The Chappaquiddick incident refers to the circumstances surrounding the 1969 death of
Mary Jo Kopechne, a former staff member in Senator Robert F.
Kennedy's 1968 presidential campaign. Edward Kennedy was driving a car with Kopechne as his passenger when the Senator drove off Dike Bridge into the channel between Chappaquiddick Island and
Martha's Vineyard. The Senator swam to safety, but Kopechne died in the car. Kennedy left the scene and did not call authorities until after Kopechne's body was discovered the following day. He pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and was sentenced to two months in jail, suspended.
Chappaquiddick
Island is a small
island off the eastern end of the larger island of
Martha's Vineyard and is part of the town of Edgartown, Massachusetts
