RAPID CITY, S.D. -- Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was given a suspended sentence and two years probation Friday for heroin possession by a judge who said he was not influenced by the Kennedy family name.
Kennedy, eldest son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, agreed to eight special conditions during the 20-minute hearing, then left the courtroom without comment.
Kennedy could have received up to two years in prison and a $2,000 fine.
He was charged with heroin possession after he became ill aboard a Republic Airlines flight that landed in Rapid City last Sept. 11. After he refused medical treatment, his flight bag was confiscated and the heroin was discovered.
He pleaded guilty Feb. 17 to possession of two-tenths of a gram of heroin but authorities predicted he would not have to spend any time in jail because it was his first offense.
Circuit Judge Marshall Young said the sentence he imposed had 'nothing to do with the Kennedy name.'
Young ordered Kennedy to continue a voluntary treatment program, report regularly to the court on his progress and submit to random urine tests. He also said Kennedy would have to perform 1,500 hours of community service work, waive extradition from New York, refrain from travel without the permission of his probation officer, abandon his protection against illegal search and seizure and maintain employment and volunteer work.
Kennedy is also forbidden alcohol, drugs and controlled substances for two years.
'You're the only one who can choose between drug dependence or sobriety and either road you choose the treatment is difficult,' Young said.
When asked if he had any objection to conditions of the probation, Kennedy replied, 'No problems with any of the conditions.'
Before sentencing, Kennedy's defense attorney John Fitzgerald said his client 'had a problem, faced the problem and is on the road to recovery.'
'I am particularly impressed with the candor and honesty you displayed during the court process,' Young told Kennedy.
Kennedy has the right to appeal within 30 days, but his attorneys indicated there would be no appeal.
In contrast to an earlier court appearance, Kennedy'sarrival for sentencing nearly went unnoticed. In February, Kennedy pulled up in front of the courthouse in a black limousine but Friday he arrived in an inconspicuous white car and entered through a back door. Kennedy, 30, was accompanied by his pregnant wife, Emily, his older brother, Joseph, and his New York attorney, Steve Kaufman.
Pennington County State's Attorney Rod Lefholz said it was a 'fair sentence, in line with other first-time offenders.'
He said he did not know how it would affect Kennedy's status as an aspiring lawyer in New York and it 'would be up to the New York bar to decide.'
