucher, is also a resident of Bowling Green. According to Fox News’ live coverage on Saturday afternoon, Boucher is a retired doctor and also a Democrat.

“Senator Paul was blindsided and the victim of an assault,” Paul’s spokesperson, Kelsey Cooper told reporters. She went on to say that the “assailant was arrested and it is now a matter for the police. She also offered an update on Senator Paul’s injury, saying — “Senator Paul is fine.”

Rand Paul is a familiar face in the news when it comes to his support of Donald Trump. Paul recently had an interview with MSNBC’s Kasie Hunt and when he was asked if the United States could benefit from a GOP primary in 2020, he said the following.

“I think no one can stop primaries from happening and there could well be a primary that happens.” His next comment is what made the headlines. The questions regarding Trump’s intentions to run for reelection in 2020 have not been given a definitive answer as of yet.

“Before you even get to that, you need to know, is President Trump running for reelection? I think you won’t know that until you get into sort of — second, third year of his presidency.” After his interview, there was still no definitive answer on Trump’s future plans in politics.

[Featured Image by Timothy D. Easley/AP Images]