Cough syrup blamed for probation violation

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BOSTON, Feb. 15 (UPI) -- The lawyer for the brother of U.S. Olympic skater Nancy Kerrigan said his client is back behind bars in Massachusetts because he took cough medicine.

Judge Joseph M. Walker III of Middlesex Superior Court revoked Mark Kerrigan's bail for violating the no-alcohol provision of his probation, the Boston Herald reported Tuesday.

Kerrigan, 46, has been confined to his mother's home with an electronic monitoring bracelet since being charged with manslaughter in the death of his father, Daniel, in January 2010.

He is randomly required to blow into a sobriety device that records his blood alcohol level and transmits the results to authorities.

Late Saturday night Kerrigan was over the legal limit of .08, authorities said.

His attorney Janice Bassil said she plans to ask the judge to reconsider the matter once she has located the cough syrup Kerrigan took and had it tested.

Kerrigan is due back in court on Thursday for a hearing on a matter unrelated to his probation.