WATERFORD--A year and a half after suffering a traumatic brain injury from a serious fall at his home, state Sen. Andrew Maynard is now recovering from a car crash.
On January 14, Maynard’s car collided with an SUV on Route 23 in Waterford. His car flipped six times, and police say Maynard was driving the wrong way. Maynard’s attorney, Kelly Reardon, said the senator has no memory of the crash.
On Tuesday, Gov. Dan Malloy spoke out in support of Maynard. “Prior to that [the crash], he was hitting on all cylinders,” said Malloy. “Certainly enough to come look for capital spending in areas that would affect his district.”
Democratic Senator Martin Looney released a statement on Wednesday, saying:
I am relieved that, apparently, the results of the accident were not more devastating. I pray for the speedy recovery for all parties involved and I look forward to Senator Maynard’s return to the Senate once the General Assembly is back in session.
Andy has made remarkable progress in recovering from his injury of July 2014. His recent car accident, while certainly a setback, will not undermine his commitment to serving his southeastern Connecticut constituents in the Senate.
Since his return to the Senate in January of 2015, Andy has been a consistent presence at the Capitol, increasingly able to participate in caucus discussions and with a recorded vote on 92% of all votes taken in the Senate this past session. It is not a secret that Andy continues to work on his speech, which was impaired after the fall at his home in 2014. However, he has ably and dutifully represented his district and his principles in the Senate circle.
Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano also released a statement on Wednesday, saying:
I’m praying for Sen. Maynard to have a speedy recovery and am extremely thankful that no one was more seriously hurt. Everyone is pulling for Andy to get back on his feet as soon as possible.
After this extremely sad and unsettling news, there has been a lot of conjecture and many questions that still need to be answered. To put these rumors to rest, I hope that Sen. Maynard can speak with the press to reassure the public that he is involved in what’s going on at the Capitol. I understand that Sen. Maynard may not be able to discuss details of his accident, but he should be able to answer questions the public has about policy issues he deals with in his role as state senator.
Also looking for Maynard to speak is the New London Day. The newspaper printed an editorial Wednesday morning, which was critical of Maynard’s alleged lack of communication with the press since his 2014 injuries.
“We just want to get our questions answered,” said editorial page editor Paul Choiniere.
The Day is wondering if Maynard is keeping his Senate seat so he can claim retirement health insurance and a pension in 2017, or if it is helping to retain a Democratic vote in the Senate. The Day is also questioning if Maynard can serve if he refuses to communicate.
“The longer it goes on that he refuses to do so, the more suspicious we grow that there’s a serious issue,” said Choiniere.