In a devastating new ad, a super PAC allied with GOP Senate candidate David Dewhurst accuses his primary opponent, Ted Cruz, of helping contribute to the suicide of a Pennsylvania teenager.
Cruz, a former solicitor general of Texas, has worked privately in recent months on behalf of a Pennsylvania juvenile prison developer involved in the "kids for cash" judicial corruption scandal, as The Dallas Morning News reported. In January, Cruz appeared in court to appeal a prior decision that dismissed a claim the prison developer Robert Mericle and his company brought against Travelers Property Casualty Co.; Mericle had asked that Travelers pay for all the legal fees and damages that resulted from his bribery of local judges to dole out harsh sentences that sent young kids to his company's for-profit juvenile detention facility.
In the ad, which comes from the Texas Conservatives Fund, Sandy Fonzo says her son shot himself in the heart after returning from the jail. She blasts Cruz for defending Mericle.
"Ted Cruz should be absolutely ashamed of himself," she says. "I don't know how he can sleep at night."
The Cruz campaign did not immediately respond to request for comment by the Daily Caller.
The attack ad comes on the heels of what the Associated Press called the "most-confrontational debate" yet in the race to replace retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Tex.).
The primary will be held on July 31, although early voting has already begun.
10 more election stories from beyond the presidential field
Dem Super PAC Out With Three New Ads Targeting GOP Senate Races in Wisconsin, North Dakota, Virginia [The Hill]
California Activists Say Ballot Initiative Is Deceptive [Los Angeles Times]
Georgia Governor Admits Ethics Violations, But Major Cases Dismissed [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
Pennsylvania Bakery Sells Obama And Romney Cookies, Which Will Sell More? [Chestnut Hill (PA) Patch]
Honeywell International Gives Heavily To Both Parties In Missouri Congressional Races [Missouri Watchdog]
Texas Dems Prepare For Runoff In Crucial Congressional District [The Texas Tribune]
Bysiewicz Makes Another Gaffe, Falsely Accuses Murphy In Connecticut Senate Debate [Connecticut Mirror]
Gov. Tommy Thompson Launches First Attack Ad In Campaign For Wisconsin Senate Seat [Associated Press]
Utah State Legislator Rips D.C. While Raking In Federal Money [The Salt Lake Tribune]
Two New Ads In Virginia Senate Race [The Washington Post]
CORRECTION: In an earlier version of this article, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's last name was misspelled. We regret the error.
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