Kavanaugh: Ocean City 'Beach Week' culture in spotlight
Hayley Harding
The third accuser of Brett Kavanaugh alleges some of the U.S. Supreme Court nominee's misconduct happened in Ocean City, Maryland, in the 1980s.
In a statement signed by Julie Swetnick and released by lawyer Michael Avenatti on Wednesday, Swetnick said she observed Kavanaugh's misconduct on several occasions, including behaving physically aggressive toward girls, pressing them against him without their consent and trying to remove or shift their clothing to expose their private body parts.
"I have been told by other women that this conduct also occurred during the Summer months in Ocean City, Maryland on numerous occasions," Swetnick wrote in the statement. "I also witnessed such conduct on one occasion in Ocean City, Maryland during 'Beach Week.' "
She further alleges that in approximately 1982, she became the victim of "a 'gang' or 'train' rape" during which Kavanaugh and his longtime friend Mark Judge was present.
"This is ridiculous and from the Twilight Zone," Kavanaugh said in a statement released by the White House on Wednesday. "I don't know who this is and this never happened."
If Swetnick was untruthful in her statement submitted to the Judiciary Committee, it would be considered perjury and could cost her security clearances with the U.S. Department of Treasury, the U.S. Mint and the IRS.
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Avenatti called for an FBI investigation into Swetnick's allegations and said Kavanaugh should "under no circumstances" be confirmed without a full investigation. Senate Democrats called Wednesday for Trump to either withdraw his nomination of Kavanaugh or otherwise reopen the FBI investigation into the claims.
Beach Week is a period of time following high school graduations in which recent graduates from across Maryland and surrounding states head to the beach to celebrate. These events sometimes include alcohol.
Kavanaugh's calendar from that summer was released Wednesday by the Senate Judiciary Committee in advance of Thursday's scheduled hearing. There are several references to trips to the Eastern Shore and beaches, including an entry for "Beach Week" from June 5, 1982, to June 13, 1982.
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Ocean City is a popular vacation destination with 10 miles of free beach and a three-mile boardwalk. The resort town is about 150 miles from Washington, D.C.
As a tradition, beach week has happened for decades. It is also called senior week, and locals call senior week visitors June bugs.
The legal age to drink beer and wine in Maryland was 18 from 1974 to 1982, when it raised to 21 (but included a grandfather clause for those who were previously old enough to drink). Kavanaugh, born in 1965, did not turn 18 until 1983.
Ocean City officials say drinking culture during beach week has not changed drastically in recent years.
Jessica Waters, communications manager for the town of Ocean City, acknowledged that young adults who come to Ocean City for beach week partake in "certainly a level of celebration" but, for the most part, "act responsibly."
"It's certainly naive to think that some people don't drink, but we have very few incidents," Waters said.
Years ago, the town adopted Play It Safe, an initiative that sponsors alcohol- and drug-free fun for senior week particpants. The decades-old program promotes fun activities that don't involve being under the influence.
Donna Greenwood, chairwoman of the Play It Safe program, said in her experience, students do not come to Ocean City looking for trouble. She said she came as a senior herself, and she sees "so many good kids" now as she did then.
The organization is taking a proactive approach to cut down on drinking and get generations of recent graduates home safely.
"Things can happen anywhere. They can happen in Ocean City or at home," Greenwood said. "What we're doing (through Play It Safe) is we're offering a good choice to them, and we're working to send them back to their parents safe."
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Swetnick is the third woman to accuse Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct, although she did not specifically say he assaulted her.
The first woman, Christine Blasey Ford, alleged Kavanaugh held her down and tried to remove her clothes while they were both in high school. She is set to testify Thursday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The second, Deborah Ramirez, alleged that Kavanaugh exposed himself to her while they were freshmen at Yale University.
Judge, Kavanaugh's friend from high school, has been mentioned in both Ford and Swetnick's accusations. Ford said he was the only witness to her accusations. Swetnick named him multiple times in her statement, saying she saw Judge and Kavanaugh engage in "highly inappropriate conduct," refusing to take no for an answer and even spiking drinks at house parties with "drugs and/or grain alcohol so as to cause girls to lose ... their ability to say 'No.' "
No one had heard from him for several days until a Washington Post reporter found him in "the house of a longtime friend in Bethany Beach." Republicans on the Judiciary Committee are not requiring Judge to testify after he sent a letter to the committee saying he has "no memory of this alleged incident" and that he "never saw Brett act in the manner Dr. Ford describes."
Kavanaugh denies all allegations.
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