Ashley Todd mugging hoax
Encyclopedia
In October 2008, Ashley Todd, a volunteer for the U.S. presidential campaign
of Republican
John McCain
, falsely claimed to have been the victim of robbery and politically motivated physical assault by a supporter of McCain's Democratic
opponent Barack Obama
. The story broke less than two weeks before the 2008 United States presidential election
on November 4. Todd later confessed to inventing the story after surveillance photos and a polygraph test were presented. She was charged with filing a false police report, and entered a probation program for first-time offenders.
in mid-October to recruit college students. On October 22, 2008, Todd claimed that she was robbed at knifepoint by a "six-foot-four African American of medium build, dressed in dark clothes wearing shiny shoes" at a Citizens Bank ATM
in the Bloomfield
neighborhood of Pittsburgh. She also alleged that after the robber saw a McCain bumper sticker on Todd's car, he assaulted her, cut a reversed letter B into her cheek, and told her "you are going to be a Barack supporter."
Todd's story received international attention, including prominent coverage on Drudge Report
and Fox News. John Moody
, executive vice president at Fox News, commented in a blog
on the network's website that "this incident could become a watershed event in the 11 days before the election," but also warned that "[i]f the incident turns out to be a hoax, Senator McCain’s quest for the presidency is over, forever linked to race-baiting."
According to journalism website Talking Points Memo
, McCain's Pennsylvania campaign communications director told reporters about several aspects of the story before the facts were known or established. John Verrilli, news director for Pittsburgh television station KDKA-TV
, told TPM that the McCain spokesman "gave one of (Verrilli's) reporters a detailed version of the attack that included a claim that the alleged attacker said, 'You're with the McCain campaign? I'm going to teach you a lesson.'" Verrilli also said that the spokesperson had claimed the "B" on Todd's face stood for "Barack". On October 24, a McCain spokesman denied that those quotes had come from the campaign, claiming that "they came from the police and were attributed to the McCain camp because of sloppy reporting." Keith Olbermann
noted that same night, "... that doesn't explain why two television stations both quoted the McCain campaign ... KDKA Pittsburgh specifically followed the McCain quotes with ... 'Police, however, have not confirmed that.' ... the reporter from the other station, WPXI ... says he got those quotes first, 4:08 p.m. yesterday from McCain's Pennsylvania communications director."
test. She now said that she had seen the backwards 'B' on her face while driving, and though she did not remember how she got it, assumed that she herself had done it because she had had previous episodes of memory loss. According to police, Todd provided no explanation of why she provided them the story about the mugging instead.
Todd was charged with filing a false police report, a misdemeanor
charge with a maximum jail sentence of two years. While jailed, Todd underwent a court-ordered psychiatric examination and was deemed to be competent to stand trial, but in need of further counseling. On October 30, she agreed to a deal in which she was released from jail, but must undergo psychiatric counseling as condition of her release. Upon her formal arraignment
in January, Todd would enter a probation
program for first-time offenders, after which her record would be expunged if there had been no further offenses. Continued mental health counseling would also be a condition of the probation period. The deal did not require Todd to enter a plea
.
, in February 2008 Todd had claimed that her car's tires had been slashed and campaign material had been stolen from her car because of her support for Republican politician Ron Paul
, an opponent of McCain for the Republican presidential nomination. Group leader Dustan Costine told the Post-Gazette that Todd was asked to leave the local Ron Paul grassroots group a month later, after she posed as a Mike Huckabee
supporter and called the local Republican committee seeking information about its campaign strategies.
John McCain presidential campaign, 2008
John McCain, the senior United States Senator from Arizona, launched his second candidacy for the presidency of the United States in an unsuccessful bid to win the 2008 presidential election. His candidacy, in the works for a number of years, was informally announced on February 28, 2007 during a...
of Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
, falsely claimed to have been the victim of robbery and politically motivated physical assault by a supporter of McCain's Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
opponent Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. The story broke less than two weeks before the 2008 United States presidential election
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
on November 4. Todd later confessed to inventing the story after surveillance photos and a polygraph test were presented. She was charged with filing a false police report, and entered a probation program for first-time offenders.
Initial claim and political commentary
Todd had worked as a field representative for the College Republican National Committee since August 2008 and had come to Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
in mid-October to recruit college students. On October 22, 2008, Todd claimed that she was robbed at knifepoint by a "six-foot-four African American of medium build, dressed in dark clothes wearing shiny shoes" at a Citizens Bank ATM
Automated teller machine
An automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
in the Bloomfield
Bloomfield (Pittsburgh)
Bloomfield is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh; it is located three miles from the Golden Triangle, which is the city's center, and is represented on Pittsburgh City Council by Patrick Dowd and Bill Peduto. Bloomfield is referred to as Pittsburgh's Little Italy...
neighborhood of Pittsburgh. She also alleged that after the robber saw a McCain bumper sticker on Todd's car, he assaulted her, cut a reversed letter B into her cheek, and told her "you are going to be a Barack supporter."
