Packwood Denies Claim of Sex Misconduct Involving Minor

WASHINGTON —  Responding to what some senators call the most serious complaint against him, Sen. Bob Packwood (R-Ore.) took “strong exception” Friday to the account of a woman who is accusing him of sexual misconduct toward her when she was 17.

Packwood said that “for the moment, at least,” he will only tell the Senate Ethics Committee his version of what happened with his former summer intern in 1983.

The panel’s staff recently interviewed the accuser in closed session and must offer Packwood a chance to respond privately.

Packwood said in a written statement that he was given the deposition Thursday. “I take strong exception to her version of the event,” he commented.

Packwood, who has been under investigation by the committee for more than 2 1/2 years, identified the woman in his statement after she had been named in the media earlier Friday. That angered Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), who has unsuccessfully tried to force public hearings in the case.

“First, Sen. Packwood improperly releases her name and then publicly comments on her claims . . . ,” she said. “Sen. Packwood’s comments can only be interpreted as an attempt to intimidate her and any other potential victims who may come forward.”

The woman’s lawyer, W. Neil Eggleston, said it was “outrageous that he would deny her allegations” and that Packwood identified the woman in his statement.

“This is the type of invasion that she had sought to avoid,” Eggleston said.

Packwood spokeswoman Bobbi Munson said the woman’s name was included because her identity was mentioned in news stories early Friday.

The Associated Press published her name in a news story in Oregon based on an account in a state newspaper, but did not transmit the name nationally.

The Ethics Committee has put Packwood’s case on hold until September, while the staff investigates the woman’s complaint and that of another woman who recently contacted the panel.