PA official cited for drunkenness to take leave for treatment

By: Scott Detrow

A member of the Rendell Administration is voluntarily entering a treatment program two days after an arrest for public drunkenness.

By: Scott Detrow

A member of the Rendell Administration is voluntarily entering a treatment program two days after an arrest for public drunkenness.

Transcript:
Acting state Labor and Industry Secretary Sandi Vito will take the next week off work, and undergo substance abuse treatment. This comes after she was cited for public drunkenness during an incident at the Harrisburg Hilton on Wednesday night. Governor Rendell’s spokesman, Chuck Ardo, says the administration is still supporting Vito, who needs to be confirmed by the Senate.

Ardo: “Her decision to enter treatment was less of an admission of serious alcohol problem then it was of bad decision making as a result of alcohol. And in her position, she understands that she can’t afford to make bad decisions, even on her own time.”

Ardo says deputies will run the Labor and Industry Department during Vito’s absence. He says she’s hoping to “get a better understanding of how alcohol can affect her decision making.”