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Drug czar, speaking at Harvard, faints

Posted by David Jrolf  March 8, 2011 08:53 PM
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By Stewart Bishop, Globe Correspondent

The director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, R. Gil Kerlikowske, also known as the "Drug Czar," collapsed this afternoon while speaking to law students at Harvard, officials said.

Shortly before 2 p.m, Kerlikowske was speaking to students about US drug policy when he fell ill and fainted, said Rafael Lemaitre, a spokesman for the drug control office.

After being treated by emergency medical personnel at the scene, Kerlikowske was taken to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was evaluated and released, Lemaitre said. Later today, at Logan International Airport on his way back to Washington, D.C., Kerlikowske fainted again at about 6 p.m. and was taken back to MGH for further evaluation.

Lemaitre said that Kerlikowske was alert and speaking with doctors.

Kerlikowske initially fell ill while speaking to a class called "Race and Justice: The Wire," which examines the far-ranging legal procedures, including police procedure, crime policy, criminal investigation, drug interdiction, and sentencing alternatives and other topics that were featured in the acclaimed HBO TV series "The Wire."

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