Todd's story received international attention, including prominent coverage on Drudge Report
Drudge Report
The Drudge Report is a news aggregation website. Run by Matt Drudge with the help of Joseph Curl and Charles Hurt, the site consists mainly of links to stories from the United States and international mainstream media about politics, entertainment, and current events as well as links to many...
and Fox News. John Moody
John Moody (journalist)
John Moody is Chief Executive Officer of NewsCore, the internal wire service of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. He was previously Senior Vice President, News Editorial for the Fox News Channel.-Early life, education and career:...
, executive vice president at Fox News, commented in a blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
on the network's website that "this incident could become a watershed event in the 11 days before the election," but also warned that "[i]f the incident turns out to be a hoax, Senator McCain’s quest for the presidency is over, forever linked to race-baiting."
According to journalism website Talking Points Memo
Talking Points Memo
Talking Points Memo is a web-based political journalism organization created and run by Josh Marshall, journalist and historian covering issues from a "politically left perspective,". It debuted on November 12, 2000...
, McCain's Pennsylvania campaign communications director told reporters about several aspects of the story before the facts were known or established. John Verrilli, news director for Pittsburgh television station KDKA-TV
KDKA-TV
KDKA-TV, channel 2, is an owned and operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. KDKA-TV broadcasts from a transmitter located in the Perry North neighborhood of Pittsburgh, and its studios are located in downtown Pittsburgh at Gateway Center....
, told TPM that the McCain spokesman "gave one of (Verrilli's) reporters a detailed version of the attack that included a claim that the alleged attacker said, 'You're with the McCain campaign? I'm going to teach you a lesson.'" Verrilli also said that the spokesperson had claimed the "B" on Todd's face stood for "Barack". On October 24, a McCain spokesman denied that those quotes had come from the campaign, claiming that "they came from the police and were attributed to the McCain camp because of sloppy reporting." Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann
Keith Theodore Olbermann is an American political commentator and writer. He has been the chief news officer of the Current TV network and the host of Current TV's weeknight political commentary program, Countdown with Keith Olbermann, since June 20, 2011...
noted that same night, "... that doesn't explain why two television stations both quoted the McCain campaign ... KDKA Pittsburgh specifically followed the McCain quotes with ... 'Police, however, have not confirmed that.' ... the reporter from the other station, WPXI ... says he got those quotes first, 4:08 p.m. yesterday from McCain's Pennsylvania communications director."
Hoax exposure and aftermath
On October 24, Todd confessed to inventing the story after police reviewed surveillance camera photos and administered a polygraphPolygraph
A polygraph measures and records several physiological indices such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while the subject is asked and answers a series of questions...
test. She now said that she had seen the backwards 'B' on her face while driving, and though she did not remember how she got it, assumed that she herself had done it because she had had previous episodes of memory loss. According to police, Todd provided no explanation of why she provided them the story about the mugging instead.
Todd was charged with filing a false police report, a misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
charge with a maximum jail sentence of two years. While jailed, Todd underwent a court-ordered psychiatric examination and was deemed to be competent to stand trial, but in need of further counseling. On October 30, she agreed to a deal in which she was released from jail, but must undergo psychiatric counseling as condition of her release. Upon her formal arraignment
Arraignment
Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal complaint in the presence of the defendant to inform the defendant of the charges against him or her. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea...
in January, Todd would enter a probation
Probation
Probation literally means testing of behaviour or abilities. In a legal sense, an offender on probation is ordered to follow certain conditions set forth by the court, often under the supervision of a probation officer...
program for first-time offenders, after which her record would be expunged if there had been no further offenses. Continued mental health counseling would also be a condition of the probation period. The deal did not require Todd to enter a plea
Plea
In legal terms, a plea is simply an answer to a claim made by someone in a civil or criminal case under common law using the adversary system. Colloquially, a plea has come to mean the assertion by a criminal defendant at arraignment, or otherwise in response to a criminal charge, whether that...
.
Prior claim by Todd
According to an October 25, 2008, article in the Pittsburgh Post-GazettePittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
, in February 2008 Todd had claimed that her car's tires had been slashed and campaign material had been stolen from her car because of her support for Republican politician Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
, an opponent of McCain for the Republican presidential nomination. Group leader Dustan Costine told the Post-Gazette that Todd was asked to leave the local Ron Paul grassroots group a month later, after she posed as a Mike Huckabee
Mike Huckabee
Michael "Mike" Dale Huckabee is an American politician who served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007. He was a candidate in the 2008 United States Republican presidential primaries, finishing second in delegate count and third in both popular vote and number of states won . He won...
supporter and called the local Republican committee seeking information about its campaign strategies.