Washington Descendent To France To Face Charges

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) – An ancestral nephew of the first American president has agreed to be returned to France to face charges that he hit and seriously injured a fellow American with a bottle in a St. Tropez discotheque last summer.John A. Washington V, an Oxford University history student, has been in American custody since Dec. 18, when he was arrested on an international warrant at the Chautauqua Institution, an educational retreat in western New York.French authorities made a formal request to the American State Department for his extradition last month.On Wednesday, Mr. Washington signed an affidavit waiving his right to fight the transfer and petitioned a federal court in Buffalo to expedite the trip.“He’s anxious to return to France to answer the questions and participate in the French procedure,” his lawyer, Vincent Doyle III, said Thursday.Mr. Washington, who is 43 but lists his age as 26 on his student identification card, says he is descendant of George Washington’s brother. In a Web posting, he called himself “the media’s token Washington in the US” and listed among appearances a “Today” show broadcast from Mount Vernon on the 200th anniversary of George Washington’s funeral.Witnesses told police that Mr. Washington was at a St. Tropez club called “Les Caves du Roy” about 4 a.m. July 24 when, unprovoked, he struck London-based financier Colin Hall on the head with a bottle.Mr. Hall, 36, suffered two skull fractures and spent time in a coma, according to court records.Officers who questioned Mr. Washington at the scene said he apologized for striking Mr. Hall and told them there had been a brawl, the court documents said. Mr, Washington was released before police learned of Mr. Hall’s serious condition and then failed to turn himself in once an arrest warrant was issued, according to authorities.He left France three days after the incident, according to an airline itinerary retrieved upon his arrest.Mr. Doyle declined to say whether Mr. Washington disputes the allegations, saying his client does not want the case “tried in the press.”“Since the incident happened, there has been a great deal of information in the papers, some in this country but also in Britain and France, and it’s really been, according to John, distorted and untrue information,” Doyle said. “He would prefer to handle it properly in the courts.”He added Mr. Washington wishes Mr. Hall a full recovery.Mr. Washington is charged with assault with a weapon and could face up to five years in prison if convicted.No date was set for his return to France, which will be coordinated by the American Marshals Service and French authorities. Federal prosecutor Paul Campana said he would likely leave America within 60 days.___On the Net:http://home-on-the-net.com/subs-johnwashington

Washington Descendent To France To Face Charges

Washington Descendent To France To Face Charges

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